MLB Draft prospect Nick Gordon and Olympia have blasted all the way from nonranked to 15th in this week's rankings.
Photo by Mike Janes
The Barbe Buccaneers held off a hard-charging Lambert (Suwanee, Ga.) team for the top spot in this week's Xcellent 50 National Baseball Rankings.
Barbe is ranked No. 1 for the second-straight week and it held on to that ranking with three solid wins. The Buccaneers head into the final week of the regular season and will likely head into the Louisiana Class 5A playoffs as the No. 1 seed for the second-straight season.
Lambert, however, has been perfect on the season with a 23-0 record. A powerful offense, led by sophomore Seth Beer, has been the key for Lambert, although it did need a two-run rally in the seventh inning last week against Johns Creek to pull out a win.
A total of 12 new teams enter the Xcellent 50 this week, topped by Ohio's top team Walsh Jesuit (Cuyahoga Falls), which enters the rankings at No. 11 with a 9-0 record.
MaxPreps Xcellent 50 National Baseball Rankings
1. (Last week 1) Barbe (Lake Charles, La.), 31-2
Gunner Leger, Barbe
Photo by Roddy Johnson
The Buccaneers held on to the top spot this week with three wins. Barbe knocked off New Iberia 13-6 and Carencro (Lafayette) 12-1 before edging Sam Houston (Lake Charles) 6-5 on Saturday. Barbe enters the final week of the regular season with games against Lafayette and Acadiana (Lafayette).
2. (3) Lambert (Suwanee, Ga.), 23-0
Following The First Academy's loss, Lambert moves up to the No. 2 spot with a 12-0 win over Alpharetta and a 3-2 victory over Johns Creek. Three Lambert pitchers combined for a no-hitter in the win over Alpharetta with
Seth Beer going 2-for-3 with a double. For the season, Beer is batting .573 (39-for-68) with 30 RBIs and 13 doubles.
3. (4) Flanagan (Pembroke Pines, Fla.), 20-1
Flanagan concluded its season with a 9-1 win over Park Vista.
Oscar Rodriguez was 2-for-3 with a double in the win.
4. (5) Archbishop McCarthy (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), 23-2
The Mavericks had little trouble with Belen Jesuit, winning 10-0 behind the pitching of
Andres Nunez, who gave up two hits and struck out five in four innings.
Aaron Soto hit a two-run homer and
Brian Gonzalez and
Alex Toral each hit solo home runs in the win. In a 17-10 win over Western (Davie),
Eddie Silva was 3-for-5 with two doubles and four RBIs and Gonzalez was 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs.
Ryan Sinzenich added a two-run homer and
Michael Gigliotti hit a three-run home run.
5. (7) Moody (Corpus Christi, Texas), 25-2
Aaron Hernandez threw a complete-game shutout to lift Moody over Ray (Corpus Christi) 1-0 last week. Moody also blanked Flour Bluff (Corpus Christi), 13-0.
6. (8) O'Connor (Helotes, Texas), 26-1
Kolby Lunsford and
Billy Craft each knocked in two runs to lead O'Connor to a 9-5 win over Warren (San Antonio) in its only game of the week. O'Connor concludes the regular season against Stevens (San Antonio) and Taft (San Antonio) this week.
7. (9) Pearland (Texas), 27-2
The Oilers defeated South Houston 5-2 and Pasadena Memorial 11-1.
Hayden Cole went 3-for-4 with a triple and three RBI in the win over Pasadena Memorial. Against South Houston,
Jacob Barfield was 3-for-3 with two doubles.
8. (2) The First Academy (Orlando, Fla.), 21-3
The First Academy concluded the season with a pair of close games, falling to West Orange (Winter Park) 1-0 and defeating Montverde Academy 1-0.
9. (11) Clovis (Calif.), 25-4
The Cougars played well in the Fresno Easter tournament, beating Hoover (Fresno) 2-0, Del Campo (Fair Oaks) 12-2, Madera 1-0, Crater (Central Point, Ore.) 8-2 and Porterville 5-0. The Cougars play two with Central (Fresno) this week before tangling in two games with Buchanan (Clovis) next week.
10. (16) Mosley (Lynn Haven, Fla.), 23-2
Brendan Fox was 4-for-4 with a double and four RBIs in a 12-0 win over Bozeman (Panama City) while
Brady Bell and
Bowen McGuffin each hit doubles in the 4-2 win over Fort Walton Beach.
11. (NR) Walsh Jesuit (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio), 9-0
Gus Ragland, Archbishop Moeller
Photo by Wayne Litmer
Walsh Jesuit is ranked No. 1 in the state by Press Baseball Report and is undefeated so far this season.
