MaxPreps Northern California Top 25 high school baseball rankings

Video: 5 straight no-hitters
See more about Sonoma Academy and its impressive streak of no-hitters.

The league races have heated up, even if the weather hasn't across all of Northern California. The section playoffs loom for the Central Coast, North Coast, Northern and Sac-Joaquin sections as well.

1. De La Salle (Concord) (last week 1) 16-3
Section: North Coast
League: East Bay
Update: The Spartans have wins over Elk Grove early and league triumphs over California (San Ramon) 9-2 and San Ramon Valley (Danville) 6-4. Gabe Giosso and Connor Redmond are among those leading the hit parade.

2. Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills) (7) 17-4
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Sierra Foothill
Update: Top-ranked by The Sacramento Bee, the Trojans are in the driver's seat for the Sierra Foothill League title, thanks in large part to aces Trenton Denholm (9-1) and John Cross (5-1) each tossing a no-hitter to beat Del Oro (Loomis) 2-0 and 4-0. An early win was 2-1 over Elk Grove.

3. Elk Grove (8) 16-7
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Delta
Update: The Thundering Herd, defending Sac-Joaquin Section Division I champions, beat Davis 14-1 and lost to Davis 2-1, then beat Jesuit twice, 4-1 and 3-0. Alex Zalasky (7-1) has been superb, as has the defense that includes Aaron Wong, Josh Urps, Ryan Robards and brothers Dylan Carlson and Tanner Carlson.

4. Davis (2) 19-3
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Delta
Update: The Blue Devils started the season 11-0, won the Boras Baseball Classic North title, play for the overall title on Saturday at Cal and split with Elk Grove. The leader is standout shortstop Ryan Kreidler. League showdown games loom this week against ranked Jesuit.

5. Saint Francis (Mountain View) (13) 18-7
Section: Central Coast
League: West Catholic Athletic
Update: The preseason NorCal No. 1 team is back on a roll with an eight-game winning streak, including a 4-2 win over Serra, and leads the powerhouse conference.

6. Serra (San Mateo) (4) 17-5-1
Section: Central Coast
League: West Catholic Athletic
Update: A loss to rival Saint Francis nudged the Padres just below the Lancers in the league standings. Serra beat Saint Francis earlier, 7-3. Nick Von Tobel has pitched well.

7. Heritage (Brentwood) (9) 14-3
Section: North Coast
League: Bay Valley
Update: The Patriots are riding a seven-game winning streak, including wins over Freedom (Oakley) 7-0 and Antioch 6-2. Kevin Milam and Walker Brinkman have played well.

8. Jesuit (Carmichael) (5) 16-7
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Delta
Update: The Marauders have huge nonleague wins over De La Salle (9-1), Valley Christian (San Jose) 8-4, St. Mary's (Stockton) 5-4 and Bellarmine (7-4). Jesuit in league play lost to Elk Grove 4-1 and 3-0 and takes on Davis next. Tyler Adge and Darren Baker have played well.

9. Bellarmine College Prep (San Jose) (3) 8-2
Section: Central Coast
League: West Catholic Athletic
Update: An early win was over preseason No. 1 Saint Francis 2-1, and then a nine-inning loss to new No. 1 De La Salle, and then the league fun. Recent setbacks include 7-6 to Serra, 2-0 to Saint Francis, followed by four consecutive wins.

10. Casa Grande (Petaluma) (10) 13-5
Section: North Coast
League: North Bay
Update: The Gauchos have early wins over Larkspur 6-2 and Bellarmine 3-2 and another nice nonleague win over Vintage 9-2. Spencer Torkelson and Chris Joaquim lead the offense.

11. Redwood (Larkspur) (20) 15-3
Section: North Coast
League: Marin County
Update: The Giants have a five-game winning streak, including three shutouts, as pitching and defense continue to set the tone. Zack Kopstein and Zach Cohen have played well.

12. Vintage (Napa) (17)
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Monticello Empire
Update: The Crushers are in command of the MEL with a 10-1 record, the lone loss to rival Vacaville, 12-5, and there's no shame in that. Ace Jared Horn is 8-0 with an 0.25 ERA.

13. Marin Catholic (Kentfield) (15) 16-3
Section: North Coast
League: Marin County
Update: The winning streak is seven, the last loss coming to Redwood 3-2. There have been wins of 3-0, 3-0, 5-1, 2-0, 2-0 and 3-1, so defense and pitching have led the way. Mike Praszker, Payton O'Donnell, Brandon Buckley, Calvin Wright and Hayden Wellbeloved have all pitched well.

