MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Baseball Rankings

On Feb. 23, we posed the question, "Which team not in the preseason Xcellent 25 has the best chance of competing for a national championship?" Our answer: Olympia (Orlando, Fla.).

Eight weeks and 23 straight wins later, Olympia has taken over the No. 1 spot in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Baseball Rankings. After Calallen (Corpus Christi, Texas) lost to rival Moody last week, the stage was set for Olympia to move into the top spot.

Olympia has all of the intangibles necessary for a national championship. It has an undefeated record, a feat not easy to accomplish, especially in a competitive baseball state like Florida.

Second, it has two of the top senior prospects in the country in pitcher Walker Weickel and outfielder Jesse Winker. Meanwhile junior Nick Gordon ranks as one of the top underclassmen in the country.

Third, it plays in a tough classification. Competing in the 8A division in Florida means that Olympia will face some tough competition en route to a potential state championship.

Six new teams join the Xcellent 25 this week with Gloucester Catholic, Spanish Fork, Alemany, Montwood, Oak Grove and Conestoga all departing. Taking their place are Martin (Arlington, Texas), Lexington (S.C.), Pensacola Catholic (Fla.), Lake Braddock (Burke, Va.), Bob Jones (Madison, Ala.) and Redlands (Calif.).

MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Baseball Rankings

1. (2) Olympia (Orlando, Fla.), 23-0
The regular season is winding down for Olympia, which took two from West Orange (Winter Garden) last week, 10-0 and 3-1. Walker Weickel got the win in the 10-0 victory, striking out six. Tyler Halstead and Jake Sidwell each added three RBIs. Michael Hennessey got the win in the second game, allowing no earned runs. Halstead had the game-winning RBI in the sixth inning.

2. (5) Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.), 13-3
The Lancers returned to Trinity League play with an 8-2 win over Servite. Cody Nulph was 3-for-4 with a triple and two RBIs in the win. Orange Lutheran's Friday game with Servite was rained out.

3. (6) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), 14-4
The Monarchs swept two games from Santa Margarita last week, winning 7-0 and 10-3. On Friday, Davis Tominaga went five innings and gave up two earned runs on eight hits with two strikeouts to get the 10-3 victory. Jeremy Martinez had a double and three RBIs while Ryan McMahon had a triple and two RBIs. In the 7-0 win, Ty Moore picked up this sixth win of the season (6-1) with six strikeouts in six innings.

4. (7) Columbus (Ga.), 19-1
The Blue Devils won three games last week, beating Troup County (La Grange) 12-0, Central (Carrollton) 5-1 and Shaw (Columbus) 12-4. Kyle Carter homered in the win over Shaw and the win over Central.

5. (8) Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas), 20-2
The Gaels proved to be tough on their home turf last week, winning seven games to capture their own Easter Classic Tournament. Bishop Gorman blasted Pahrump Valley 30-1 with Cody Roper hitting two home runs. In a 21-5 win over Vauxhall Academy, Roper and Joey Gallo each hit one out. The Gaels hit four homers in a 16-3 win over Judge Memorial (Salt Lake City), as Justin Jones, Tommy Field, Roper and Gallo all contributed. Gallo also hit one out in an 11-9 win over Oaks Christian (Westlake Village, Calif.) while Kenny Meimerstorf hit two in an 8-0 win over Gloucester Catholic (N.J.). Gallo threw a no-hitter against Gloucester Catholic, striking out nine. Bishop Gorman also defeated Menlo (Atherton, Calif.) 5-4 and Bishop Manogue (Reno, Nev.), 3-1.

6. (1) Calallen (Corpus Christi, Texas), 25-1
The Wildcats saw their win streak end at 25 with a 9-3 loss to rival Moody (Corpus Christi) on Saturday. The Trojans rallied for six runs in the second inning to build a 6-1 lead and eventually handed Calallen its first district loss since 2007. Calallen had won 63 straight district games. Earlier in the week the Wildcats defeated Alice 10-0.

7. (9) Carroll (Corpus Christi, Texas), 21-2
The Tigers defeated South San Antonio 10-0 and Highlands (San Antonio) 11-0 last week to set up this week's game with previously undefeated Calallen on Saturday.

