Video: Outfielder takes on fence for game-saving catch
See Jack Boysen make a spectacular catch while crashing into the foul-line fence.
With 14 trips to the Nebraska state baseball championship game between them, including nine state titles collectively, Omaha Creighton Prep, Omaha Westside and Lincoln Pius X have pretty much taken over the baseball landscape in the Cornhusker State over the last nine seasons.
The Junior Jays, winners of Class A state titles in 2012 and a season ago, have come up the big winners after making five trips to the finals since 2008 and compiling a 222-63 (.779) record over that course of time.
Although they haven't made a baseball final in an odd numbered season since 2009, Creighton Prep may be ready to disrupt that trend following a 3-0 start to the 2017 season. The Junior Jays landed in every MaxPreps Top 25 Nebraska computer ranking, finishing first twice at the end of the last nine seasons.
Omaha Westside (219-84, .723) takes over the runner-up spot in this week's Top 10 after securing four Class A state titles in nine seasons. The Warriors did land in MaxPreps' Top 10 in seven of the nine seasons accounted for in this week's Top 10.
The Thunderbolts (166-78, .680) donned the state champion crown three times over the last nine seasons, and made the title game twice more. Just like Creighton Prep, Westside and Pius X played their way into each of the final MaxPreps computer Top 25s. The Thunderbolts finished in the Top 10 four times.
Of the three squads, the Warriors captured the highest single-season national ranking in MaxPreps' computer rankings at No. 78 in 2009. Creighton Prep's highest ranking in the same poll was No. 94 a season ago, while Pius X landed 505th in 2015.
Millard West and Papillion-LaVista South round out this week's Top 5 with five championship game appearances between them. The Wildcats have earned a trio of runner-up finishes, while the Titans laid claim to a pair of state championships.
MaxPreps has developed its own system in determining which baseball programs compete at the highest level over an extended period of time. Here is how the points for this week's Top 10 were accumulated:
1. 20 points for a state title
2. 10 points for finishing as a state runner-up
3. Other points are based on a team's Top 25 standing in the final MaxPreps Nebraska Computer Rankings presented by the Army National Guard. For instance, if a school claimed the top spot, it receives 25 points, while a No. 25 ranking is good for one point.
Nebraska's Top 10 most dominant baseball programs since 2007-08
1. Creighton Prep (Omaha) – 277 pointsState titles: 2
Runner-ups: 3
Top 25 state rankings: 2007-08 (3), 2008-09 (2), 2009-10 (3), 2010-11 (2), 2011-12 (1), 2012-13 (6), 2013-14 (3), 2014-15 (6), 2015-16 (1)
2. Omaha Westside – 253 pointsState titles: 4
Runner-ups: 0
Top 25 state rankings: 2007-08 (6), 2008-09 (1), 2009-10 (16), 2010-11 (9), 2011-12 (5), 2012-13 (1), 2013-14 (1), 2014-15 (1), 2015-16 (21)
3. Pius X (Lincoln) – 228 pointsState titles: 3
Runner-ups: 2
Top 25 state rankings: 2007-08 (19), 2008-09 (12), 2009-10 (20), 2010-2011 (12), 2011-12 (2), 2012-13 (5), 2013-14 (2), 2014-15 (2), 2015-16 (12)
4. Millard West (Omaha) – 227 pointsState titles: 0
Runner-ups: 3
Top 25 state rankings: 2007-08 (1), 2008-09 (5), 2009-10 (2), 2010-11 (3), 2011-12 (3), 2012-13 (9), 2013-14 (4), 2014-15 (7), 2015-16 (3)
5. Papillion-LaVista South (Papillion) – 215 pointsState titles: 2
Runner-ups: 0
Top 25 state rankings: 2007-08 (5), 2008-09 (4), 2009-10 (1), 2010-11 (1), 2011-12 (13), 2012-13 (4), 2013-14 (9), 2014-15 (11), 2015-16 (11)
6. Millard South (Omaha) – 199 pointsState titles: 0
Runner-ups: 2
Top 25 state rankings: 2007-08 (10), 2008-09 (3), 2009-10 (4), 2010-11 (5), 2011-12 (6), 2012-13 (3), 2013-14 (14), 2014-15 (4), 2015-16 (6)
7. Elkhorn – 166 pointsState titles: 2
Runner-ups: 1
Top 25 state rankings: 2007-08 (7), 2008-09 (11), 2009-10 (18), 2010-11 (11), 2011-12 (18), 2013-14 (12), 2014-15 (13), 2015-16 (2)
8. Skutt Catholic (Omaha) – 162 pointsState titles: 0
Runner-ups: 4
Top 25 state rankings: 2007-08 (13), 2008-09 (16), 2009-10 (10), 2010-11 (19), 2011-12 (15), 2012-13 (10), 2013-14 (8), 2014-15 (16), 2015-16 (5)
9. Lincoln Southwest – 161 pointsState titles: 0
Runner-ups: 0
Top 25 state rankings: 2007-08 (14), 2008-09 (6), 2009-10 (11), 2010-11 (4), 2011-12 (8), 2012-13 (17), 2013-14 (6), 2014-15 (3), 2015-16 (4)
10. Millard North (Omaha) – 143 pointsState titles: 0
Runner-ups: 0
Top 25 state rankings: 2007-08 (4), 2009-10 (6), 2010-11 (6), 2011-12 (4), 2012-13 (14), 2013-14 (10), 2014-15 (5), 2015-16 (16)