Broken Arrow tops Owasso for No. 1 ranking in MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Baseball Rankings

Although nobody knew it at the time, Broken Arrow's matchup with Owasso in the Oklahoma Class 6A state championship game was essentially a national championship contest.

On Friday, No. 2 ranked Flanagan (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) had been eliminated from the Florida Class 6A state playoffs by Park Vista with a 7-6 loss. Meanwhile in Mississippi, Tupelo handed No. 3 Madison Central a loss in the first game of their best-of-seven series in the state 5A semifinals.

Then there was Edison (Huntington Beach, Calif.), which lost to Marina (Huntington Beach, Calif.) earlier in the week. Those three losses, and the three wins by both Owasso and Broken Arrow, essentially dropped the No. 2, 3 and 4 ranked teams and raised the Tigers up to No. 2 for the face-off with No. 1 ranked Owasso.

While a matchup between two of the nation's top two pitchers - Owasso's Dylan Bundy and Broken Arrow's Archie Bradley - may have been too much to ask, the championship contest nevertheless set up to be a rare No. 1 vs. No. 2 for the possible national championship.

Bundy did not pitch for the Rams after pitching earlier in the tournament. However the Tigers did put Bradley on the mound and he came through in a big way. Striking out 14 Owasso batters, Bradley shut down the powerful Ram offense by limiting them to just two hits and holding them scoreless in a 4-0 win.

The victory for the Tigers moves Broken Arrow to the top of the MaxPreps Xcellent 50 National Baseball Rankings. It's a spot they will likely keep for the rest of the season, unless a team from California, Florida or Texas can make a compelling case in the coming weeks.

Undefeated teams like South County (Lorton, Va.), Maize (Kan.) and Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.) also could make things interesting if they should finish the season undefeated.

MAXPREPS XCELLENT 50 NATIONAL BASEBALL RANKINGS

1. (5) Broken Arrow (Okla.), 36-2
The Tigers captured their first state championship in 20 years with a 4-0 win over Owasso in the Oklahoma 6A championship game. Archie Bradley (12-1) shut out the Rams on a two-hitter with 14 strikeouts and two walks. Broken Arrow also defeated Choctaw 12-0, and Jenks twice by scores of 15-2 and 20-8 en route to the finals.

2. (1) Owasso (Okla.), 37-2
The Rams were shut out for the first time this season and lost in the championship game for the second year in a row. Owasso defeated Yukon 5-1, Page 6-1 and Edmond Santa Fe 9-7 to reach the championship game. Phillip Wilson took the loss against Broken Arrow.

3. (7) South County (Lorton, Va.), 20-0
The Stallions completed the regular season undefeated with a 16-6 win over Lee (Springfield) and a 14-7 win over Annandale.

4. (8) Fort Bend Clements (Sugar Land, Texas), 32-3
The Rangers defeated Dobie 16-3 in a single-game playoff in the Region III 5A state playoffs. Alec Horvath was the winning pitcher for Fort Bend Clements. Blake Johnson added a home run.

5. (9) Buchanan (Clovis, Calif.), 27-2
The Bears finished the regular season with a pair of wins over Clovis North, winning 5-3 and 9-4. Dominic Topoozian raised his record to 10-0 in the 5-2 win. Jeff Brown was 3-for-3 with a double and a home run.

6. (11) Maize (Kan.), 20-0
The Knights finished the regular season undefeated with three wins, dropping South (Salina) twice, 7-1 and 10-0, and Haysville Campus (Wichita) 14-1. Gage Byers and Tanner Johnson both homered in the 10-0 win while Craig Nicks pitched a one-hitter with eight strikeouts. Thomas Clay hit one out against Haysville Campus.

7. (12) Spanish Fork (Utah), 22-2
The Dons ended the regular season with two one-run wins over Salem Hills (Salem). Kayden Porter homered and picked up the win in a 5-4 victory while Hayden Nielsen struck out 10 in a 3-2 win.

8. (4) Edison (Huntington Beach, Calif.), 23-3
The Chargers split with Marina, losing early in the week 3-2 and then winning their final game of the season 10-4 to finish 14-1 in Sunset League play. The Chargers gave up a run in the bottom of the seventh to fall to Marina, but got a win from Henry Owens in the second game, his 11th of the season. Johnathan Brooks, Jon Torres and Eric Snyder all homered in the win.

9. (13) Archbishop McCarthy (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), 27-3
Andre Martinez struck out 11 batters and Brandon Roberts had a key single that scored two runs in the fifth to lift the Mavericks past Eau Gallie 3-1 for the Southeast Region championship. Archbishop McCarthy faces Port St. Lucie this week.

10. (14) Pace (Fla.), 27-4
The Patriots scored six times in the first inning en route to an 11-1 win over Fleming Island for the region championship. Will face West Boca Raton Community in the Class 5A state semifinals.

11. (16) Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas), 31-4
The Gaels won the Sunset Region with a 5-4 win over Sierra Vista. Also defeated Shadow Ridge (Las Vegas) 12-1 and Centennial (Las Vegas) 5-4 before knocking Sierra Vista to the losers bracket with a 10-2 victory. Kenny Meimerstorf, Erik Van meetren and Tyler Baker all homered in the 10-2 win over Sierra Vista.