12. (17) Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati), 10-1
The Crusaders won a pair of games in North Carolina, defeating Orange (Hillsborough, N.C.) 4-0 and Garner Magnet (Garner, N.C.) 5-3, before returning home to defeat Archbishop McNicholas (Cincinnati) 3-0. Archbishop Moeller has a rematch this week with Elder, the only team to beat the Crusaders this year.
13. (20) Calallen (Corpus Christi, Texas), 28-3
The Wildcats bounced back from their lone district loss of the season with a pair of shutout wins last week as they routed Jones (Beeville) 16-0 and edged Victoria East 3-0.
14. (NR) Stillwater (Okla.), 24-2
Stillwater has a loss to Broken Arrow early in the season and a 4-3 loss to Owasso last week. Stillwater also defeated Owasso 7-3. It will play Jenks next week.
15. (NR) Olympia (Orlando, Fla.), 22-3
The Titans defeated Edgewater 5-4 and Dr. Phillips 12-2 last week. Two weeks ago they took two from West Orange, 3-0 and 1-0.
16. (27) Jenks (Okla.), 25-2
Jenks won four games last week, beating Muskogee 9-1 and 6-2, plus Sapulpa 14-3 and 11-1.
17. (28) Puyallup (Wash.), 15-0
Puyallup stayed undefeated with four wins last week, including three shutouts. Puyallup blanked Spanaway Lake 13-0, Graham-Kapowsin (Graham) 1-0 and Bethel (Spanaway) 18-0 before edging Auburn Mountainview (Auburn) 9-8.
18. (30) Western Branch (Chesapeake, Va.), 14-0
Western Branch makes a strong move up the rankings with four wins over teams from Florida, including a 3-0 victory over Nova (Davie), a 7-0 win over Pompano Beach and two wins over Douglas (Parkland) 4-3 and 7-6.
19. (35) The Woodlands (Texas), 23-4
The Woodlands won its only district game of the week with a 3-0 victory over Bryan.
20. (36) Ardrey Kell (Charlotte, N.C.), 19-1
Ardrey Kell takes over the top spot in North Carolina with solid wins over Charlotte Country Day, 7-1, Charlotte Christian, 3-1, and Providence Day, 6-0.
21. (43) Rancho Bernardo (San Diego), 16-3
Rancho Bernardo captured first place at the San Diego Lions Tournament with a 6-0 win over Granite Hills in the championship game. Rancho Bernardo also defeated Otay Ranch 3-2 in the semifinals and had a 3-0 win over Sahuaro (Tucson), a 6-5 win over St. Augustine and a 5-1 loss to Montgomery.
22. (44) St. Rita (Chicago), 19-0
St. Rita is the top team in Chicago after beating De La Salle (Chicago) 8-1, Gordon Tech (Chicago) 7-0, Bishop McNamara (Kankakee) 10-4 and St. Joseph (Westchester) 10-0.
23. (45) Clearwater Central Catholic (Fla.), 23-0
Clearwater remained undefeated with a 6-0 win over Canisius (Buffalo, N.Y.) and a 3-2 win over Countryside (Clearwater).
24. (47) Arlington (Tenn.), 24-2
Corbin Martin, Cypress Ranch
Photo by Jim Redman
Arlington is the top AAA team in Tennessee, as it defeated University School of Jackson 4-3, Germantown 18-8 and Lexington 9-2 last week.
25. (NR) Cypress Ranch (Houston), 18-4-1
Cypress Ranch swept a pair from Langham Creek last week, winning 8-4 and 2-1.
The Next 2526. (NR) Elk Grove (Calif.), 12-4
The Thundering Herd captured first place in the Boras Classic North Division, defeating St. Francis 2-1 in the championship game. Elk Grove also edged Buchanan 3-1 in the semifinals.
27. (12) Langham Creek (Houston), 22-3
The Lobos lost two straight games to Cypress Ranch, falling 8-4 and 2-1. They will finish the regular season with two games against Cypress Creek.
28. (15) St. Francis (Mountain View, Calif.), 16-3
The Lancers advanced to the championship game of the Boras Classic, defeating Yuba City 2-0, Pleasant Grove 3-2 and Clovis West 3-0 before falling to Elk Grove 2-1 in the championship game.
29. (18) Horizon (Scottsdale, Ariz.), 20-5
The Huskies pounded out 15 hits against Mountain View (Mesa), but lost 7-6 when they gave up a run in the seventh inning of a tied game. Earlier in the week Horizon topped North Canyon (Phoenix) 13-0.
30. (19) Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.), 22-3
Like many of the top teams in Arizona, Hamilton suffered a loss last week as it fell to Tolleson 3-2. Hamilton also picked up a 5-2 win over Highland (Gilbert) and a 13-5 win over Desert Vista (Phoenix).
