All-American candidate
Seth Hernandez saw his first action on
the mound, facing 11 batters in three
innings, striking out seven and walking none. He had 32 strikes in 44
pitches before giving way to
Jason Gerfers for the final four innings.
The
Panthers managed only six hits off of a pair of Los Osos pitchers but
got basehits from Hernandez and
Trey Ebel, who each scored a run in the
win.
Corona was the only team of the top three in the MaxPreps Top 25 to see action. No. 2
Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati, Ohio) won't
begin play until mid-March while No. 3
Huntington Beach (Calif.) opens with a
tough one against No. 12
Harvard-Westlake (Studio City, Calif.) on March 5.
Gardner Young is 2-0 on the mound for No. 6 Jackson Prep while also batting .667 with 10 hits and eight RBI. (PHOTO: Bill Richardson)
Two ranked
teams suffered losses but remained in the MaxPreps Top 25.
Catholic (Baton Rouge, La.) lost its first game of the year with a 2-1 defeat to
Thibodaux. The Bears, who saw a 27-game win streak come to an end with
the loss, dropped nine spaces to No. 15 this week but did not exit the
rankings due to two previous wins over Thibodaux.
Houston County (Warner Robins, Ga.), meanwhile, split a pair of games with
Oconee County (Watkinsville). After winning the first game 9-0, the Bears lost the second game
3-1 in eight innings. Houston County dropped from No. 14 to No. 16.
Three
new teams, all from Texas, moved into the rankings.
Pearland won its opener and debuts at No. 23.
Johnson (San Antonio) also won its first game and enters
at No. 24.
Prosper, which won a pair of
games, comes in at No. 25.
Game of the week: Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville, Fla.) def.
North Marion (Citra), 2-1. The Conquerors rallied for two runs in the top of the seventh on an RBI single by
Brady Harris and a sacrifice fly by
Aiden Arnett.
Game to watch:
Prosper will get its first big test when it takes on No. 11
Queen Creek (Ariz.), the defending Arizona Class 6A state champion, on
Feb. 27.
Hitter of the week: Eddie Zaun of
Venice (Fla.) was 4-for-5 with two doubles and six RBI against
Braden River (Bradenton, Fla.).
Pitcher of the week: Caden Schlotterbeck of
Calvary Christian (Clearwater, Fla.) threw a seven-inning perfect game with 16 strikeouts against
Palm Harbor University (Palm Harbor).
Streaks: Tomball (Texas) saw its 32-game win streak come to an end with a loss to
Conroe. The Cougars' streak was the second longest in the nation behind
Eaton (Colo.), which begins its season March 11 against
The Academy (Westminster) with a 69-game win streak on the line.
Virgin Valley (Mesquite, Nev.) now has the nation's second-longest streak at 31 games in a row.
Dropped Out: No. 4
Tomball (Texas), No. 11
Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.), No. 24
The First Academy (Orlando, Fla.)MaxPreps Top 25 baseball rankings
1. Corona (Calif.)
Record: 1-0 |
Last week: No. 1
Scores: Def. Los Osos, 2-0
Hitter of the week: Joshua Sur was 2-for-3 with an RBI against Los Osos.
Pitcher of the week: Seth Hernandez went three innings and struck out seven against Los Osos.
Next: Tuesday vs. Ayala (Chino)
2. Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: No. 2
First game: March 17 at Centerville
3. Huntington Beach (Calif.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: No. 3
First game: March 5 vs. Harvard-Westlake
4. IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.)
Record: 3-0 |
Last week: No. 5
Scores: Def. George Jenkins, 1-0
Hitter of the week: Dean Moss went 1-for-3 with a double and a run scored.
Pitcher of the week: Chase Bentley struck out nine and gave up no runs on tow hits against George Jenkins.
Next: Thursday vs. Hazel Green (Ala.)
5. Etowah (Woodstock, Ga.)
Record: 7-0 |
Last week: No. 7
Scores: Def. Alpharetta, 10-0; def. Cartersville, 5-3
Hitter of the week: Deion Cole had a home run and three RBI against Cartersville
Pitcher of the week: Matthew Sharman struck out 12 batters in a five-inning one-hitter against Alpharetta.
Next: Tuesday vs. North Paulding
6. Jackson Prep (Jackson, Miss.)
Record: 6-0 |
Last week: No. 8
Scores: Def. Riverfield Academy, 10-6; def. Heritage Academy, 13-3; def. Lamar, 10-7
Hitter of the week: Kevin Roberts Jr. went 3-for-3 with a double, three RBI and a run scored in 13-3 win,
Pitcher of the week: Gardner Young struck out seven against Heritage.
Next: Tuesday vs. Warren Central
7. Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville, Fla.)
Record: 3-0 |
Last week: No. 9
Scores: Def. Beachside, 9-0; def. University Christian, 5-2; def. North Marion, 2-1
Hitter of the week: Ethan Wheeler went 3-for-3 with four RBI against Beachside.
