MaxPreps Top 25 national high school softball rankings

Winning its 59th straight game, Northern (Owings, Md.) moved atop MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Softball Rankings as last week's No. 1 Amador Valley (Pleasanton, Calif.) suffered only its second loss in two seasons.

Northern once again rode the arm of Jess Cummings to victory as the junior pitched her fourth no-hitter in six games this season as the Patriots blanked Calvert, 12-0. They have outscored their opponents 52-0.

Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.) moved from No. 3 to No. 2 this week as it got two more sterling pitching performances from senior Tori Finucane as the Knights steamrolled Southern and Fort Hill, totaling 31 runs. In each shutout victory, Finucane allowed only a single base hit. She struck out 30 in her 12 innings of work.

Circle April 27 on your calendars. That's when No. 1 plays No. 2.

Curtis River (River Ridge, La.) ran its win streak to 55 games with shutout wins over a pair of foes and moved to No. 3 in the rankings.

Meanwhile, Amador Valley won four and lost one in capturing the consolation title at the Michelle Carew Classic in Anaheim last weekend. A 3-1 loss to tournament runner-up Yorba Linda (14-1) dropped the Dons to No. 9 in this week's rankings. Pacifica (Garden Grove, Calif.) won the tournament title for the second year in a row. Pacifica is 15-5 on the season.

Four new teams joined the Top 25 this week — 21-1 Niceville (Fla.), 23-1 Sunrise Mountain (Peoria, Ariz.), 22-2 Mountain Ridge (Glendale, Ariz.) and 21-1 Hagerty (Oviedo, Fla.).

MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Softball Rankings

1. (2 last week) Northern (Owings, Md.), 6-0
In a 12-0 win over Calvert (Md.), Jess Cummings threw her fourth no-hitter of the year. The Patriots have outscored their foes 52-0 this season as Cummings has allowed just three hits in 37 innings. She has struck out 88 of the 126 batters she has faced. Northern, which has won 59 games in a row, has a busy week with five games scheduled.

2. (3) Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.), 8-0
Tori Finucane pitched a pair of one-hitters as the Knights routed Southern (17-0) and Fort Hill (14-0). Amanda Ehlers and Hayley Metcalf each had four hits and combined for nine RBIs in the win over Southern (Oakland, Md.) as Finucane fanned 18. Against Fort Hill, Finucane struck out 12, Shannon Murphy and Jenna Spille had three hits each and Jillian Ferraro hit her fifth home run of season. Finucane has allowed nine hits in eight games and has 109 strikeouts in 47 innings. She has faced 166 batters. She has allowed just one run this season. They visit unbeaten Stone Bridge on Wednesday.

3. (5) Curtis (River Ridge, La.), 23-0
Curtis shut out Haynes Academy, 11-0, and Belle Chase, 2-0, and beat Chalmette, 11-1. Patriot foes have scored only 21 runs. With the three wins last week, Curtis ran its win streak to 55 straight. The Patriots host Cabrini (New Orleans) on Monday and host 20-3 Fontainebleau (Mandeville) on Tuesday.

4. (4) Logan (Union City, Calif.), 7-0
After a week of inactivity, Logan faces Moreau Catholic (Hayward) on April 9.

5. (6) Jack Britt (Fayetteville, N.C.), 11-0
Mary Williams pitched a one-hitter with 10 strikeouts, as Britt recorded its 10th straight shutout. The Buccaneers have outscored their foes 126-2, as eight starters are hitting .361 or higher. Williams and fellow pitcher Stephanie Thomas have allowed just eight hits in 63 innings and have struck out 139 batters. The Bucs visit Lumberton (N.C.) on April 9.

6. (10) Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.), 16-0
The Monarchs swept the field at the Livermore Stampede tournament to run their win streak to 30 games. Mitty hosts St. Francis (Mountain View, Calif.) on Tuesday.

7. (7) Coronado (Lubbock, Texas), 27-1
The Mustangs routed Abilene, 19-2, then scored three times in the seventh to beat 23-7 Odessa Permian, 5-4. Monique Garcia, who is 19-0 on the season, drove in the winning run against Permian. The Mustangs host Midland (Texas) on Tuesday.

8. (8) Mission Viejo (Calif.), 17-1
With a 6-1 win over El Toro (Lake Forest) and an 8-4 win over Dana Hills (Dana Point), MVHS extended its win streak to a dozen. Next up: Trabuco Hills (Mission Viejo) on April 9.

9. (1) Amador Valley (Pleasanton, Calif.), 11-1
The Dons lost to 14-1 Yorba Linda, 3-1, but won four of five games and the consolation title at the Michelle Carew Classic in Anaheim. Johanna Grauer has seven shutouts this season and the Dons have allowed just six runs. The Dons host Granada on Tuesday.

