High school baseball rankings: St. John Bosco takes two of three from Orange Lutheran to rise in this week's MaxPreps Top 25

Less than a week after finishing ahead of St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) at the National High School Invitational, Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.) fell behind the Braves in the Trinity League standings after dropping two of three head-to-head games last week.

Orange Lutheran lost the first two games of the three-game set (7-4, 4-1) but rebounded to win the third game (5-4). As a result, the Lancers stay ahead of St. John Bosco in this week's MaxPreps Top 25 high school baseball rankings.

The two wins for Bosco allowed it to move ahead of Venice (Fla.) and into the No. 3 spot in the rankings. Orange Lutheran is 1-2 in Trinity League play while St. John Bosco is 5-1.

Orange Lutheran and St. John Bosco could meet again this week as they both participate in the Boras South Classic. The Lancers and Braves face plenty of competition, however, as No. 7 Corona (Calif.) is on the same side of the bracket as Orange Lutheran and the tournament includes Southern California powers like JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano), Mater Dei (Santa Ana), Norco, Huntington Beach and Aquinas (San Bernardino).

Tomball (Texas) stays at No. 1 with a pair of district wins last week over Klein Oak (Spring) and Tomball Memorial (Tomball). No. 4 Venice also won twice, including this week's Game of the Week against Bishop Verot (Fort Myers).

De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) moves into the rankings at No. 22 after nine straight wins, including a first-place finish at the National Classic in Orange County. The Spartans, who had three self-imposed forfeit losses to start the season due to team and school rule violations by team players, have been nearly untouchable in nine wins, giving up just six runs with six shutouts. The Spartans defeated Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks) in the National Classic and topped Centennial (Corona) for the championship.

Stony Brook (N.Y.) also jumps into the rankings at No. 23 with a 16-0 start. The Bears are playing a pair of Georgia teams, Etowah (Woodstock) and McEachern (Powder Springs), this weekend after beating Newnan on Monday. Stony Brook also has a pair of wins over Florida teams Montverde Academy (Montverde) and The First Academy (Orlando).

Game of the Week

Venice 1, Bishop Verot 0: The Indians and Vikings went 11 innings before Venice scored a run in the top of the frame on a single by Macade Carey, a sacrifice bunt and a basehit by August Backman that drove in the winning run. The two teams combined for 34 strikeouts with  Venice's Carter Cox striking out 16 in nine innings and Kohen Poplin fanning four in two innings. Joey Lawson started for Bishop Verot and had 10 strikeouts.

Game to Watch

No. 3 St. John Bosco vs. Norco, today at Boras South Classic: The Braves get a tough one in the first round as they meet a Norco team that is 12-1 with the only loss being a 3-2 defeat to Corona on Feb. 28. Norco has won eight straight since then.

Pitcher of the Week

Cox gets the honors despite getting a no decision against Bishop Verot. Cox threw nine no-hit innings and did not give up a walk while picking up the 16 strikeouts. The only baserunner Cox allowed was in the sixth when he hit a batter with two outs. The next batter flew out to end the inning.

Hitter of the Week

Cory Les of St. Laurence (Burbank, Ill.) put on a power hitting display in an 18-5 win over Latin was he went 3-for-4 with three home runs and five RBI. He also added a double and a triple in a 15-6 win over Leo.

Streaks

Forest Hills Eastern (Ada, Mich.) added one win to the longest win streak in the nation at 44 in a row, beating Ottawa Hills 15-0 last week. The Hawks have outscored their first three opponents 57-0. Governor Livingston (Berkeley Heights, N.J.) ran its win streak to 38 in a row. Pioneer Valley Regional (Northfield, Mass.) lost its season opener to have its 30-game win streak come to an end.
 
MaxPreps Top 25 baseball rankings

1. Tomball (Texas)
Record: 25-0-1 | Last week: 1
Scores: Def. Klein Oak 1-0, def. Tomball Memorial 2-0
Next: Tuesday vs. Tomball Memorial

2. Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.)
Record: 8-3 | Last week: 2
Scores: Lost to St. John Bosco 7-4, 4-1, def. St. John Bosco 5-4
Next: Tuesday vs. Fountain Valley at Boras Classic

Record: 11-3 | Last week: 11
Scores: Def. Orange Lutheran 7-4, 4-1, lost to Orange Lutheran 5-4
Next: Tuesday vs. Norco at Boras Classic

4. Venice (Fla.)
Record: 21-1 | Last week: 3
Scores: Def. Barron Collier 6-2, def. Bishop Verot 1-0
Next: Tuesday vs. Barron Collier

5. Barbe (Lake Charles, La.)
Record: 28-1 | Last week: 4
Scores: Def. Sam Houston 8-1, def. Sulphur 2-1, 4-2
Next: Tuesday vs. Southside

6. Calallen (Corpus Christi, Texas)
Record: 22-2 | Last week: 5
Scores: Def. King 22-0, def. Zapata 19-2
Next: Tuesday vs. Robstown

7. Corona (Calif.)
Record: 11-1 | Last week: 6
Scores: Def. Miami Christian 11-5
Next: Tuesday vs. JSerra Catholic at Boras Classic

8. Harvard-Westlake (Studio City, Calif.)
Record: 13-4 | Last week: 7
Scores: Def. Loyola 8-0, 7-1
Next: Tuesday vs. St. Joseph

9. Casteel (Queen Creek, Ariz.)
Record: 14-3 | Last week: 8
Scores: Def. Basha 7-2, 8-1, def. Desert Vista 9-1
Next: Tuesday vs. Chandler

10. Baylor (Chattanooga, Tenn.)
Record: 12-3 | Last week: 9
Scores: Did not play
Next: April 7 vs. Silverdale Academy

11. Trinity (Louisville, Ky.)
Record: 10-2 | Last week: 10
Scores: Def. Oldham County 11-5, def. Great Crossing 10-0, def. Ryle 12-2, def. Silver Creek 10-2
Next: Wednesday vs. Chicago Mt. Carmel

Record: 9-1 | Last week: 16
Scores: Def. Homewood-Flossmoor 4-1, def. Latin 18-5, def. Leo 15-6
Next: Tuesday vs. Carmel

17. Merritt Island (Fla.)
Record: 20-3 | Last week: 18
Scores: Def. Wheaton Academy 7-4, def. Ragsdale 21-1
Next: Tuesday vs. Eau Gallie

18. North Paulding (Dallas, Ga.)
Record: 21-3 | Last week: 19
Scores: Def. North Cobb, 15-0, 4-0, 10-0.
Next: Friday vs. Hillgrove