Video: Future 1st Round MLB Pick - Nolan Gorman
The Arizona standout could be a high pick out of high school.
Central (Baton Rouge) pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the nation last year to win the Louisiana Class 5A state championship. Last week, Central was at it again.
With 11 losses on the season, including all three regular-season meetings against Zachary, Central still managed to win two of three against the Broncos last week to advance to the Class 5A semifinals against Barbe (Lake Charles). Last year, Central beat West Monroe in the 5A championship game.
The two losses ends the season for Zachary, which was ranked No. 5 in last week's Xcellent 25 National Baseball Rankings. The Broncos are still in this week's rankings, however, as MaxPreps expands the rankings to 50 teams this week. Zachary falls to the No. 50 spot.
Calvary Christian (Clearwater, Fla.) still holds down the No. 1 spot and is four wins away from a second straight Class 4A state title and a second unbeaten season.
MaxPreps Top 50 National High School Baseball Rankings
Michael Snyder, Harvard-Westlake
Photo by Samuel Mawanda
The Warriors won the district championship with a 9-5 victory over Berkeley Prep (Tampa Bay).
Justin Bench finished with two hits and three RBIs to pace the offense. They knocked off Tampa Prep 6-0 in the semifinals on a one-hitter by
Nolan Hudi, who had 11 strikeouts. Calvary Christian takes on The First Academy (Orlando) in the opening round of the Class 4A state playoffs.
2. (2) Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.), 26-0The Eagles completed their regular season with a 9-1 win over Central Christian Point (Kissimmee).
Caleb Cali had a home run and
Diego Millan hit a double in the win for Montverde Academy, which finishes the year undefeated. The Eagles do not compete in the Florida state playoffs.
3. (3) Argyle (Texas), 28-0Five Argyle pitchers each threw one inning to combine for a five-inning no-hitter in a bi-district playoff win over Wilmer-Hutchins (Dallas). Each of the five pitchers struck out three batters each for 15 total strikeouts. Only a walk and a hit batsman kept Argyle from a perfect game.
Chad Ricker's double was the only extra-base hit for the Eagles in the 10-0 win.
4. (4) Blessed Trinity (Roswell, Ga.), 32-2The Titans advanced to the third round of the Class AAAA playoffs with a sweep of Troup County (LaGrange).
Jake Smith had a home run and
Ryan Davis was 3-for-4 in a 6-4 victory.
Clark Dearman got his national-leading win in the first game, a 3-2 victory.
5. (5) Cleburne (Texas), 30-1-2The Yellowjackets needed nine innings to edge Lake Ridge (Mansfield) 1-0 in their bi-district playoff game.
Willie Rangel went eight innings and struck out 15 and gave up one hit.
Coy Sims drove in the winning run.
6. (7) Lake Travis (Austin, Texas), 29-2The Cavaliers won their single-game bi-district playoff over MacArthur (San Antonio) with a 2-0 shutout.
Brett Baty went six innings and struck out seven for the win. He also hit a two-run homer to score both runs.
7. (8) Riverdale Baptist (Upper Marlboro, Md.), 27-1The Crusaders won a single game against Wilson (Washington, D.C.) 15-5 behind a grand slam by
Corey Rosier that paced a 10-run third inning.
Trendon Craig also went 4-for-4 with three RBIs. Riverdale Baptist heads to Puerto Rico for a tournament this week.
8. (10) John Curtis Christian (River Ridge, La.), 28-4The Patriots swept Byrd (Shreveport) 12-2 and 15-3 to advance to the third round of the Division I playoffs.
Cade Beloso went 3-for-3 with a double, a home run and five RBIs in the first game. He added two more hits, including a home run, with three RBIs in the second game.
Logan Stevens also added a double and a home run with four RBIs.
9. (13) Flanagan (Pembroke Pines, Fla.), 23-1The Falcons won the District 9A-12 championship with a 10-4 victory over Cypress Bay (Weston).
Miguel Useche and Edinson Renteria each homered in the win. Flanagan blanked Everglades (Miramar) 4-0 in the semifinals. Flanagan faces Taravella (Coral Springs) in the first round of the Class 9A playoffs.
10. (14) St. Xavier (Louisville, Ky.), 20-0The Tigers picked up their most impressive win of the season with a 17-5 victory over defending state champion Pleasure Ridge Park (Louisville). St. Xavier also beat Central Hardin (Cecilia) 7-2 and Simon Kenton (Independence) 6-0 to stay undefeated.