10. (18) Barbers Hill (Mt. Belvieu, Texas), 24-1
Rylan Harvey pitched a one-hitter in a 19-1 win over Humble and Maddi Sumerall, Erin Houthdof, and Chelsey Caldwell drove in three runs each. The Eagles visit Humble on Tuesday.

11. (11) Lake City (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho), 5-0  
The Timberwolves, who took spring break off, visit Lewiston on April 9.

12. (12) Marina (Huntington Beach, Calif.), 14-1
Marina won four games last week — 9-1 over Hart, 7-5 over Peninsula, 2-0 over Rosary (Fullerton) and a 14-0 rout of El Toro (Calif). The Vikings host Las Alamitos on Tuesday.

13. (13) North Medford (Ore.), 12-1
The Black Tornado took took two from Crater (Central Point, Ore.) 12-0 and 11-0. Maryssa Becker pitched a no-hitter, struck out 10 and homered in the first game. Junior Alexis Barkwell pitched a two-hitter and struck out eight in the second game. The Black Tornado visits 8-3 Eagle Point on Tuesday.

14. (16) Immaculate Heart Academy (Washington Township, N.J.), 4-0
Steph Thomas won four games for the week holding her opponents scoreless for the first 24 innings. Natalie Keller is hitting .556 and has three triples in four games. They host Academy of the High Point (Sussex, N.J.) on Tuesday.

15. (17) El Diamante (Visalia, Calif.), 19-1-1
Senior Katy McJunkin hit for the cycle and drove in seven runs in a 19-1 win over Hanford and beat Redwood (Visalia) 10-3 as Sierra Hyland homered, doubled and drove in four runs. Hyland also got the pitching win. The Miners haven't lost in 15 games. They visit Lemoore on Wednesday. 

16. (21) Pearland (Texas), 28-2
The Oilers beat Alvin, 1-0, behind Samantha Show's no-hit, 12-strikeout performance. Two days earlier, Pearland blanked Rayburn for its third straight shutout. The Oilers visit South Houston on Tuesday.

17. (9) Sierra (Manteca, Calif.), 13-1 
Lost 3-2, but bounced back with 11-0 win as Allie Walljasper fanned 15 in a six-inning win. The T-Wolves have outscored opponents 72-14 and Wallsjasper has eight shutouts, averaging two strikeouts per inning. Senior Iyana Hughes is hitting .500. Sierra visits Lathrop on Monday and Sonora on Wednesday.

18. (19) Woodinville (Wash.), 7-1
Stanford signee Madi Schreyer struck out 16 and homered along with Alex Boyd in a win over Inglemoor. The Falcons play Gig Harbor on Wednesday.

19. (21) Carolina Forest (Myrtle Beach, S.C.), 16-1
Carolina beat Calloway County (Murray, Ky.) twice. Since losing 3-2, the Panthers have won three straight and scored 34 times. Alabama signee Marisa Runyon has raised her average to .733 and 21 of her 33 hits have been for extra bases. She has 33 RBIs. Next up is North Myrtle Beach (Little River, S.C.) on April 10.

20. (22) Cy-Fair (Cypress, Texas), 26-2
With 8-1 and 11-4 wins, the Bobcats are outscoring their opponents 247-33. They host Jersey Village (Houston) on Tuesday.

21. (NR) Niceville (Fla.), 21-1
The Eagles overcame 17 strikeouts by Samantha Martin to beat Chiles (Tallahassee) 1-0 last Saturday to avenge their only loss of the season. Winners of 13 straight, the Eagles visit 19-3 Tate (Cantonmet, Fla.) on Tuesday.

22. (NR) Sunrise Mountain (Peoria, Ariz.), 23-1
With a one-hit 9-0 win over Copper Canyon, Sunrise stretched its streak of wins to 17. Outscored foes 214-37. Its lone loss was 5-2 to Glendale's Mountain Ridge (22-2). The Mustangs host Goldwater (Phoenix) on Tuesday.

23. (NR) Mountain Ridge (Glendale, Ariz.), 22-2
Since losing to Horizon, 3-2, Mountain Ridge has won 11 in a row, most recently 6-3 over 20-3 Basha (Chandler, Ariz.). The Lions are batting .425 as a team with four starters hitting .500 or better. Both losses this season have been one-run affairs. The Lions visit crosstown rival Ironwood on Thursday.

24. (NR) Hagerty (Oviedo, Fla.), 21-1
With wins over DeLand and Oviedo, the Huskies extended their winning streak to 14 and set the stage for a Tuesday showdown with 18-4 Lake Howell, the only team to defeat the Huskies this season (4-2 on Feb. 19).

25. (25) Connell (Wash.), 7-0
After a week off, Connell returns to action on Saturday hosting Wahluke (Mattawat, Wash.).

Dropped Out: No. 23 Olathe East (Kan.), No. 20 North Marion (Circa, Fla.), No. 14 Cienega (Vail, Ariz.), and No. 13 Marcus (Flower Mound, Texas).