If there was any doubt that the Trinity League is the toughest high school baseball league in the nation, it was dismissed with the entrance of Servite (Anaheim, Calif.) into this week's MaxPreps Top 25 rankings.
During the MaxPreps era, the Friars have usually finished near the middle or at the bottom of the Trinity League baseball standings. Considering that the league fields some of the nation's best teams, including Orange Lutheran (Orange), JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano) and Mater Dei (Santa Ana), that's nothing to be ashamed of.
But this year could be the year that Servite moves to the top of the standings. With one of the state's top junior shortstops in Roman Martin, Servite was tabbed by several coaches as one of the top teams in Southern California on a preseason questionnaire.
So far the predictions have been accurate. The Friars are off to a 5-0 start, Martin has been red hot with a grand slam in one game and Servite has entered the MaxPreps Top 25 at No. 10 this week. The Friars are joined by fellow Trinity League member Orange Lutheran, which moved up one spot this week to No. 4.
Orange Lutheran picked up a win over Southlake Carroll (Southlake, Texas) as the Dragons joined Marcus (Flower Mound) on a West Coast road trip. The Dragons lost to the Lancers, then fell to Cypress and dropped out of the rankings. Southlake Carroll knocked off JSerra Catholic during the tournament, moving the Lions out of the Top 25 as well. Don't expect JSerra Catholic to be absent long since it has a triple header with Orange Lutheran next week. Southlake Carroll is also a strong candidate to move back in at some point.
Those two dropped out, along with Auburn (Ala.), to make way for three undefeated teams: Servite, Taravella and Tompkins.
Taravella (Coral Springs, Fla.) moved in after beating previous No. 4 Stoneman Douglas (Parkland, Fla.) in tournament play. The Trojans debuted at No. 16 with Stoneman Douglas dropping to No. 17.
Meanwhile Tompkins (Katy) topped some of the top programs in the state last week in tournament play, including Flower Mound, Reagan (San Antonio) and Cypress Woods. The 4-0 Falcons join at No. 18.
Dropped out: No. 11 Southlake Carroll (Southlake, Texas); No. 13 JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.); No. 25 Auburn (Ala.)
Best game: Taravella 4, Stoneman Douglas 3. The defending Class 7A state champions fell to Taravella at the High School Baseball Network First Pitch Elite Tournament last week. Stoneman Douglas trailed 4-2 heading into the bottom of the seventh and scored a run on base hit to the outfield. However, Taravella threw out a second Eagle runner trying to score on the play. The next batter popped up to end the game.
Player of the Week: Jarrod Hocking, Servite. In wins over Fullerton and Lakewood, Hocking went 9-for-10 with six RBI and a home run. In five games, he is batting .762 (16 for 21).
Games to watch: Buford vs. Jesuit. Two of the top teams in the South play today. Jesuit and Buford were among the top teams in the nation last year, but were knocked out of the postseason with shocking losses. They are both undefeated to start the season with Buford at No. 3 and Jesuit at No. 7.
Streaks: The First Academy (Orlando, Fla.) raised its winning streak to 25 in a row with a 3-0 start. Defending national champion Barbe (Lake Charles, La.) has a 24-gme win streak after a 6-0 start. Roff (Okla.) is still the national leader with 43 in a row. The Tigers open their season on March 10 vs. Indianola.
Roman Martin, Servite
Photo by Terry Jack
1. St. Mary's Prep (Orchard Lake, Mich.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 1
Next: Season begins March 30 vs. Shrine Catholic
2.IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.)
Record: 2-0 |
Last week: 2
Results: Def. Dunedin, 2-1; def. McKeel Academy, 15-0.
Stats: Jackson Ferris went five innings and struck out nine while allowing one hit in a no decision.
Brady Neal and
Stone Russell each had two hits.
Elijah Green had a grand slam against McKeel and
Jaewoo Cho and
Mikhai Grant combined on a no-hitter with three strikeouts each.
Next: March 10 vs. Sunshine State Elite Academy
3. Buford (Buford, Ga.)
Record: 4-0 |
Last week: 3
Results: Def. Shiloh 9-0, 10-0, 14-1
Stats: Dylan Lesko hit a home run and also tossed three no-hit innings with eight strikeouts in the 9-0 win.
Jackson Gaspard also threw three no-hit innings, fanning six and had a double.
Riley Stanford struck out eight in the 10-0 win.
Next: Friday vs. Jesuit (Tampa)
4. Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.)
Record: 5-0 |
Last week: 5
Results: Def. Southlake Carroll (Texas), 2-0.
Stats: Back-to-back doubles by
Derek Curiel and
Mikey Romero led to the only runs of the game in the Lancer win.
Next: March 8 vs. JSerra Catholic.
5. Yucaipa (Calif.)
Record: 4-1 |
Last week: 6
Results: Def. Foothill (Santa Ana), 4-1.
Stats: Jacob Reimer had a three-run home run and finished with four RBI for the Thunderbirds.