11. (15) Harvard-Westlake (Studio City, Calif.), 23-3The Wolverines upped their record to 15-0 in the Mission League with a three-game sweep of Loyola (Los Angeles). Harvard-Westlake won 4-0, 8-4 and 17-1. They try to close out the season undefeated in league play with a three-game set against Crespi (Encino).
12. (16) Neuqua Valley (Naperville, Ill.), 22-0The Wildcats stayed undefeated with four more wins, beating Naperville North 8-1 and 9-2 and Wheaton North 9-2 and 6-0.
13. (17) Staley (Kansas City, Mo.), 30-1Staley added five more wins last week, including a 5-0 victory over defending state champion Jefferson City. Staley also beat Neosho 15-0, Oak Park (Kansas City) 8-1, Fort Osage 7-0 and Platte County 7-0.
14. (9) Mill Creek (Hoschton, Ga.), 30-5The Hawks overcame a series-opening 7-5 loss to South Gwinnett (Snellville) to win the next two games 5-1 and 7-0 and advance to third round of the Class AAAAAAA playoffs. Mill Creek faces North Paulding (Dallas) in the next round.
15. (11) McAllen (Texas), 27-2-1The Bulldogs lost just their second game of the season, but still managed to advance to the second round of the Class 6A state playoffs with a series win over United (Laredo). McAllen won the first game 6-3, lost the second 5-1, and won the third 2-1.
16. (12) O'Fallon (Ill.), 25-2-1The Panthers had three wins by the mercy rule last week before falling to Columbia 9-6 on Saturday. O'Fallon beat East St. Louis 15-0, Mascoutah 11-0 and Valmeyer 13-3 before dropping just its second game of the season.
17. (18) Vianney (Kirkwood, Mo.), 29-2The Griffins rebounded from their second loss two weeks ago to win four straight. They beat Lutheran South 7-5, Gibault 16-0, Chaminade 4-3 and Parkway South 3-2 in eight innings.
18. (19) Har-Ber (Springdale, Ark.), 28-4The Wildcats were impressive last week, outscoring opponents 40-4 in three wins. They beat Rogers Heritage (Rogers)15-0 and 12-1 and Joplin 13-3.
Jake Williams and
Blake Adams each had a triple and a home run in the shutout, while
Blaze Brothers had a double and a home run. Adams also had a home run in the second game against Rogers Heritage and hit two against Joplin.
19. (20) Coppell (Texas), 29-4-1The Cowboys won their bi-district matchup with Naaman Forest (Garland) 11-0.
Rye Gunter threw a six-inning no-hitter with seven strikeouts and two walks.
Nick Vernars added a home run with three RBIs to lead the offense.
20. (21) Mountain Vista (Highlands Ranch, Colo.), 19-0The Golden Eagles finished the regular season undefeated with two more wins last week. In a 12-3 win over Douglas County (Castle Rock),
Zach Paschke,
Sam Ireland and
John Zakhem each hit a home run. Paschke hit two more home runs and Ireland added one in a 7-4 win over Regis Jesuit (Aurora).
21. (22) Valley Christian (San Jose, Calif.), 23-3-1The Warriors picked up their second win of the season over Bellarmine College Prep (San Jose), winning 4-2.
Ryan Belluomini hit a home run in the win. Valley Christian also beat Archbishop Riordan (San Francisco) 4-3 in eight innings.
22. (23) Huntington Beach (Calif.), 24-4The Oilers took two from Los Alamitos, winning 9-3 and 6-5.
Justin Brodt,
Jag Burden,
Nick Lopez and
Ken Takada all homered in the first game.
Josh Hahn hit one out in the second game.
23. (24) American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.), 22-3The Patriots knocked off Archbishop McCarthy (Fort Lauderdale) 8-1 for the District 6A-15 championship.
Triston Casas had a home run in the win. American Heritage faces Goleman (Miami) in the first round of the playoffs.
24. (25) La Cueva (Albuquerque, N.M.), 24-3The Bears needed three games to get past Atrisco Heritage Academy (Albuquerque) in the first round of the Class 6A state playoffs. La Cueva won the first game 10-0, lost the second 5-3 and won the rubber game 12-6.
