A trip halfway across the country wasn't enough to derail The Woodlands Highlanders, who held on to the top spot in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Softball Rankings with an impressive performance in Florida.
The Woodlands remained undefeated on the season at 23-0 by winning four games in the Disney Spring Training Tournament held in Orlando.
Meanwhile Gulliver Prep of Florida took a tumble with a 13-12 loss to Charlotte (Punta Verda, Fla.). The loss drops Gulliver Prep, previously the No. 2 team, down to the No. 25 spot. Valencia replaced Gulliver Prep at No. 2 and this week will compete in the Faster to First Tournament, which features many of the top teams from California.
Another team making a big move this week was Riverdale (Tenn.), which won the Commando Tournament with 14 straight wins.
MAXPREPS XCELLENT 25 NATIONAL SOFTBALL RANKINGS1. (Last week 1) The Woodlands (Texas), 23-0The Highlanders defeated Oak Ridge 15-1 in preparation for their trip to the Disney Spring Training tournament. They went 4-0 at the Florida event, beating Blair Academy 18-0, Fort Bend Baptist 2-0, and Siegel twice, 10-0 and 9-4.
2. (3) Valencia (Calif.), 11-0The Vikings topped Camarillo in a doubleheader, 7-0 and 8-4. They also had a 9-0 win over Santa Margarita go unreported last week.
3. (4) Soddy Daisy (Tenn.), 2-0The Trojans opened their season with a pair of wins, routing McMinn County 12-2 and then blanking Rhea County 15-0.
Mariam Wood hit a grand slam for the first home run at Soddy Daisy's new softball field.
Kelsey Nunley gained the win while striking out five.
4. (5) Sandburg (Orland Park, Ill.), 2-0Sandburg opened the season with a 9-0 and 10-4 doubleheader sweep of Moline.
Lora Olson struck out nine in game one and also went 2-for-4 with a double. All-American catcher
Lexi Bryant was 2-for-4 with a home run, a double and four RBIs. In the second game, Jess Perkins was 3-for-5 with three doubles and two RBIs.
5. (6) Hudsonville (Mich.), 0-0The Eagles do not begin their season until April.
6. (8) Alexander Central (Taylorsville, N.C.), 5-0The Cougars strung together three more shutouts to give them five in a row to start the season. Alexander Central topped South Caldwell 6-0, Hickory 25-0 and St. Stephens 3-0. Pitcher
Chelsea Wilkinson struck out 15 against South Caldwell, nine in a no-hitter against Hickory and 14 in a one-hitter against St. Stephens.
7. (9) Plano East (Texas), 16-1In a showdown of two of the top teams in North Texas, Plano East held off Hebron 2-1.
Kierin Stevens had a home run for Plano East and
Holly Kern picked up the win.
8. (10) East Lake (Tarpon Springs, Fla.), 17-0The Eagles continued to cruise, winning two more games by shutout last week, including 10-0 over Dunedin and 5-0 over Seminole.
Alyssa Bache struck out 10 and threw a no-hitter against Dunedin and then struck out eight in a no-hitter over Seminole.
9. (11) American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.), 15-0The Patriots had the week off and will play Marist (Chicago) this week.
10. (14) Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.), 3-0The Knights have had little challenge so far this season, whipping St. John's 28-0 and St. Mary's Ryken 22-5 in raising their record to 3-0. Against St. Mary's Ryken,
Sophie Giaquinto had a home run and six RBIs while
Jillian Ferraro also had a home run.
11. (15) Stockdale (Bakersfield, Calif.), 12-0The Mustangs shut out Frontier 1-0 and beat Centennial 11-1 to stay undefeated.
Victoria Valos had a pair of triples against Centennial while
Justine Vela struck out nine for the win.
12. (16) Riverdale (Murfreesboro, Tenn.), 14-0The Warriors had an outstanding weekend at the Commando Classic, going 14-0 in the event. While complete stats are not available for Riverdale,
Katie Brown is off to a strong start on the season with 15 RBIs and two home runs through six games.
13. (17) Bolles (Jacksonville, Fla.), 14-0The Bulldogs cranked out three more shutouts, defeating Yulee 6-0, Wakulla 4-0 and Lincoln 6-0.
14. (13) Plano (Texas), 20-3Plano knocked off Flower Mound Marcus 9-4 last week in its only game as
Erin Lowell had a home run and
Katherine Batey had a pair of doubles and picked up the win. Plano had a previously unreported loss to Keller added to its record.
15. (18) Perry (Massillon, Ohio), 0-0The Panthers begin their season March 28 at home against Cuyahoga Heights.
16. (19) Dunnellon (Fla.), 9-1The Tigers whipped Leesburg 15-0 in district play last week.
Sami Fagan was 5-for-5 with four runs scored, a double and a triple with three RBIs. The Tigers have a big game with Riverdale (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) coming up on March 22.
17. (21) Poland Seminary (Ohio), 0-0The Bulldogs open their season on March 29 vs. Struthers.
18. (25) Bartow (Fla.), 15-0The Yellow Jackets are 15-0 after winning the Bartow Tournament of Champions over the weekend. Bartow is ranked No. 2 in the state 5A rankings behind East Lake according to Miracle Sports.
19. (24) River Ridge (New Port Richey, Fla.), 11-1The Knights did not play last week but will take on Sunlake today and Palm Harbor University on Friday.
20. (NR) Jupiter (Fla.), 12-2Jupiter moved into the No. 1 spot in the Miracle Sports Florida 6A rankings after defeating previous No. 1, and defending state champion, Palm Beach Gardens 1-0 last week.
Kylee Hanson struck out 12 and gave up just two hits in the win.
22. (NR) Los Alamitos (Calif.), 9-1-1Ranked No. 2 in the Southern Section rankings, the Griffins' only loss this year is a 3-2 setback to Valencia at the Dave Kopps Tournament in Bullhead City. Los Alamitos also has a 5-0 win over Mater Dei.
22. (22) Rodriguez (Fairfield, Calif.), 5-1Rodriguez did not play its two scheduled games last week against Benicia and Vallejo due to poor weather conditions.
23. (23) Elk Grove (Calif.), 8-2The Thundering Herd rebounded from two losses at the Victory Tournament to defeat Pleasant Grove 1-0 on Wednesday and Woodland 4-2 on Thursday.
Shelby Wisdom threw a one-hitter and struck out 11 against Pleasant Grove.
Kaitlin Pires drove in two runs against Woodland.
24. (7) Piedra Vista (Farmington, N.M.), 9-2The Panthers saw their winning streak against New Mexico schools come to an end at 76 in a row after dropping a 1-0 decision to Las Cruces and a 4-2 contest to Onate.
Karysta Donisthorpe took both of the losses, giving up the first runs of the season after nine straight shutouts.
25. (2) Gulliver Prep (Miami), 11-1The Raiders fell to Charlotte (Punta Verda) 13-12 for their first loss of the season.
Dropped Out: No. 12 Palm Beach Gardens, No. 20 Santiago.
