MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Softball Rankings

Two weeks ago we passed up Estrella Foothills in favor of Palm Beach Gardens when choosing a new No. 1 team for the Xcellent 25 National Softball Rankings. But this time there was no denying the Wolves.

For the second time this season, Palm Beach Gardens drops out of the No. 1 spot in the national rankings due to a stunning upset loss. This time, the Gators fell to Jupiter 10-4 in the district championship.

The loss allows Estrella Foothills, winner of 29 straight games, to rise to the No. 1 spot. The Wolves are one of six undefeated teams in the Xcellent 25 but they are the only one with more than 20 wins.

Estrella Foothills has a surging Alexander Central team hot on its heels. The Cougars have been unbeatable since the return of Chelsea Wilkinson. With the tough competition in North Carolina this year (undefeated Topsail and Porter Ridge are also in the mix), Alexander Central could return to the No. 1 spot it held early in the season.



For now, however, Estrella Foothills is the No. 1 team in the country.

Two teams dropped out of this week's rankings, as both Xavier College Prep and Woodcreek suffered losses. They have been replaced by Red Mountain (Mesa, Ariz.) and Allen County (Scottsville, Ky.).

MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Softball Rankings

1. (2 last week) Estrella Foothills (Goodyear, Ariz.), 29-0
The Wolves head into the final week of the regular season ranked No. 1 in the country following two wins last week that kept them undefeated and a stunning playoff loss by Palm Beach Gardens. Estrella Foothills knocked off Buckeye 17-5 and Agua Fria 11-1. Taylor Godfrey had a home run and a triple with six RBIs in the win over Buckeye.

2. (3) Alexander Central (Taylorsville, N.C.), 19-1
The Cougars won three times last week, including a 10-0 no-hitter win by Chelsea Wilkinson against Hickory. The no-hitter was the 20th in Wilkinson's career. Alexander Central also topped Central Davidson 2-0 and Watauga 11-3.

3. (4) Norco (Calif.), 20-1
The Cougars won their fourth straight games by shutout last week, beating JW North (Riverside) 10-0 and Roosevelt (Corona) 6-0.

4. (5) Pacifica (Garden Grove, Calif.), 20-1
The Mariners did not play last week, but resume action this week against Cypress and Kennedy (La Palma).



5. (1) Palm Beach Gardens (Fla.), 26-2
The Gators began postseason play with a 5-2 victory over Palm Beach Central but suffered a stunning 10-4 defeat against Jupiter. The Gators committed six errors in the loss and had only three hits, while Jupiter bashed out 11 hits. Palm Beach Gardens had defeated Jupiter in their previous two meetings.

6. (6) Niceville (Fla.), 25-2
The Eagles closed the regular season with a 10-0 win over Pace and then opened the postseason with a 4-3 win over Crestview and a 9-1 win over Mosley. Lauren Donaldson was 2-for-4 with a grand slam, a triple and five RBIs in the win.

7. (7) Topsail (Hampstead, N.C.), 20-0
Topsail played a close one with South Lenoir, winning 7-6 on a run in the seventh inning. The six runs nearly equaled the number of runs Topsail has given up all year. It had outscored its opponents 173-9. It was back to business against Clinton, with Topsail winning 13-0.

8. (9) Amador Valley (Pleasanton, Calif.), 16-0
Not much trouble for the Dons this week, as they topped San Ramon Valley (Danville) and Livermore by identical 7-0 scores and edged California (San Ramon) 2-1. Krista Williams was 3-for-4 with three RBIs against Livermore.

9. (10) Keystone (La Grange, Ohio), 15-0
The Wildcats won five games last week, including three in conference play and two in tournament play. Keystone blanked Brookside (Sheffield) 20-0, Black River (Sullivan) 8-0 and Buckeye (Medina) 15-0. In the Wendy's Classic, Keystone edged Bartlett (Ill.) 5-1 and Lakewood (Hebron, Ohio), 13-4. Kenzie Conrad was 3-for-4 with two home runs and three RBIs and three runs scored in the win. She has six home runs on the season. She also picked up the win, her 10th of the year.