Next: Wed. vs. Cajon.
6. Harvard-Westlake (Studio City, Calif.)
Record: 4-1 |
Last week: 7
Results: Def. Damien (LaVerne), 10-0.
Stats: Bryce Rainer had a pair of hits for the Wolverines and
Davis White got the win with 5.2 scoreless innings.
Next: Tuesday vs. Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks).
7. Jesuit (Tampa, Fla.)
Record: 3-0 |
Last week: 9
Results: Def. Bloomingdale, 4-1; Def. Plant, 4-3; def. Strawberry Crest, 4-0.
Stats: Wes Mendes had a triple and
Jamie Arnold struck out nine to lead Jesuit past defending state champion Bloomingdale.
Next: Friday vs. Buford (Ga.)
8. Barbe (Lake Charles, La.)
Record: 6-0 |
Last week: 10
Results: Def. St. Louis Catholic, 1-0; Neville (Monroe), 8-4; Calvary Baptist, 11-1; Glenmora, 12-0.
Stats: JC Vanek struck out six to get the win over Neville.
Gavin Guidry struck out 10 against St. Louis Catholic.
Next: Tues. vs. Glenmora
9. Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.)
Record: 6-0 |
Last week: 12
Results: Def. Newbury Park, 8-1; def. Viewpoint, 10-0.
Stats: Kassius Thomas struck out 11 and
Jaden Noot hit a three-run home run against Newbury Park in championship game of Easton Tournament.
Next: Wed. vs. Windward
10. Servite (Anaheim, Calif.)
Record: 5-0 |
Last week: NR
Results: Def. Fullerton, 16-7; def. El Modena, 5-0; Lakewood, 18-5.
Stats: Jarrod Hocking went 4-for-5 with a home run and three RBI against Fullerton.
Roman Martin went 3-for-4 with a grand slam and four RBI against El Modena. Hocking also went 5-for-5 with two doubles and three RBI against Lakewood.
Next: March 15 vs. Orange Lutheran.
11. Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 8
Next: Season begins March 1 vs. Corona del Sol.
12. Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 14
Next: Season begins March 4 vs. Palo Verde (Las Vegas).
13. Rockwall-Heath (Rockwall, Texas)
Record: 3-0 |
Last week: 15
Results: Def. Highland Park, 6-5; def. Allen, 3-2; def. Wakeland, 6-0.
Stats: Colin Liles had a triple and three RBI against Highland Park while Baylor Baumann struck out 10 against Allen. Jett Williams had a home run against Wakeland.
Next: Thur. vs. Lubbock Cooper.
14. American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.)
Record: 2-0 |
Last week: 16
Results: Def. John Carroll, 11-1; def. Braddock, 8-1.
Stats: Raymond Bermudez had a grand slam and Manuel Abreu hit a home run against Braddock.
Brandon Barriera got the win over John Carroll.
Next: Tues. vs. Champagnat
15. The First Academy (Orlando, Fla.)
Record: 3-0 |
Last week: 19
Results: Def. Windermere Prep, 15-0, 12-0; def. Winter Springs, 2-1.
Next: Tues. vs. Trinity Prep (Winter Park)
16. Taravella (Coral Springs, Fla.)
Record: 3-0 |
Last week: NR
Results: Def. Stoneman Douglas, 4-3, West Boca 6-1, Doral Academy 4-1.
Stats: Matthew Rubin had a double and three RBI against Douglas. Jacob Smith hit a home run against West Boca.
Next: March 11 at Jordan
17. Stoneman Douglas (Parkland, Fla.)
Record: 2-1 |
Last week: 4
Results: Lost to Taravella 4-3; def. Cardinal Gibbons (Fort Lauderdale), 3-0; def. St. John Paul II Academy, 9-0.
Stats: Jake Clemente had a double and a triple against St. John Paul II Academy.
Next: Tues. vs. St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale).
18. Tompkins (Katy, Texas)
Record: 4-0 |
Last week: NR
Results: Def. Flower Mound, 8-2; def. Reagan (San Antonio), 9-3; def. Richmond Foster, 9-2; def. Cypress Woods, 5-4.
Stats: Jace LaViolette went 2-for-3 with a triple and three RBI against Foster. He also had a triple against Flower Mound.
Next: Thurs. Vs. Magnolia.
19. Baylor (Chattanooga, Tenn.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 17
Next: Season begins March 14 vs. Upperman
20. Hanover (Mechanicsville, Va.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 18
Next: Season begins March 18 vs. Deep Run
21. Owasso (Owasso, Okla.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 20
Next: Season starts March 1 at Grant
22. Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 21
Next: Season begins March 24 vs. Emerson
23. Deer Creek (Edmond, Okla.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 22
Next: Season starts March 4 vs. Carl Albert
24. Walsh Jesuit (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 23
Next: Season starts March 26 vs. Mentor
25. American Fork (Utah)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 24
Next: Season begins March 11 at Jordan
