There are no changes in the top eight this week, although three teams in the top 25 dropped all the way out of this week's Xcellent 25 National Baseball Rankings. Remember, the rankings stay at 50 for the rest of the season.
No. 18 Shorewood (Shoreline, Wash.), No. 24 Riverdale Baptist (Upper Marlboro, Md.) and No. 25 Orange Lutheran (Calif.) each lost twice last week and dropped from the Top 50. Three other teams, No. 27 Mosley (Lynn Haven, Fla.), No. 44 Woodcreek County (Versailles, Ky.) and No. 45 Mundelein (Ill.) all lost and fell from the rankings.
Jumping this week all the way to No. 26 is Melbourne (Fla.), which finished the regular season undefeated at 28-0. Others joining the Top 50 include Brandon (Miss.), Richmond (Rockingham, N.C.), Flora (Columbia, S.C.), Madison (Vienna, Va.) and Pearland (Texas).
MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Baseball Rankings
Jack Flaherty and No. 3 Harvard-Westlake continue to show that they have one of the nation's most dominant pitching staffs, posting two more shutouts.
Photo by Alyson Boyer Rode
The Crusaders won the Class 4A District 1 championship with a 9-0 win over Mariana in their only game of the week.
Avery Geyer went four innings for the win, striking out five without allowing a run or a hit. The Crusaders begin state tournament play against District 2 runner-up Florida State University (Tallahassee) on Wednesday.
2. (2) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), 21-1
David Tominaga, Mater Dei
Photo by Louis Lopez
The Monarchs set up this week's two-game showdown with Orange Lutheran by downing St. John Bosco (Bellflower) 11-0 and 11-3 in two Trinity League games last week.
Davis Tominaga (5-0) got the win and also went 2-for-3 at the plate in the 11-0 victory.
Jeremy Martinez was 3-for-3 with two RBIs.
Aaron Cross upped his record to 8-0 in the 11-3 victory while
Ryan McMahon had a three-run homer and Martinez had a pair of doubles and three RBIs.
3. (3) Harvard-Westlake (Studio City, Calif.), 20-3
The Wolverines handed Chaminade a pair of shutout defeats last week.
Conor Cuse threw a four-hit 3-0 shutout with six strikeouts on Friday while
Jack Flaherty threw three innings to get the win in a 19-0 contest on Tuesday.
4. (4) Owasso (Okla.), 30-0
The Rams raised their record to 30-0 after they won four conference games last week.
Mason O'Brien had a home run in a 5-2 win over Stillwater while
Cody McGill and
Peyton Laing combined for a one-hit shutout in a 3-0 victory over Tahlequah.
5. (5) St. Francis (Mountain View, Calif.), 24-1
In a West Catholic Athletic League showdown with Serra (San Mateo), the Lancers came out on top with a convincing 13-3 win.
Michael Strem went the distance to get the win, giving up three runs on seven hits with five strikeouts.
Tyler Deason paced the offense with a home run.
Kort Peterson led St. Francis with a home run in a 12-1 victory over St. Ignatius (San Francisco).
6. (6) Sharyland (Mission, Texas), 27-1
The Rattlers completed the regular season with a 10-1 win over Vela (Edinburg).
Sixto Torres gave up one hit over 6 1/3 innings while
Joey Esquivel was 3-for-4 with two runs and an RBI.
7. (7) Venice (Fla.), 24-3
The Indians rang up their fourth-straight shutout to claim the Class 7A District 11 title, defeating Braden River 7-0 in the semifinal and Sarasota 3-0 in the final.
Brandon Elmy and
Cooper Hammond combined for the win over Sarasota, which was the 18th shutout of the season for Venice.
8. (8) The Woodlands (Texas), 27-3
The Highlanders completed their regular season and now await seeding for the Class 5A state playoffs.
9. (10) Cherry Creek (Greenwood Village, Colo.), 13-1
Derik Beauprez, Cherry Creek
Photo by Tim Visser
Cherry Creek won four times last week, defeating Cherokee Trail (Aurora) 18-2 and 10-0, Overland (Aurora) 13-3, and Eaglecrest (Centennial) 10-0.
Derik Beauprez and
Ethan Kang both homered against Overland with Beauprez also homering against Cherokee Trail and Eaglecrest.
