Top 25 high school baseball rankings

The No. 1 ranked Bishop Gorman Gaels have a big week ahead that will truly test whether or not they are the No. 1 team in the country.

The Gaels travel to Scottsdale, Ariz., to participate in the Big League Dugout Tournament. Bishop Gorman took on defending tournament champion Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.) in the first game on Monday and will take on Downers Grove South (Ill.) in its second game.

The Big League Dugout Tournament annually features some of the top teams in Arizona, Colorado, Utah and Nevada as well as a few invitees from Illinois and California. Other teams to watch in the tournament include Hamilton, host Horizon (Scottsdale), Spanish Fork (Utah) and Regis Jesuit (Colo.) could all challenge Bishop Gorman for first place.

This week's Xcellent 25 National Baseball Rankings do not include any of the games played at the Big League Dugout Tournament, which began on Monday.



The Xcellent 25 had a bit of a shakeup this week as No. 2 St. Francis lost to Valley Christian and No. 3 Farragut lost in a rain-marred game at the Blackman Invitational. Both teams fell in the rankings, but not far. St. Francis dropped to the No. 5 spot while Farragut is No. 11.

Edison (Huntington Beach), paced by All-American candidate Henry Owens, moves into the No. 2 spot while another California school, Amador Valley (Pleasanton) moves up to No. 3. Douglas (Fla.), which is unbeaten so far on the season, moves up to the No. 4 spot in the rankings.

Four teams joined the rankings this week, including The Woodlands (Texas), Ardrey Kell (Charlotte, N.C.), Mesquite (Gilbert, Ariz.) and Highland Park (Dallas, Texas).

MAXPREPS XCELLENT 25 NATIONAL BASEBALL RANKINGS

1. (last week 1) Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas), 7-0
The Gaels won four times last week to remain in the No. 1 spot. Cody Roper, Johnny Sewald and Joey Gallo all homered in a 12-11 win over North Salem. Evan Dunn pitched a five-inning no-hitter for the Gaels in a 12-0 win over North Salem the next day. Roper, Gallo and Erik Van Meetren then all hit home runs in a closer-than-expected 8-7 win over Desert Oasis. The Gaels also defeated Durango 8-2 on Saturday with Kenny Meimerstorf going 3-for-4 with a double, triple and a home run to go with five RBIs.

2. (4) Edison (Huntington Beach, Calif.), 9-1
Henry Owens picked up his fourth win of the season, throwing a one-hitter with 10 strikeouts in a 2-0 win over Huntington Beach. Eric Snyder and Tyler Jones each hit home runs to account for the only runs. Edison outlasted Newport Harbor 9-3 on Friday to remain undefeated in Sunset League play.

3. (5) Amador Valley (Pleasanton, Calif.), 4-0
It's been a slow start of the season for the Dons, who had Friday's game with Logan (Union City) rained out. Amador Valley held off Heritage (Brentwood) 7-6 earlier in the week with Aaron Hafford and Greg Dillon each blasting doubles.



4. (6) Douglas (Parkland, Fla.), 12-0
The Eagles stayed undefeated after a 14-0 win over Deerfield Beach and a 7-6 win over Taravella. Brandon Raaf is leading Douglas with a .543 batting average that includes 14 RBIs and five doubles. Courtland McEachrane is batting .455 while Louis Silverio is batting .450.

5. (2) St. Francis (Mountain View, Calif.), 12-1
Valley Christian (San Jose) continues to be a giant killer in the West Catholic Athletic League, knocking off St. Francis 3-1 one week after beating Archbishop Mitty. The Lancers defeated Serra (San Mateo) earlier in the week 4-2. St. Francis also defeated Sacred Heart Cathedral with Alex Blandino hitting a home run and Ryan Degregorio picking up his fourth win. St. Francis has a big showdown with Archbishop Mitty on Tuesday.

6. (7) Fort Bend Clements (Sugar Land, Texas), 17-2
The Rangers defeated Fort Bend Kempner 6-2 and Fort Bend Travis 14-1 to stay undefeated in District 5A-23 play at 5-0.

7. (8) Fleming Island (Orange Park, Fla.), 14-0
The Golden Eagles won a pair of games by shutout, topping St. Cloud 3-0 and Master's Academy 8-0.

8. (9) Sharyland (Mission, Texas), 19-1
Defeated McAllen Memorial 16-10 on a 5-for-5 performance by Fernando Martinez that included two doubles and three RBIs. Erik Garcia also had a pair of doubles. In a 13-3 win over Mission, Eric Gutierrez and Garcia each hit home runs for the Rattlers.

9. (10) Owasso (Okla.), 12-1
The Rams easily knocked off Muskogee 12-1 early in the week and then won their four games of the Bruin Wood Bat Classic in Bartlesville by defeating Hillcrest (Mo.) 7-0, Rogers (Ark.) 5-1, Thomas Edison (Okla.) 9-0, and Fort Osage 5-1. Dylan Bundy struck out 18 and allowed just one hit in the win over Hillcrest. Bundy is 4-0 on the season.



