High school baseball rankings: Flower Mound makes MaxPreps Top 25 after winning state title in Texas

Flower Mound and China Spring proved to be the spoilers in the Texas high school baseball state championships as they each knocked off the No. 1 team in the playoffs and went on to win a state championship.

Flower Mound captured the Class 6A state championship after beating No. 1 seed Cypress Woods (Cypress) 6-3 in the semifinals and Pearland 6-4 in the championship game. Flower Mound was making its fourth state tournament appearance, which included a state title in 2014.

The Jaguars were not ranked in the MaxPreps Top 25 due to a 10-loss record. In fact Texas High School Baseball had the Jaguars ranked No. 12 in Class 6A at the start of postseason play. Flower Mound finished the regular season with four losses in its final six games and then began  the postseason with a loss to Prosper in the first game of bi-district play. But Flower Mound won 12 of its final 13 games to capture the championship.

China Spring, a two-time state champion in football, pulled off the upset in Class 4A with an 8-4 semifinal win over Sinton, which was ranked No. 7 in the MaxPreps Top 25. China Spring then defeated Liberty-Eylau (Texarkana) in the state final, 3-2.

Although China Spring posted a 37-5-1 overall record, it did not move into the MaxPreps Top 25 rankings this week, due in part to an earlier loss to Argyle, which was the Class 5A runner-up to Magnolia West (Magnolia). Sinton dropped out of this week's rankings.

Flower Mound joined the rankings, coming in at No. 6 behind Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati). The Crusaders moved up to No. 5 after winning the Ohio Division 1 state championship over Olentangy Orange (Lewis Center).

Center Grove (Greenwood) also moved into the rankings after reaching the Indiana Class 4A state final with a 29-3 record.

Game of the Week: Magnolia West def. Argyle, 3-2. The two teams battled five scoreless innings before Magnolia West scored three runs in the top of the sixth. Argyle fought back with two runs in the bottom of the seventh before winning pitcher Caylon Dygert got the final out on a flyball to centerfield.

Player of the Week: Toby Hueber had a big weekend for Archbishop Moeller as he picked up the win in the semifinals against Walsh Jesuit and then went 2-for-4 with two runs scored in the championship game against Olentangy Orange.

Game to watch: Center Grove (Greenwood, Ind.) vs. Penn (Mishawaka, Ind.). The only team in the rankings this week that is still playing, Center Grove meets Penn in the Class 4A state finals. Center Grove has never played for a state championship.

Streaks: Monadnock (East Swanzey, N.H.), which had the second-longest win streak in the nation, lost to White Mountain in the New Hampshire Division III state final. The Huskies had won 43 games in a row to put it second behind Stoneman Douglas (Parkland, Fla.), which ended the season with 51 straight wins. MaxPreps Top 25 baseball rankings

1. IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.)
Record: 25-0 | Last week: 1
Season complete.

2. Stoneman Douglas (Parkland, Fla.)
Record: 29-0 | Last week: 2
Season complete. Class 7A state champions.

3. Barbe (Lake Charles, La.)
Record: 39-1 | Last week: 3
Season complete. Non-Select Division 1 state champions.

4. Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas)
Record: 35-2 | Last week: 4
Season complete. Division 1 state champions.

5. Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Record: 31-3 | Last week: 18
Scores: Def. Walsh Jesuit, 2-0; def. Olentangy Orange, 4-1
Hitter/Pitcher of the week: Toby Hueber pitched five shutout innings against Walsh Jesuit, giving up three hits and striking out five. In the finals against Olentangy Orange, he batted 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored.
Next: Season complete.  Division 1 state champions.

6. Flower Mound (Texas)
Record: 37-10-2 | Last week: NR
Scores: Def. Cypress Woods, 6-3; def. Pearland, 6-4
Hitter of the week: Sam Erickson went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run in the sixth inning against Pearland.
Pitcher of the week: Zack James went the distance against Cypress Woods, giving up three runs on eight hits with two strikeouts.
Next: Season complete. Class 6A state champions.

7. West Monroe (La.)
Record: 34-4 | Last week: 8
Season complete. Non-Select Division 1 runner-up.

8. Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.)
Record: 26-5 | Last week: 9
Season complete. Class 6A state champions.

9. JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.)
Record: 24-9 | Last week: 10
Season complete. Southern Section Division 1 champions.

10. Santa Margarita (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.)
Record: 29-7 | Last week: 11
Season complete. Southern California Division 1 champions.

11. Houston County (Warner Robins, Ga.)
Record: 36-6 | Last week: 12
Season complete. Class AAAAAA state champions.

12. Calvary Christian (Clearwater, Fla.)
Record: 28-4 | Last week: 13
Season complete. Class 3A state champions.

13. Magnolia West (Magnolia, Texas)
Record: 35-5 | Last week: 22
Scores: Def. Frisco Reedy, 3-0; def. Argyle, 3-2
Hitter of the week: Jackson Blank went 2-for-3 with two RBI against Argyle.
Pitcher of the week: Caylon Dygert finished 14-0 on the season with a seven-inning win over Argyle that included five strikeouts.
Next: Season complete. Class 5A state champions.

14. Magnolia Heights (Senatobia, Miss.)
Record: 40-3 | Last week: 14
Season complete. MAIS Class AAAAA state champions.

15. St. John's (Washington, D.C.)
Record: 30-1-1 | Last week: 15
Season complete. Washington Catholic Athletic Conference champions.

16. Sickles (Tampa, Fla.)
Record: 30-2 | Last week: 16
Season complete. Class 6A state champions.

17. De La Salle (Concord, Calif.)
Record: 27-5 | Last week: 17
Season complete. Northern California Division 1 champions.

18. Farragut (Knoxville, Tenn.)
Record: 36-8 | Last week: 19
Season complete. Class 4A state champions.

19. American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.)
Record: 21-6 | Last week: 20
Season complete. Class 5A state champions.

20. Pearland (Texas)
Record: 38-7-1 | Last week: 21
Scores: Def. Westlake, 11-1, lost to Flower Mound, 6-4.
Hitter of the week: Anthony Avalos went 3-for-3 with three RBI against Westlake.
Pitcher of the week: Nicholas Partida gave up one earned run and struck out two in the win over Westlake.
Next: Season complete. Class 6A runner-up.

21. Cypress Woods (Cypress, Texas)
Record: 38-5 | Last week: 6
Scores: Lost to Flower Mound, 6-3
Next: Season complete. Class 6A semifinalist.

22. Westlake (Austin, Texas)
Record: 40-5 | Last week: 5
Scores: Lost to Pearland, 11-1
Next: Season complete. Class 6A semifinalist.

23. La Costa Canyon (Carlsbad, Calif.)
Record: 26-7 | Last week: 23
Season complete. Southern California Division 1 runner-up.

24. Center Grove (Greenwood, Ind.)
Record: 29-3 | Last week: NR
Scores: Def. Brownsburg, 6-0; def. Castle, 5-2
Hitter of the week: Carson Vlcan had a pinch-hit RBI triple to give Center Grove the lead in the win over Castle.
Pitcher of the week: Jacob Murphy went seven innings and gave up three hits with four strikeouts.
Next: Saturday vs. Penn, Class 4A state final

25. Valley Christian (San Jose, Calif.)
Record: 31-4 | Last week: 24
Season complete. Northern California Division 1 runner-up.

Dropped out: No. 7 Sinton (Texas); No. 25 Jesuit (Tampa, Fla.)