Lane Milligan and
Matt Rindal also hit home runs against Eaglecrest.
10. (11) American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.), 23-2
The Patriots won the Class 5A District 16 championship by blanking Pompano Beach 12-0 on home runs by
CJ Chatham and
Zack Collins. They also defeated Hallandale 16-0 in the semifinals with Chatham driving in three runs.
11. (12) Jesuit (Tampa, Fla.), 24-2
The Tigers won the Class 5A District 11 championship with a 5-1 win over Robinson (Tampa).
Leland Saile knocked one out in the win. In a 3-1 semifinal win over Lennard, Saile was 2-for-3 with an RBI and a double.
12. (13) Lincoln-Way North (Frankfort, Ill.), 18-0
Lincoln-Way North took a pair from Bradley-Bourbonnais (Bradley), winning 9-3 and 9-0. The Phoenix also blanked Thornwood (South Holland) 15-0 and beat Bremen (Midlothian) 12-2 to stay atop the state rankings.
13. (17) Magnolia Heights (Senatobia, Miss.), 29-0
Magnolia Heights defeated Lee Academy (Clarksdale) 17-2 and is the No. 1 seed for the MAIS AAA playoffs.
14. (19) Barbe (Lake Charles, La.), 31-4
The Buccaneers are the No. 1 seed for the Louisiana Class 5A playoffs.
15. (20) Gainesville (Ga.), 20-3
The
Red Elephants won three times last week, defeating Apalachee (Winder)
15-0 and 10-0 in region play and Winder-Barrow (Winder) 11-4 in a
non-region outing.
16. (21) Loganville (Ga.), 22-4
Loganville topped Clarke Central (Athens) 12-2 and 12-1 last week.
Clint Frazier hit his 14th home run of the season in the 12-1 outing.
17. (9) Lexington (S.C.), 22-4
The Wildcats dropped their
regular season finale to Flora (Columbia) 9-4, but won their first two
District 5 playoff games with a 6-1 triumph over Lugoff-Elgin (Lugoff) and a
2-0 win over Ashley Ridge (Summerville).
Elliott Lance got the win over
Ashley Ridge, which was ranked No. 2 in the state 4A rankings, with
seven strikeouts.
Nick Ciuffo was 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs
against Lugoff-Elgin. Ciuffo also extended his hitting streak to 25
games.
18. (23) United (Laredo, Texas), 28-1-1
United defeated Alexander (Laredo) 7-6 and Churchill (San Antonio) 6-2.
Aaron Navarro homered against Churchill
19. (22) Steinbrenner (Lutz, Fla.), 23-2
Steinbrenner defeated Wiregrass Ranch (Wesley Chapel) 4-0 for the Class 7A District 9 championship.
20. (28) Buchanan (Clovis, Calif.), 22-2-1
The Bears took two from Clovis West (Fresno) last week, winning 7-5 and 9-5.
21. (29) Barbers Hill (Mt. Belvieu, Texas), 29-2
Barbers Hill defeated Summer Creek (Houston) 10-8 and New Caney 9-3.
22. (34) Desert Mountain (Scottsdale, Ariz.), 26-4
Jake McAdams, Desert Mountain
File photo by Doug James
The Wolves shut out Horizon (Scottsdale) 5-0 in their only game last week.
23. (30) Desert Ridge (Mesa, Ariz.), 26-5
Desert Ridge topped Highland (Gilbert) 10-4 in league play.
24. (14) Carroll (Southlake, Texas), 27-4-1
The
Dragons concluded the regular season with a 10-6 win over Haltom and a
7-3 loss to Rockwall.
Chris Altimont and
Kenny Hill each hit triples
against Haltom, with Hill and
Drew Brown also hitting triples against
Rockwall.
25. (15) Fountain Valley (Calif.), 21-2
The
Barons saw their 16-game win streak come to an end Friday with a 10-1 setback to Los Alamitos. Fountain Valley had defeated Los Alamitos 4-0 two
days earlier.
The Next 25
26. (NR) Melbourne (Fla.), 28-0
Melbourne finished the regular season and district play undefeated after a 14-6 victory over Bayside in the Class 6A District 7 finals.
27. (31) O'Connor (Phoenix), 29-3
O'Connor defeated Boulder Creek (Anthem) 10-0 in its only game of the week.
