An upset in the semifinals of the Victory Preseason Tournament in Sacramento and another in the Southern Florida Slam Fest allowed The Woodlands to rise to the top spot in this week's Xcellent 25 National Softball Rankings.
Elk Grove was ranked No. 1 in the nation last week and looked strong after a 1-0 win over nationally ranked Pleasant Grove in the middle of the week. While both Elk Grove and Pleasant Grove went undefeated in pool play at the Victory Tournament, it was Rodriguez (Fairfield, Calif.) that pulled off a pair of upsets to win the event. Rodriguez first defeated Elk Grove 4-3 in the semifinals and then shut out Pleasant Grove 4-0 in the final.
Meanwhile across the country in Florida, Palm Beach Gardens, ranked No. 2 behind Elk Grove, lost a close decision to Palmetto at the Mercy Hospital South Florida Slam Fest. Despite the loss, however, Palm Beach Gardens is still ranked No. 1 in the state by the recent Miracle Sports state rankings.
The two losses allow The Woodlands, which is undefeated at 18-0, to move up to the top spot. The Highlanders have been impressive this year behind the pitching of
Paige McDuffee, who had a no-hitter in her latest outing.
Paige McDuffee, The Woodlands
Photo by Jim Redman
Gulliver Prep, a first-place finisher at the Slam Fest, moves into the No. 2 spot while Valencia, the champion of the Dave Kopps Tournament of Champions in Bullhead City, Ariz., takes over the No. 3 spot after sitting at No. 12 last week.
Florida dominates this week's rankings with eight of the top 25 teams. Four of those teams, American Heritage, Bolles, River Ridge and Bartow are making their first appearance in this year's rankings.
MAXPREPS XCELLENT 25 NATIONAL SOFTBALL RANKINGS
1. (Last week 3) The Woodlands (Texas), 18-0
The Highlanders won their only game last week, defeating Lufkin 13-0 on a five-inning no-hitter by McDuffee, who struck out eight and walked one.
2. (4) Gulliver Prep (Miami), 11-0
The Raiders routed St. Thomas Aquinas 9-0 in the championship game of the Blue Bracket at the Mercy Hospital South Florida Slam Fest.
Dominique Grossman had a pair of three-run homers and shared MVP honors with
Christina Gabriele, who tossed a no-hitter in the finals.
3. (12) Valencia (Calif.), 8-0
The Vikings opened the season with four wins at the Stu Penter Tournament and then won the Dave Kopps Tournament of Champions in Bullhead City with a 2-1 win over El Modena. Also defeated Los Alamitos 3-2, Woodbridge 10-0 and Mingus (Cottonwood, Ariz.) 10-1. Ranked No. 1 in this week's Southern Section Division I rankings.
4. (5) Soddy Daisy (Tenn.), 0-0
The Trojans opened their season March 15 at Cleveland (Tenn.).
5. (6) Sandburg (Orland Park, Ill.), 0-0
The Eagles open their season on March 19 at Moline (Ill.).
6. (7) Hudsonville (Mich.), 0-0
The Eagles do not begin their season until April.
7. (10) Piedra Vista (Farmington, N.M.), 6-0
The Panthers won their sixth straight game by shutout as they topped Volcano Vista in a doubleheader 1-0 and 3-0. The Panthers play in the New Mexico Invitational this weekend.
8. (11) Alexander Central (Taylorsville, N.C.), 2-0
The Cougars opened with a pair of wins, including a 5-0 victory over Davie and a 16-0 win over Watauga. Gatorade State Player of the Year
Chelsea Wilkinson pitched a perfect game against Watauga, striking out 11 in five innings.
9. (14) Plano East (Texas), 15-1
The Panthers won twice last week, defeating Plano West 5-2 behind
K.K. Stevens' home run, and Allen 5-1 on
Holly Kern's round tripper.
10. (15) East Lake (Tarpon Springs, Fla.), 15-0
The Eagles picked up three more wins last week, dropping Clearwater 13-0, Countryside (Clearwater) 12-0 and Tarpon Springs 5-0. East Lake has allowed just six runs in 15 games this year.