10. (11) Broken Arrow (Okla.), 12-1
Broken Arrow has won five in a row since returning from Florida, topping Muskogee 9-3 and then winning three straight in the Broken Arrow Jenks Classic with a 4-3 win over defending Arkansas 6A state champion Lake Hamilton, a 6-2 win over Edmond Santa Fe and a 13-0 win over Edmond Memorial. Archie Bradley struck out 11 in the win over Lake Hamilton. Jacob Evans struck out 12 batters in the win over Edmond Memorial while Mason Hope fanned 13 against Edmond Santa Fe. The Tigers defeated Fort Smith Southside 18-1 in the finals with Dylan Delso belting a home run.

11. (3) Farragut (Knoxville, Tenn.), 8-2
Senior pitcher Philip Pfeifer won his 43rd career game in a 2-0 win over Columbia at the Blackman Invitational, setting a Tennessee state record. Pfeifer threw a one-hitter and struck out 12 to put his career record at 43-3. Pfeifer is committed to play at Vanderbilt next season. Farragut also defeated William Blount 10-0 earlier in the week on a no-hitter by Xander Taylor. He struck out nine and walked only one in the win. The Admirals topped Blackman 10-1 on Friday as well. On Saturday, the Admirals fell to Dyer County 17-13 in a game played in the rain.

12. (13) Langham Creek (Houston), 15-2
The Lobos won three district games, topping Jersey Village 3-2, Cypress Falls 12-0 and Cypress Ranch 12-9. Logan Onda got the win over Cypress Ranch while Brandon Montalvo beat Cypress Falls.

13. (15) Walsh Jesuit (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio), 0-0
Opens season March 28.

14. (17) Indianapolis Cathedral, 0-0
Begins March 30.

15. (NR) Buchanan (Clovis, Calif.), 11-1
The Bears defeated Clovis West 7-1 and have won 11 in a row since losing their season opener to Frontier (Bakersfield), a team that hit 10 home runs in one game this season. Dominic Topoozian struck out eight in five innings for the Bears in the win over Clovis West.



16. (19) Flanagan (Pembroke Pines, Fla.), 14-2
Defeated Cooper City 14-3 with Andres Sanchez belting his eighth home run of the season. Gaby Aurrecoechea also had a home run while Mike Emigh went five innings and struck out seven in the win. In a 13-2 win over Western, Danny Zardon was 3-for-4 with a double and a grand slam. Michael Melendez added a home run and Sanchez launched his ninth homer of the season. Melendez also got the win, his fifth of the season.

17. (20) Pensacola Catholic (Fla.), 13-0
The Crusaders played twice over the weekend, topping West Florida (Pensacola) and defeating Bay (Panama City). Pensacola Catholic defeated West Florida 7-3 in the final game on Saturday. The Crusaders also blanked Bay 6-0. Earlier in the week they knocked off Chipley 11-5.

18. (21) Madison Central (Miss.), 14-0
The Jaguars had a big week, sweeping two from Grenada (3-1, 2-1) and topping Vicksburg 12-7 and Lawrence County 14-4. Lee Harbour, Drew Broyles and Curt Chism each hit home runs in the Lawrence County win. David Turner, Zach Irwin and Chism all homered against Vicksburg.

19. (22) East Coweta (Sharpsburg, Ga.), 11-0
The Indians routed their opponents during the week, topping Newton 11-6, Sandy Creek 12-2 and Stephenson 14-4.

20. (NR) The Woodlands (Texas), 16-2-2
Ranked No. 1 in the state by the Texas Baseball Coaches Poll, the Highlanders got home runs from Elliot Richoux, Landon Merka and Ryan Flynn in a 7-2 win over Lufkin. Those three, along with Robbie Goldschmidt and Garrett Hope, all hit home runs in a 14-1 win over Oak Ridge as well.

21. (NR) Mesquite (Gilbert, Ariz.), 15-1
Ranked No. 1 in the Arizona 5A - I state rankings, the Wildcats have only a 9-5 loss to Saguaro (17-3) to mar an otherwise sparkling record. Mesquite knocked off Hamilton (Chandler) 7-1 last week along with Highland (Gilbert) 14-3 on Friday.



22. (24) Marist (Atlanta), 11-1
Marist won three 6-AAAA region games last week, topping Carver (Atlanta) 11-0, Southwest DeKalb 12-4 and Dunwoody 6-2.

23. (25) Fairhope (Ala.), 18-1
Fairhope has won six in a row since suffering its first loss of the season. Besides beating Independence (Thompson's Station, Tenn.) 5-1 and St. Louis University (Mo.) 19-15 in interstate play, Fairhope avenged its loss to Theodore with an 11-0 victory and took three games from Montgomery last week, 12-5, 8-6 and 7-6.

24. (NR) Ardrey Kell (Charlotte, N.C.), 12-0
Defeated East Mecklenburg 7-0 and also topped Butler 5-3 during the week to stay undefeated on the season. Ardrey Kell is ranked No. 1 in the North Carolina Impact Baseball Rankings.

25. (NR) Highland Park (Dallas), 21-3
The Scots lost their first two games of the season to Flower Mound and Lake Travis, but have won 21 of 22 games since, with the only loss a 7-0 decision against The Woodlands. Highland Park is ranked No 1. in the 4A division of the Texas state coaches poll.

Dropped: No. 12 Venice, No. 14 Poquoson, No. 16 Germantown Academy, No. 23 Canyon del Oro.