Pitcher of the week: Tyler Ellis struck out nine in four innings against Beachside.
Next: Tuesday vs. Ponte Vedra
8. Calvary Christian (Clearwater, Fla.)
Record: 6-0 |
Last week: No. 12
Scores: Deef. Shorecrest Prep, 3-0; def. Palm Harbor University, 4-0; def. Northeast, 13-0
Hitter of the week: Cameron Uzzillia went 2-for-3 with a double, two runs and two RBI against Northeast.
Pitcher of the week: Caden Schlotterbeck threw a seven-inning perfect game against Palm Harbor University with 16 strikeouts.
Next: Tuesday vs. St. Petersburg Catholic
9. Venice (Fla.)
Record: 4-0 |
Last week: No. 13
Scores: Def. Braden River, 13-1; def. DeLand, 10-1, 7-0
Hitter of the week: Eddie Zaun went 4-for-5 with four runs, six RBI and two doubles against Braden River.
Pitcher of the week: Jackson Lucas struck out nine in a 10-1 win over Deland.
Next: Tuesday vs. Palmetto
10. Brother Rice (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: No. 10
First game: March 22 vs. Bay City Western
11. Queen Creek (Ariz.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: No. 15
First game: Feb. 27 vs. Lovejoy (Lucas, Texas)
12. Harvard-Westlake (Studio City, Calif.)
Record: 2-0 |
Last week: No. 16
Scores: Def. Cypress, 1-0; def. Gahr (Cerritos), 1-0
Hitter of the week: Jack Laffitte went 2-for-3 with a run scored against Cypress.
Pitcher of the week: Evan Alexander struck out four batters and walked none in the win over Cypress
Next: Tuesday vs. JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano)
13. La Mirada (Calif.)
Record: 1-0 |
Last week: No. 17
Scores: Def. Etiwanda, 9-2
Hitter of the week: Jason Rodriguez was 2-for-2 with two runs scored and two RBI in the 9-2 win.
Pitcher of the week: Jacob Oropeza got the win over Etiwanda, striking out eight and walking none in four innings.
Next: Tuesday vs. St. Augustine
14. South Walton (Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.)
Record: 5-0 |
Last week: No. 25
Scores: Def. Bozeman, 7-2; def. Crestview, 14-0; def. Pensacola Catholic, 13-1
Hitter of the week: Braxton Varnes went 2-for-3 with a home runs, five RBI and two runs scored.
Pitcher of the week: Charlie Willcox gave up no runs on one hit with five strikeouts in four innings against Crestview.
Next: Thursday vs. Gulf Breeze
15. Catholic (Baton Rouge, La.)
Record: 7-1 |
Last week: No. 6
Scores: Def. Terrebonne, 4-3; def. Thibodaux, 10-0, 9-2; lost to Thibodaux, 2-1
Hitter of the week: Jack Ruckert went 2-for-2 with two RBI and two runs scored in 10-0 win.
Pitcher of the week: Lucas Lawrence struck out six in dour innings for the 10-0 win.
Next: Tuesday vs. Slidell
16. Houston County (Warner Robins, Ga.)
Record: 5-1 |
Last week: No. 14
Scores: Def. Hillgrove, 6-1; def. Oconee County, 9-0; lost to Oconee County, 3-1
Hitter of the week: Ethan Kenney went 2-for-2 with a home run and two RBI in 9-0 win.
Pitcher of the week: Will Allen pitched five shutout innings with six strikeouts against Oconee County.
Next: Thursday vs. Cullman (Ala.)
17. Puyallup (Wash.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: No. 18
First game: March 11 vs. Mt. Vernon
18. Wesleyan Christian Academy (High Point, N.C.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: No. 19
First game: Feb. 27 vs. Hueytown
19. Gloucester Catholic (Gloucester City, N.J.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: No. 20
First game: March 31 vs. Washington Township
20. Baylor (Chattanooga, Tenn.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: No. 21
First game: March 4 vs. Walker Valley
21. Providence Catholic (New Lenox, Ill.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: No. 22
First game: March 24 vs. Joliet Central
22. Pleasure Ridge Park (Louisville, Ky.)
Record: 0-0 |
Last week: No. 23
First game: March 17 vs. LKY Saints
23. Pearland (Texas)
Record: 1-0 |
Last week: NR
Scores: def. George Ranch, 6-2
Hitter of the week: Aidan Avalos was 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI in the win.
Pitcher of the week: Brayden Veach struck out five batters in four innings.
Next: Thursday vs. Santa Fe
24. Johnson (San Antonio)
Record: 1-0 |
Last week: NR
Scores: Def. Seguin, 10-0
Hitter of the week: Daniel Nayvelt had a home run in the win.
Next: Thursday vs. Lehman
25. Prosper (Texas)
Record: 2-0 |
Last week: NR
Scores: Def. Lovejoy, 4-3; def. College Station, 8-0
Next: Thursday vs. Queen Creek (Ariz.)