8. (10) Jesuit (Tampa, Fla.), 21-1
The Tigers were 4-0 in their own Jesuit Easter Tournament, defeating Regis (New York City) 9-0, Canisius (Buffalo, N.Y.) 11-1, Loyola (Los Angeles) 3-2 and Bishop McLaughlin Catholic (Spring Hill, Fla.), 10-0. Lance McCullers threw a one-hitter with six strikeouts in the win over Bishop McLaughlin Catholic.

9. (3) St. Francis (Mountain View, Calif.), 18-1-1
The Lancers dropped a pair of East Bay powerhouses with a 3-1 win over De La Salle (Concord) and a 2-0 victory over Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland). However St. Francis dropped a 4-3 contest with Damonte Ranch (Reno, Nev.). The Lancers took third place in the Elite 8 Tournament with the win over the Dragons. Against Damonte Ranch, St. Francis had the bases loaded with one out in the sixth inning, but was unable to bring the tying run home.

10. (12) Nova (Davie, Fla.), 18-1
Nova is the top-ranked team in South Florida, picking up three more wins last week. The Titans knocked off Cooper City 9-2, West Branch (Va.) 1-0 and Plantation, 5-2. Nova has one regular season game left on its schedule against Western.

11. (14) Winter Springs (Fla.), 21-1-1
The Bears head in to the last week of the season with just one loss on the year after beating Ocoee 7-2 and Lyman (Longwood) 9-5 last week.

12. (13) Pelham (Ala.), 31-2
Pelham split two games with Hoover last week, winning 7-6 and falling 3-0. Pelham finished the regular season strongly, however, with an 11-0 win over Montevallo. Will open postseason play with Hillcrest (Tuscaloosa).

13. (18) Broken Arrow (Okla.), 24-3
Broken Arrow braved the storms in Oklahoma to win four straight and capture the Broken Arrow/Sand Springs Wood Bat Tournament. The Tigers beat Fayetteville (Ark.) 4-2, Sapulpa 5-2, Bartlesville 4-0 and Memorial 2-0.

14. (19) Seven Lakes (Katy, Texas), 23-2-1
Seven Lakes easily defeated MacArthur (Houston) 17-0 and Morton Ranch (Katy) 12-2 last week and held off Strake Jesuit (Houston) 7-3 in district play.

15. (22) Mount Carmel (Chicago), 16-0
The Caravan beat Lincoln-Way East 11-1 behind Jerry Houston's grand slam. Tom Hayes added three hits and two RBIs.

16. (24) Providence (Charlotte, N.C.), 16-1
Providence topped Rocky River 12-0 in its only reported game of the week.

17. (NR) Martin (Arlington, Texas), 23-1-1
Martin will likely move up a spot in the Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association poll after Montwood lost to Franklin last week.

18. (NR) Lexington (S.C.), 18-2
Ranked No. 1 in the state of South Carolina.

19. (NR) Pensacola Catholic (Fla.), 20-1
Pensacola Catholic is the winningest 4A team in the state of Florida.

20. (17) Owasso (Okla.), 21-3
Owasso won three times in the Owasso Nike/ProNine Classic, blasting Washington (Tulsa) 9-3, Sperry 14-0 and Durant 12-4, but also lost to Bishop Kelley, 5-4.

21. (NR) Lake Braddock (Burke, Va.), 11-1
Lake Braddock is ranked No. 1 in the Washington D.C. metro area.

22. (NR) Bob Jones (Madison, Ala.), 30-4
Alabama's No. 2 ranked 5A team behind Pelham.

23. (NR) Redlands (Calif.), 17-1
Redlands is ranked No. 1 in the Southern Section Division II coaches poll.

24. (16) Harvard-Westlake (North Hollywood, Calif.), 13-3-1
Harvard-Westlake downed Culver City 3-0 with Max Fried striking out 14 batters and allowing just two hits in the win. The Wolverines' game with Westlake at the Chatsworth Tournament was postponed until Thursday.

25. (20) Parkview (Lilburn, Ga.), 15-3
Parkview bested Dacula 14-2 and Grayson 5-4 but lost to Brookwood 5-2 last week. Parkview led 2-0 in the bottom of the sixth against Brookwood but surrendered five runs in the inning for its third loss of the season. Matt Olson improved to 7-0 on the season with the win over Grayson.

Dropped Out: No. 4 Gloucester Catholic, No. 11 Spanish Fork, No. 15 Alemany, No. 21 Montwood, No. 23 Oak Grove, No. 25. Conestoga.

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