31. (49) Lake Travis (Austin, Texas), 27-2
Lake Travis defeated Del Valle 17-0 and Westlake (Austin) 7-1.
32. (50) Alexander (Laredo, Texas), 21-2
Alexander won its only game last week, defeating United South (Laredo) 5-1.
33. (25) Sarasota (Fla.), 22-3
Dillon Millar, Huntington Beach
Photo by Terry Jack
After a pair of big wins over Venice, 4-2, and Jesuit (Tampa), 7-1, Sarasota dropped a 2-1 matchup with Manatee (Bradenton).
34. (NR) Huntington Beach (Calif.), 17-2
The Oilers won the Hard 9 National Classic with a 3-2 win over Valley Christian (San Jose) in the championship game. Huntington Beach also topped Santa Margarita 2-1 in the quarterfinals and IMG Academy 5-2 in the semifinals.
35. (NR) Carroll (Corpus Christi, Texas), 25-3
Carroll's only losses are to Calallen, Moody and Alexander.
36. (22) Chaparral (Scottsdale, Ariz.), 20-3
Chaparral picked up a pair of wins by defeating Millennium (Goodyear) 14-4 and Desert Mountain (Scottsdale) 10-0 but it lost to Mountain Ridge (Glendale) 5-3.
37. (24) Allatoona (Acworth, Ga.), 21-2
Allatoona split its two games last week, beating Paulding County (Dallas) 7-5 and losing to East Paulding (Dallas) 2-1.
38. (29) Rose (Greenville, N.C.), 17-1
Rose suffered its first loss of the season with a 9-5 defeat at the hands of Eastern Wayne (Goldsboro), however it rebounded to defeat Nash Central (Nashville) 7-1 and Kellam (Virginia Beach, Va.) 9-2.
39. (31) Fayetteville (Ark.), 18-4
A previous loss to Stillwater has been added to the record to go along with a pair of wins over Har-Ber (Springdale) 6-1 and 4-0.
40. (NR) Harvard-Westlake (Studio City, Calif.), 14-4-1
The Wolverines tied Loyola 3-3 and then defeated Loyola 9-1 in Mission League play. Harvard-Westlake also topped Saugus 4-3 in the Redondo Tournament.
41. (14) Loyola (Los Angeles), 15-2-1
The Cubs tied Harvard-Westlake 3-3 in Mission League play and then fell to the Wolverines 9-1 later in the week. The Cubs ended the week with a 5-4 win over La Mirada in the Redondo Tournament.
42. (NR) Cosby (Midlothian, Va.), 8-0
Roman Novarese, Christian Brothers
File photo by Alyson Boyer Rode
Cosby did not play last week, but it has not allowed a run in its last five games.
43. (32) Christian Brothers (Memphis, Tenn.), 19-4
Christian Brothers split its two games with Battle Ground Academy, losing 2-1 and winning 8-7.
44. (6) Buchanan (Clovis, Calif.), 18-4
The Bears got off to a strong start at the Boras Classic, defeating Grant 4-2 and Oak Ridge 4-1 in the first two rounds. However the Bears lost to eventual champion Elk Grove 3-1 in the semifinals and fell to Pleasant Grove 10-2 in the third-place game.
45. (21) Carroll (Southlake, Texas), 23-4
The Dragons fell to Keller for the second time this year, losing 8-7. Carroll also topped Northwest (Justin) 9-0.
46. (37) Providence (Charlotte, N.C.), 18-2
After falling to Ardrey Kell last week, Providence lost again, this time a 1-0 defeat to Charlotte Christian. Providence also blanked Charlotte Country Day 16-0 and Charlotte Latin 10-0.
47. (38) Park Vista (Lake Worth, Fla.), 19-3
Park Vista lost its only game of the week, falling to Flanagan 9-1.
48. (46) Spanish Fort (Ala.), 29-6
Spanish Fort split two games with Thompson last week, losing 6-4 and winning 4-3. Spanish Fort also beat Montgomery 10-0.
49. (NR) Marist (Atlanta), 19-2
The War Eagles have a loss to Spanish Fort and Loganville but they also have an early-season win over Parkview.
50. (NR) Chatfield (Littleton, Colo.), 13-0
One of two undefeated Class 5A teams in Colorado, Chatfield also has a win over Arizona Division II power Greenway.
Dropped Out: No. 10 Hanover, No. 13 Cathedral Catholic, No. 23 Creekside, No. 26 Clovis North, No. 33 Temecula Valley, No. 34 Great Oak, No. 39 Westfield, No. 40. St. Laurence, No. 41 ThunderRidge, No. 42 Sahuaro, No. 48 Etowah.