25. Liberty Christian (Lynchburg, Va.), 14-0The Bulldogs are undefeated and beat Amherst County (Amherst) 13-0 on a no-hitter by
Christian Gordon who struck out nine.
Wesley Clarke hit two home runs in the win, including a grand slam.
Next 25
26. Arcadia (Calif.), 21-0Ranked No. 1 in Southern California by the Los Angeles Times.
27. Niceville (Fla.), 24-2Ranked No. 4 in the entire state by The Prep Zone.
28. Gulfport (Miss.), 25-4The Admirals are 4-0 in the Mississippi Class 6A playoffs and face George County (Lucedale) this week in the third round.
29. Sam Houston (Lake Charles, La.), 33-5The Broncos are 5-0 in the Class 5A state playoffs and play Sulphur this weekend.
30. Desert Oasis (Las Vegas), 29-3The Diamondbacks are the No. 1 seed in the Sunset Region playoffs thanks to 17 straight wins that include four over state powerhouse Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas).
31. Wesleyan Christian Academy (High Point, N.C.), 19-1The Trojans are 46-2 over the past two seasons and have a win this year over Western Alamance (Elon), a team that is 24-1 and could be the top 3A team in North Carolina.
32. Faith Academy (Mobile, Ala.), 30-3The Rams are ranked No. 1 in the Class 5A state rankings by the Alabama Sportswriters Association and could be the No. 1 team in all of Alabama.
33. Eastlake (Chula Vista, Calif.), 21-3-1The Titans are the top team in San Diego and are the defending Open Division champion in the San Diego Section.
34. Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.), 19-7The National High School Invitational champions have lost three times in league play, which shouldn't she be too surprising considering the Trinity League might be the toughest league in the nation. Lancers are still ranked No. 2 in Southern California by the Los Angeles Times.
35. Parkview (Lilburn, Ga.), 29-5The Panthers ranked No. 2 in the Class AAAAAAA state rankings by the Georgia Dugout Preview magazine.
36. Lake Norman (Mooresville, N.C.), 23-2Lake Norman has won 12 in a row since losing in early April at the IMG National Classic.
37. Joliet Catholic (Joliet, Ill.), 22-3The Hilltoppers have won 16 in a row and have a win over defending Ohio Division I champion Jackson (Massillon).
38. Kingwood (Texas), 26-4-2The Mustangs were dominant in their bi-district playoff series, beating West Brook (Beaumont) 26-3 and 10-4.
39. Puyallup (Wash.), 19-1The Vikings are 44-1 since the third game of the 2017 season.
40. Colleyville Heritage (Colleyville, Texas), 27-5Ranked No. 2 in Class 5A by the state coaches association, the Panthers opened the postseason with a 13-0, 19-5 sweep of Southwest (Fort Worth).
41. Greenwood (Ark.), 29-3Since starting the season 5-3, the Bulldogs have won 21-0, including a recent 5-0 win over highly regarded Sheridan.
42. Pope (Marietta, Ga.), 27-5The defending Region AAAAAA state champions are ranked No. 1 in the state in their region by George Dugout Preview magazine.
43. Western Alamance (Elon, N.C.), 24-1Only loss of the season is to Wesleyan Christian Academy. The Warriors have won 12 in a row since then and could be the top 3A team in the state.
44. Westmoore (Oklahoma City), 31-5Westmoore has emerged as the top team in Oklahoma by doing 24-1 over the past five weeks.
45. George Jenkins (Lakeland, Fla.), 23-3The Eagles, who went 3-1 at the NHSI, won the district championship and are ranked No. 6 in the state by The Prep Zone.
46. Bishop England (Charleston, S.C.), 28-1The Bishops have won 12 in a row since their only loss of the season and are ranked No. 1 in the Class 3A state rankings by the state coaches association.
47. George County (Lucedale, Miss.), 24-4The Rebels have advanced to the third round of the state Class 6A playoffs where they face Gulfport.
48. Spring-Ford (Royersford, Pa.), 16-1Ranked No. 1 in Southern Pennsylvania by the Philadelphia Enquirer.
49. Barbe (Lake Charles, La.), 29-8The Bucs knocked off Captain Shreve in two games and meet defending state champion Central (Baton Rouge) in the Class 5A state semifinals.
50. Zachary (La.), 35-4The Broncos have defeated Central (Baton Rouge) four times this year, but the two losses to the defending state champions knocks Zachary out of the Class 5A state playoffs and ends their season.