12. (18) A&M Consolidated (College Station, Texas), 29-4
The Tigers blasted White 17-0 with 12 runs in the third inning. Jacob Garcia, Scott Jones and Jonathan Schmitz each hit a three-run home run during the splurge. A&M Consolidated opened the series with a 2-1 win on Thursday.

13. (19) Tupelo (Miss.), 29-4
Beat Madison Central Thursday and then again on Monday after falling in Saturday's game 4-3. Captured Monday's contest 5-4 and won its third straight Monday game in the postseason. Advances to play defending champion Petal in the Mississippi 6A state

14. (3) Madison Central (Miss.), 31-3
Lost to Tupelo on Monday 5-4 and was eliminated from the Mississippi 6A state playoffs.

15. (20) Lakeland (Fla.), 26-4
The Dreadnaughts defeated Duran 4-2 to win the regional championship and advance to the 5A state semifinals. Austin Barnett had a triple and also got the save for Lakeland. Brad Labozzetta (10-1) picked up his 10th win of the season.

16. (21) Gloucester Catholic (Gloucester City, N.J.), 24-1
Won five times last week, beating Deptford 11-0, Glassboro 11-0, Gloucester County Tech (Sewell) 11-1, Williamstown 10-0 and Clearview (Mulica Hill) 18-6. The Rams also opened the Joe Hartmann Diamond Classic on Saturday with an 11-1 win over Pitman.

17. (22) Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.), 20-0
The Ironmen won twice last week, beating DePaul 7-3 and Bergen Tech 18-1. Joe Purritano had a three-run home run in the seventh inning to seal the win over DePaul. Mike Gomez struck out eight in the victory.

18. (2) Flanagan (Pembroke Pines, Fla.), 22-3
The Falcons fell to Park Vista 7-6 and were eliminated from the Florida 6A state playoffs. Andres Sanchez had a home run in the loss. All three of Flanagan's losses this year were by one run.

19. (24) Orangewood Christian (Maitland, Fla.), 31-1
Vince Conde had two home runs to lift Orangewood Christian to a 10-8 win over Providence and put the Rams into the 2A state semifinals.

20. (17) Sierra Vista (Las Vegas), 34-4
The Mountain Lions reached the Sunset Region finals with an 11-3 win over Faith Lutheran and a 6-4 win over Spring Valley. After the loss to Bishop Gorman, Sierra Vista defeated Desert Oasis 22-1 in the consolation bracket, but fell again to the Gaels, 5-4, in the championship final.

21. (23) Brenham (Texas), 30-5
Eric Stegent kept the season alive for the defending 4A state champions as he tossed a no-hitter in a 7-0 win over Port Neches Groves in the third game of their Region III playoff series. The two teams split the first two games with Port Neches Groves winning 7-5 in the first game and Brenham winning the second 7-6.

22. (NR) Jesuit (New Orleans), 29-5
The Blue Jays scored five runs in the first inning and made it stick to defeat Lafayette 5-4 in the Louisiana 5A state championship game. Jesuit also knocked off No. 1 seed Catholic (Baton Rouge) 3-2 in the semifinals. The title is the 20th in school history for Jesuit.

23. (46) Mountain Pointe (Phoenix), 27-5
Jordan Kipper's line drive plated Scott Kingery for the winning run in a 7-6 victory over Hamilton in the Arizona Class 5A Division I championship game. Kevin Cron pitched eight innings for the win. Also defeated Desert Ridge 14-2 in the semifinals.

24. (33) Saguaro (Scottsdale, Ariz.), 34-4
Saguaro won the Arizona Class 4A Division I championship with a 13-6 victory over Sunrise Mountain. The Sabercats also defeated Sunnyslope 6-1 and Catalina Foothills 5-1 earlier in the tournament. Saguaro scored seven runs in the top of the seventh to break a 6-6 tie against Sunrise Mountain.

25. (27) Palm Desert (Calif.), 24-4
Defeated Palm Springs 11-3 and 8-0. Brian Serven had a home run and four RBIs in the shutout victory.

The Next 25

26. (28) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), 22-5
Defeated Santa Margarita 12-1 and 8-3. Davis Tominaga was 2-for-3 with four RBIs in the 12-1 victory and Blake Thomsen homered in the 8-3 win.

27. (29) JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.), 23-4
Defeated St. John Bosco 10-3 and 5-3. Tyler Krause homered in the 5-3 win for the Lions.

28. (NR) Poly Prep Country Day (Brooklyn, N.Y.), 20-1
Jumped to the top of the New York Post city rankings after a win over George Washington. Also has wins over St. Joseph by the Sea, Monsignor Farrell, Xaverian, James Madison and Berkeley Carroll.

29. (25) Washington (New York City), 32-2
The Trojans defeated Manhattan Center for Science & Math 10-0 and Murry Bergtraum 11-1. Reynaldo Hernandez struck out seven in the win over Manhattan. Lost to Poly Prep (Brooklyn, N.Y.) over the weekend.