14. Maria Carrillo (Santa Rosa) (15) 12-7
Section: North Coast
League: North Bay
Update: The Pumas have a split with higher-ranked Vintage and a 7-5 loss to highly ranked Davis, and are 8-1 in league play. Andrew Vaughn is 6-1 and Ryan Sellner is 4-3.

15. Franklin (Elk Grove) (20) 13-10
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Delta
Update: The Wildcats are in the thick of the Delta League race and cap the regular season against rival Elk Grove. Zach Tresemer is 5-2 with a 1.04 ERA, and he's one of the top players in program history.

16. St. Mary's (Stockton) (21) 15-10
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Tri-City Athletic
Update: The Rams have early losses to Franklin 5-0, Jesuit 5-4, Serra 4-3, Elk Grove 7-1, Saint Francis 6-0 and Heritage 7-0, so kudos to ambitious scheduling. St. Mary's is 12-1 in league play and aims to return to the Division I final.

17. Acalanes (Lafayette) (NR) 17-2
Section: North Coast
League: Diablo Foothill
Update: The Dons have won 10 of 11 games, including over College Park, 6-2 in nine innings. Wins of late include Dublin 5-4, Alhambra (Martinez) 4-0, Miramonte (Orinda) 7-1 and Dougherty Valley (San Ramon) 4-3.

18. College Park (Pleasant Hill) (12) 13-5
Section: North Coast
League: Diablo Valley
Update: The Falcons are defending North Coast Section Division I champions and are 5-1 in league play, splitting with Northgate (Walnut Creek). Ian Maciver is 5-1, Sam Behrens 4-2 and Kellen Kozlowski 2-1.

19. Monte Vista (Danville) (14) 11-6
Section: North Coast
League: East Bay
Update: The Mustangs are in the midst of a fun league race, losing of late to De La Salle 6-0 and San Ramon Valley in 10 innings 7-5.

20. Granada (Livermore) (NR) 10-8
Section: North Coast
League: East Bay
Update: The Matadors are in the thick of a good league race and draw top-ranked De La Salle next. Zac Heinz, AJ McMillan, Robert Chioino and Tyler Stultz are among the many good arms on the staff.

21. Palo Alto (24) 19-4-1
Section: Central Coast
League: De Anza
Update: The Vikings have an early 6-1 loss to Serra and a recent setback to preseason No. 1 Saint Francis 10-3, but there has been a lot of winning in between, including a league split with Los Gatos. Alec Olmstead is 5-0, Ryan Chang 4-1, Justin Hull 4-1 and Jeremy Akioka 3-1.

22. Los Gatos (NR) 17-10
Section: Central Coast
League: De Anza
Update: The Wildcats lead the De Anza baseball scramble at 13-1, a game ahead of Palo Alto, and the teams split. Jake Holton is 6-3 and Brooks Olesek is 5-1.

23. Woodcreek (Roseville) (25) 17-6
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Sierra Foothill
Update: The Timberwolves have three losses to Sacramento Bee No. 1 Oak Ridge and fully expect to be a force in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division I playoffs. Matthew Ornelas is 5-2, Cody Lindsey 6-1 and Dennis Boatman 3-1.

24. Clayton Valley Charter (Concord) (NR) 15-5
Section: North Coast
League: Diablo Valley
Update: The Ugly Eagles are 7-1 in a tight league race that includes Northgate. Pitching has dominated of late with wins of 20-0 and 13-0 over Mt. Diablo (Concord) and 5-1 and 13-1 over Berean Christian (Walnut Creek). James Biles is 7-2 and the staff ERA is 2.06.

25 tie. Northgate (Walnut Creek) (NR) 12-6
Section: North Coast
League: Diablo Valley
Update: The Broncos are in the running for the league race, one that includes ranked College Park and Clayton Valley Charter. Northgate split with College Park, winning 7-0 and losing 2-1 in 12 innings. Two games loom this week against Clayton Valley Charter.

25 tie. Vista del Lago (Folsom) (NR) 17-2-1
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Capital Athletic
Update: The Eagles are rolling in league play at 9-0 and have two tough outs in leading RBI guys Landon Mitchell and Michael Nelsen, who have combined for 43 RBIs. Patrick Gaffney is 8-1 and Mitchell is 4-1.

The Sacramento Bee on a famed regional coach who was fired, then finds joy elsewhere - click here

The Sacramento Bee on a NorCal program that tossed back-to-back no-hitters - click here

Joe Davidson has covered high school sports in Northern California since 1984, including since 1988 for The Sacramento Bee. Follow him on Twitter: @SacBee_JoeD and on Facebook: facebook.com/joe.davidson