11. (NR) American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.), 15-0
The Patriots are 15-0 on the season and won their bracket at the South Florida Slam Fest, including a 7-6 win over Palmetto, the team that handed Palm Beach Gardens its only loss of the season.
Bailey Castro leads the team with a .622 batting average and eight home runs.
12. (2) Palm Beach Gardens (Fla.), 9-1
The Gators dropped a decision to Palmetto at the Mercy Hospital South Florida Slam Fest, but they are still ranked No. 1 in the state 6A rankings by Miracle Sport.
13. (NR) Plano (Texas), 19-2
A season-opening loss to Mesquite Horn and an 8-6 loss to Forney are all that mar Plano's season record. Last week Plano bounced Hebron 1-0 and topped Flower Mound in another close one, 5-4.
14. (19) Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.), 1-0
The Knights opened their season with an 11-0 win over Bishop Ireton on Monday.
Jessica Burk had a home run and
Jilly Falle threw a two-hit shutout with five strikeouts.
15. (NR) Stockdale (Bakersfield, Calif.), 10-0
The defending Central Section Division I champions are off to another strong start, including a 2-0 win over Buchanan, the team they defeated for the section title last year.
16. (21) Riverdale (Murfreesboro, Tenn.), 2-0
The Warriors opened the Commando Classic Tournament in Hendersonville with a 3-2 win over Dickson County and an 8-0 win over Brentwood.
17. (NR) Bolles (Jacksonville, Fla.), 11-0
The Bulldogs are off to a strong start, outscoring opponents 97-10 including a 3-2 win over Bartram Trail on Friday.
18. (20) Perry (Massillon, Ohio), 0-0
The Panthers begin their season March 28 at home against Cuyahoga Heights.
19. (22) Dunnellon (Fla.), 9-1
The Tigers topped Vanguard 10-7 and Belleview 5-3 in district play. The Tigers have a big game with Riverdale (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) coming up on March 22.
20. (9) Santiago (Corona, Calif.), 5-1
The Sharks participated in the Stu Penter Classic and won four games, defeating Paloma Valley (Menifee) 10-1, Eisenhower (Rialto) 21-0, King (Riverside) 8-0 and Heritage (Romoland) 6-0.
Lauren Sweet is off to a strong start with a .692 batting average and three home runs. The Sharks split their first two games of the Big League Dreams Tournament on Monday, defeating Los Osos 5-3 and falling to Redlands 2-1.
21. (23) Poland Seminary (Ohio), 0-0
The Bulldogs open their season on March 29 vs. Struthers.
22. (NR) Rodriguez (Fairfield, Calif.), 5-1
After opening the season with a loss to Livermore, Rodriguez went 3-0 in pool play at the Victory Preseason Tournament and knocked off previous national No. 1 Elk Grove, 4-3, in the semifinals and Pleasant Grove, 4-0, in the championship game.
23. (1) Elk Grove (Calif.), 6-2
The Thundering Herd went undefeated in pool play for the Victory Presason Tournament in Sacramento, but lost to Rodriguez in the semifinals 4-3 and then fell to Vacaville 3-0 in the third-place game.
24. (NR) River Ridge (New Port Richey, Fla.), 11-1
Ranked No. 1 in the state Class 4A rankings by Miracle Sports, the Knights' only loss is a 1-0 defeat at the hands of undefeated East Lake.
25. (NR) Bartow (Fla.), 11-0
The Yellow Jackets are 11-0 on the season and ranked No. 2 in the Class 4A rankings behind River Ridge by Miracle Sports. Bartow's most recent win is an 8-2 victory over Naples.
Dropped Out: No. 8 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), No. 13 Pleasant Grove (Elk Grove, Calif.), No. 17 Keller (Texas), No. 18 Braddock (Miami), No. 24 Canyon (Anaheim, Calif.), No. 25 Gilbert (Ariz.).