28. (32) Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati), 14-2
The Crusaders won twice last week, dropping St. Xavier (Cincinnati) 14-1 and Purcell Marian (Cincinnati) 4-0.
29. (33) Tullahoma (Tenn.), 27-5
Tullahoma closed the regular season with wins over Columbia Central 1-0 and 7-2, and a 3-1 win over Siegel (Murfreesboro).
30. (35) East Coweta (Sharpsburg, Ga.), 25-2
East Coweta finished the regular season with three straight wins over Westlake (Atlanta), 7-4, 12-1 and 11-1.
31. (36) Madison Central (Miss.), 22-3
Madison Central defeated Clinton 10-4 in its only game last week.
32. (37) Coronado (Henderson, Nev.), 23-2
Coronado topped Liberty (Henderson) 3-1, Basic (Henderson) 9-5 and Spring Valley (Las Vegas) 11-1.
33. (38) Alexander Central (Taylorsville, N.C.), 19-4
Alexander Central defeated Hibriten (Lenoir) 3-0 and South Caldwell (Hudson) 5-3 last week.
34. (39) Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas), 25-4-1
The Gaels topped Legacy (North Las Vegas) 4-2 and Desert Oasis (Las Vegas) 10-0 last week.
35. (40) Gloucester Catholic (N.J.), 14-1
The Rams did not play last week but have three games scheduled this week.
36. (41) Deer Park (Texas), 25-3-1
The Deer concluded the regular season with a 6-0 win over Channelview and a 3-1 victory over North Shore.
37. (42) Granada (Livermore, Calif.), 18-0
The Matadors held off rival Livermore 5-0 and San Ramon Valley (Danville) 4-3.
38. (43) Tomball (Texas), 26-3
The Cougars have concluded the regular season and await their seed for the Class 4A state playoffs.
39. (46) Spanish Fort (Ala.), 34-6
Ben Aklinksi, Greenway
File photo by Kevin French
The Toros avenged a pair of earlier losses by defeating Faith Academy 6-0 and 3-1.
40. (47) Greenway (Phoenix), 30-1
The Demons defeated Thunderbird (Phoenix) 13-3 in their only game last week.
41. (48) Flower Mound (Texas), 30-3
The Jaguars defeated Marcus (Flower Mound) 8-4 and Ryan (Denton) 9-5 last week.
42. (49) Rancho Bernardo (San Diego), 21-3
The Broncos won three times last week, defeating Mt. Carmel 8-1, 12-1 and 3-0.
43. (50) Frenship (Wolfforth, Texas), 29-4
Frenship defeated Amarillo 11-3 and Andrews 15-2 in non-district play last week.
44. (16) Puyallup (Wash.), 18-2
Rogers
(Puyallup) got the best of Puyallup again with a 6-3 loss on April 22.
Rogers has handed Puyallup both of its losses this year. The Vikings won
their next two games, defeating Spanaway Lake (Spanaway) 20-1 and
Emerald Ridge (South Hill) 2-0.
Kevin Sorum tossed a five-inning
one-hitter against Spanaway Lake.
45. (26) Jupiter (Fla.), 20-4
Jupiter was unable to defeat Palm Beach
Gardens a third time, losing 3-2 in the district final. Jupiter defeated Dwyer
3-0 in the semifinals.
46. (NR) Brandon (Miss.) 25-3
The Bulldogs have won 14 in a row and are ranked No. 1 by the Jackson Clarion Ledger.
47. (NR) Richmond (Rockingham, N.C.), 21-1
The Raiders have won 21 in a row.
48. (NR) Flora (Columbia, S.C.), 19-4
The Falcons are ranked No. 1 in the South Carolina 3A coaches rankings and recently defeated Lexington 9-4.
49. (NR) Madison (Vienna, Va.), 15-1
Since losing its season opener, Madison has won 15 in a row.
50. (NR) Pearland (Texas), 27-5
Completed the regular season with a 10-0 win over Alvin and a 5-0 win over Dobie.
Dropped out: No. 18 Shorewood (Shoreline, Wash.), No. 24 Riverdale Baptist (Upper Marlboro, Md.), No. 25 Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.), No. 27 Mosley (Lynn Haven, Fla.), No. 44 Woodford County (Versailles, Ky.), No. 45 Mundelein (Ill.),