30. (35) Bishop Amat (La Puente, Calif.), 24-4
Defeated Bishop Montgomery 9-2 and 11-0. Rio Ruiz was 2-for-3 with two doubles in the initial win while Brandon Castaneda had three RBIs in the shutout victory.

31. (47) St. Louis University (St. Louis, Mo.), 21-0
Won three times in conference play last week, beating Christian Brothers twice, 5-3 and 8-4, and Vianney 4-3.

32. (36) Providence (Charlotte, N.C.), 25-2
Won the Southwestern 4A Conference with a 6-5 win over Myers Park. Opened the North Carolina 4A West playoffs with a 20-2 win over Western Guilford.

33. (NR) La Cueva (Albuquerque, N.M.), 25-4
Ryan Padilla hit a home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to give the Bears an 11-10 win over Volcano Vista in the New Mexico 5A state championship game. The title is the second in a row for LaCueva. Volcano Vista had scored seven runs in the top of the seventh to tie the game at 10-10.

34. (40) Sherwood (Sandy Spring, Md.), 18-0
Completed the regular season with a 16-2 win over Whitman (Bethesda) and a 12-2 win over Northwest (Germantown). Will Bouey picked up the win and also hit a two-run home run against Whitman.

35. (32) Walsh Jesuit (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio), 18-2
Defeated Trinity (Garfield Heights) 7-1 and Chagrin Falls 10-0. Cassidy Brown tossed a one-hitter against Garfield with eight strikeouts while Brown and Graeme Frye each hit a home run.

36. (41) Mill Creek (Hoschton, Ga.), 24-6
Defeated Dacula 5-3 and 1-0 in the second round of the Georgia AAAAA state playoffs. Mill Creek's Brian Stillwell threw a no-hitter, his second of the season, in the second game. Nick Tillman and Devin Bonin had home runs in the 5-3 win.

37. (42) Pensacola Catholic (Fla.), 26-4
The Crusaders needed nine innings to defeat Episcopal (Jacksonville) 3-2. Blake Quillin scored the winning run on a wild pitch in the top of the ninth inning.

38. (45) Providence Catholic (New Lenox, Ill.), 26-3
Defeated Fenwick 11-2 on home runs by Sam Travis and Brendan Boggetto. Dan Potempa had two home runs in 16-4 win over Loyola. Providence also defeated Romeo Ville 6-5. In a 5-0 win over Loyola, Brandon Magallones threw a no-hitter with eight strikeouts and Potempa had another home run.

39. (NR) Portage Central (Mich.), 20-0
Ranked No. 1 in the state of Michigan, Portage Central topped Stevensville 12-3 and 6-3 last week to stay undefeated.

40. (NR) Plainfield North (Ill.), 26-1
Capped the week by defeating Lemont 10-0 with Joe Pendolino going 2-for-3 with a double and four RBIs.

41. (NR) Lamar (Houston), 32-4
Lamar got a home run from Cole Lankford to beat Cy-Fair 10-7 in the first game of the series, but lost 12-8 in Saturday's first game. The Bobcats advanced with a 7-6 win in the third game, scoring the winning run on a wild pitch.

42. (NR) Park Vista (Lake Worth, Fla.), 23-7
Trea Turner hit the only home run of his high school career in the sixth inning to extend Park Vista's lead en route to a 7-6 win over defending Florida 6A state champion Flanagan in the regional championships.

43. (NR) Alonso (Tampa, Fla.), 21-5
The Ravens topped Dr. Phillips (Orlando) 4-2 in the region final of the Class 6A state playoffs behind pitcher Jose Fernandez, who struck out eight in picking up the win.

44. (43) Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.), 24-5-1
Defeated Sacred Heart Cathedral 10-4 and Bellarmine 3-2, lost to St. Francis 9-8. Brett Fuller had a home run in the loss to the Lancers.

45. (44) Indianapolis Cathedral, 17-2
Lost to Bishop Chatard (Indianapolis), 2-1, in the City Finals despite 15 strikeouts by Texas recruit Dillon Peters.

46. (15) Catholic (Baton Rouge, La.), 32-4
The Bears defeated Byrd (Shreveport) 4-3 in quarterfinals. Lost to Jesuit (New Orleans) 3-2 in the semifinals.

47. (NR) Midway (Waco, Texas), 32-3
Defeated Southwest (Fort Worth, Texas) 4-0 and 7-3 to advance to the region quarterfinal. Ranked No. 2 in the state 4A coaches rankings.

48. (NR) Rock Bridge (Columbia, Mo.), 24-2
Ranked No. 1 in the Missouri state coaches poll. Has a recent win over Francis Howell.

49. (NR) Byrnes (Duncan, S.C.), 21-3
Advanced to the state championship series in South Carolina 4A playoffs with a 2-1 win over Easley.

50. (NR) Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.), 27-7
Knocked off Mesquite (Gilbert, Ariz.) 13-7 in the semifinals but fell to Mountain Pointe 7-6 in eight innings in the championship game.