Defending national champion
IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) opened 2026 with a win that shook up the first regular season edition of the MaxPreps Top 25 high school baseball rankings. The Ascenders knocked off then-No. 3
Etowah (Woodstock, Ga.), jumping three spots to No. 9.
IMG Academy rallied from a one-run deficit with two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to edge Etowah 3-2. The victory marked the 16th straight win for the Ascenders after going 24-1 last spring. IMG also notched a win over defending state champ
Lowndes (Valdosta, Ga.) 5-1 in its second game of the week.
Etowah dropped to No. 10 but won three other games during the week behind impressive performances from preseason All-Americans
Matthew Sharman and
Trevor Condon.
Two new teams to the rankings this week include
Prestonwood Christian (Plano, Texas), which is off to a 6-0 start, and
Bishop Verot (Fort Myers, Fla.), which is 3-0.
Reigning MaxPreps National Player of the Year Gio Rojas takes the field for No. 2 Stoneman Douglas against Killian last week. Rojas, who has never lost a decision in high school, earned the 18th victory of his career in the win. (PHOTO: Mike Janes)
After
Cy Chrisman scored on a fielders choice to tie the game at 2-2,
Juan Diaz doubled to bring home
Connor Scheich for the winning run.
Game to Watch: IMG Academy vs. Jesuit (Tampa, Fla.), Feb. 19. These two teams have had some battles over the past four seasons. Jesuit enters the game ranked No. 4 while IMG Academy is No. 9. Could see a pitching matchup of IMG's
Kyler Meccage vs. Jesuit's
Kaden Waechter, two of the top-ranked pitchers in the nation.
Pitcher of the Week: Hunter Rose got
Pleasant Grove (Texarkana, Texas) off to a strong start as he pitched a seven-inning perfect game with 11 strikeouts to beat crosstown rival Liberty-Eylau 3-0.
Hitter of the Week: Jonathan Mauro of
Venice (Fla.) was 5-for-10 in three wins with two doubles and five RBI.
Streaks: Forest Hills Eastern (Ada, Mich.) begins the season with the longest win streak at 41 games but won't start its season until mid-March. Among the teams that played last week,
London (Corpus Christi, Texas) moved to 18 wins in a row while
The First Academy (Orlando, Fla.) and IMG Academy both lengthened their streaks to 17 in a row.
MaxPreps Top 25 baseball rankings
1. St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) 0-0 |
Last week: 1
Next: Opens Feb. 25 vs. La Serna
Record: 3-0 |
Last week: 2
Scores: Def. Monsignor Pace 3-2, def. Killian 2-1, def. Palmer Trinity 10-1
Next: Tuesday vs. West Orange
3. Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.)Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 4
Next: Opens Feb. 27 vs. Crespi
4. Jesuit (Tampa, Fla.)Record: 2-0 |
Last week: 5
Scores: Def. Wesley Chapel 9-1, def. Berkeley Prep 5-0
Next: Tuesday vs. Lakeland Christian
5. Calallen (Corpus Christi, Texas)Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 7
Next: Opens Thursday at McAllen tournament
6. Grapevine (Texas)Record: 1-0 |
Last week: 8
Scores: Def. Crowley 11-1
Next: Thursday vs. Wylie East
7. Blessed Trinity (Roswell, Ga.)Record: 4-0 |
Last week: 10
Scores: Def. Pope 5-2, def. Parkview 11-1, def. North Paulding 3-2, def. River Ridge 7-3
Next: Friday vs. Loganville
8. Venice (Fla.)Record: 3-0 |
Last week: 11
Scores: Def. Fort Myers 11-0, def. Parrish Community 17-1, def. Chiles 2-0
Next: Wednesday vs. Canterbury
9. IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.)Record: 2-0 |
Last week: 12
Scores: Def. Etowah 3-2, def. Lowndes 5-1
Next: Tuesday vs. Braden River
10. Etowah (Woodstock, Ga.)Record: 3-1 |
Last week: 3
Scores: Def. Woodstock 11-6, lost to IMG Academy 3-2, def. Ware County 15-4, def. Richmond Hill 7-1
Next: Tuesday vs. Cartersville
11. De La Salle (Concord, Calif.)Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 13
Next: Opens Feb. 25 vs. St. Ignatius College Prep
12. Trinity (Louisville, Ky.)Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 14
Next: Opens March 7 vs. Montgomery County
13. Basic (Henderson, Nev.)Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 15
Next: Opens Tuesday vs. Saint Louis
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 16
Next: Opens March 17 vs. Maine South
15. Pleasant Grove (Texarkana, Texas)Record: 1-0 |
Last week: 17
Scores: Def. Liberty-Eylau 3-0
Next: Thursday vs. Community
16. Corona (Calif.)Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 18
Next: Opens Thursday vs. Maranatha
17. Gloucester Catholic (Gloucester City, N.J.)Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 19
Next: Opens March 25 at National High School Invitational
18. Brother Rice (Chicago, Ill.)Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 20
Next: Opens March 16 vs. Faith Lutheran
19. Catholic (Baton Rouge, La.)Record: 3-0 |
Last week: 21
Scores: Def. West Monroe 3-1, 4-2, 5-3
Next: Tuesday vs. Dunham
20. Tomball (Texas)Record: 1-0 |
Last week: 22
Scores: Def. Porter 10-0
Next: Feb. 26 vs. Montgomery
21. Magnolia Heights (Senatobia, Miss.)Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 24
Next: Season opener Thur. vs. Marshall Academy
22. Baylor (Chattanooga, Tenn.)Record: 0-0 |
Last week: 25
Next: Opens March 2 vs. Boyd-Buchanan
23. Prestonwood Christian (Plano, Texas)
Record: 6-0 |
Last week: 41
Scores: Def.
Grapevine Faith Christian 11-4, 13-5, def. Liberty Christian 9-2, def. Lubbock Trinity Christian 7-0, def. Dallas Christian 10-1, def.
TACA Storm Gold 11-3
Next: Thursday vs. Cedar Hill
24. Bishop Verot (Fort Myers, Fla.)
Record: 3-0 |
Last week: 43
Scores: Def. Northside Christian 4-0, def. Palmetto Ridge 6-3, def. Barron Collier 11-0
Next: Tuesday vs. Riverview Sarasota
25. South Walton (Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.)Record: 2-1 |
Last week: 6
Scores: Lost to Gulf Breeze 4-2, def. Gulf Breeze 6-2, def. Bozeman 3-1
Next: Tuesday vs. Arnold
Dropped Out: No. 9
Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville, Fla.), No. 23
Teurlings Catholic (Lafayette, La.)