10. (11) Poland Seminary (Ohio), 12-1
Poland Seminary played well in the Wendy's Classic, knocking off Elyria Catholic 9-1 to set up the opportunity to take on Keystone on Saturday. However, rain cancelled the remainder of the tournament. Poland Seminary also handed Canfield its first loss of the season.



11. (12) Beech (Hendersonville, Tenn.), 40-1
Beech made it 34 games in a row by beating Wilson Central 12-0 and Portland 14-3 last week. Beech hit five home runs against Portland as Alex Banks, Jule Kranz, C.j. McClain, Kassidy McCoy and Peyton Kurgan all hit one out. Banks also won her 38th game of the season (38-1) and Heather Montgomery stole her 58th base of the season.

12. (8) Walla Walla (Wash.), 10-1
Richland snagged a 13-5 win from Walla Walla, getting to standout pitcher Alyson Ambler for seven runs in the fourth inning. Walla Walla led in the nightcap 5-0, but the game was called on account of darkness.

13. (13) Tomball (Texas), 21-2
The Cougars lit up the scoreboard this week, beating Dekaney (Houston) 28-0, Klein Oak (Spring) 12-8 and Westfield (Houston) 15-0. Kelsey Vincent, Lexie Comeaux, Katie Doerre and Kiana Workman all had home runs during the week.

14. (14) Alvin (Texas), 31-3
Alvin closed out the regular season with a district championship, defeating Dickinson 3-0 and Clear Creek 10-2.

15. (15) The Woodlands (Texas), 25-3
The Highlanders won the 5A District 14 championship by topping College Park (The Woodlands) 12-1 and Conroe 12-0 last week. Jessica Snyder was 2-for-3 with two doubles and four RBIs against Conroe.

16. (16) Porter Ridge (Indian Trail, N.C.), 20-0
Porter Ridge had a relatively close game last week, defeating Marvin Ridge (Waxhaw) 6-4. It was back to business as usual with a 10-0 win over Anson (Wadesboro) on Friday.



17. (17) Northern (Owings, Md.), 13-0
The Patriots won their 40th straight by beating Huntingtown 7-2, Lackey (Indian Head) 15-0 and Leonardtown 5-0 last week. Jess Cummings had double-digit strikeouts in two of the games, fanning 10 against Lackey and 13 against Leonardtown.

18 (18) Eau Gallie (Melbourne, Fla.), 25-2
Eau Gallie won the Class 6A District 7 championship with a 6-1 victory over Melbourne, as Megan Lafon allowed only two hits for the defending state champs.

19. (19) Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.), 17-2
The Monarchs resumed league play last week and edged Valley Christian (San Jose) 3-1. Vanessa Alvarez tossed a one-hitter, striking out four.

20. (21) El Diamante (Visalia, Calif.), 22-1
El Diamante won its only game of the week, defeating Golden West 3-0 behind Sierra Hyland's two-hitter with five strikeouts.

21. (23) Winter Springs (Fla.), 25-2
Winter Springs won its district championship, defeating Evans 15-0 and Lake Howell 5-4. Katherine Penn was 2-for-4 with three RBIs against Lake Howell while Katie Mandigo had two home runs against Evans.

22. (24) Sunrise Mountain (Peoria, Ariz.), 27-1
Sunrise Mountain won easily, defeating Cactus (Glendale) 17-1 and avenging its lone defeat with an 8-0 win over Kellis (Glendale). Taylor Nowlin threw a perfect game against Kellis while Melissa Sechrest was 2-for-3 with a double and four RBIs.



23. (25) Plano East (Texas), 28-3
Plano East completed the regular season last week by edging Plano 8-7 and whipping Lewisville 22-5. Kierin Stevens had a home run against Plano while Holly Kern and Jacque Anthony each had one against Lewisville.

24. (NR) Red Mountain (Mesa, Ariz.), 29-3
The Mountain Lions have won 13 in a row and have the most wins of any Division I team in the state of Arizona.

25. (NR) Allen County (Scottsville, Ky.), 18-1
The Patriots are ranked No. 1 in the state of Kentucky and have a big interstate battle with Beech today.

Dropped Out: No. 20 Xavier College Prep, No. 22 Woodcreek.