LOUISVILLE, Ky. —Lake Creek kept winning and No. 1 in the 2023 USA TODAY Sports/NFCA High School Super 25 for a 22nd straight week.
The defending Texas state 5A champion (32-0) Lions blanked Magnolia, 9-0, last Friday and shut out A&M Consolidated, 7-0, on Tuesday to improve to 111-2 over the last three seasons, and extend their win streak to 73. Lake Creek hosts Rudder next on Friday.
Second-ranked Roncalli (7-1-1) defeated both Tri-West Hendricks and Southport to put its only loss farther in the rear-view mirror. The Royals play at Covenant Christian later today.
Some schools elsewhere in the top 10 shifted up or out. New-No. 3 Jackson (13-0) gained three places, while No. 4 Willow Canyon (24-0-1) and fifth-ranked Bentonville (20-1) each surged four spots, and No. 9 Watkins Memorial moved up one. But losses dropped Los Alamitos (19-3) and Neshoba Central (20-3) three places apiece, and Neshoba’s 2-1 loss to Northwest Rankin last Friday could easily have been their second loss to the Cougars this season, after the Rockets rallied for five unanswered runs late in a 5-4 victory in their first meeting on March 28.
No. 8 Moorpark (16-1) dropped one spot after its 3-0 loss to Camarillo on Monday, while St. Amant (31-2) cracked the top 10 after registering a playoff victory over Ponchatoula in which Boston College-bound senior Addison Jackson, high school’s national home run leader, hit a grand slam and tossed a no-hitter with 12 strikeouts.
Defending Kentucky state champion Ballard (15-0) finally forced its way into the rankings this week, debuting in the No. 11 spot after running its win streak to 54. Senior Brooke Gray fanned 22 batters in an 11-inning no-hitter against Greenwood in the Bruins’ second-to-last game, and fanned double-digit batters in all three of her team’s games last week. Ballard, who went 39-0 last season, hasn’t lost since falling 2-1 to Daviess County in the state playoffs on June 11, 2021.
State rankings submitted by the 2023 NFCA High School Steering Committee are used to compile the USA TODAY Sports/NFCA High School Super 25. Teams are chosen based on performance, roster quality, strength of schedule, and active NFCA membership.
USA TODAY Sports/NFCA High School Super 25 Poll – April 20, 2023
1. Lake Creek (Texas)
Record: 32-0 | PR: 1
2. Roncalli (Ind.)
Record: 7-1-1 | PR: 2
3. Jackson (Wash.)
Record: 13-0 | PR: 6
4. Willow Canyon (Ariz.)
Record: 24-0-1 | PR: 8
5. Bentonville (Ark.)
Record: 20-1 | PR: 9
6. Los Alamitos (Calif.)
Record: 19-3 | PR: 3
7. Neshoba Central (Miss.)
Record: 20-3 | PR: 4
8. Moorpark (Calif.)
Record: 16-1 | PR: 7
9. Watkins Memorial (Ohio)
Record: 15-0 | PR: 10
10. St. Amant (La.)
Record: 31-2 | PR: 11
11. Ballard (Ky.)
Record: 15-0 | PR: NR
12. Rockridge (Ill.)
Record: 16-1 | PR: 13
13. Saint Francis (Calif.)
Record: 16-2 | PR: 5
14. Coral Springs Charter (Fla.)
Record: 16-0-2 | PR: 17
15. Norco (Calif.)
Record: 22-2 | PR: 14
16. Mount Vernon (Mo.)
Record: 22-1 | PR: 15
17. Anthony Wayne (Ohio)
Record: 8-1 | PR: 16
18. Benton (Ark.)
Record: 16-4 | PR: 12
19. Salpointe Catholic (Ariz.)
Record: 28-1 | PR: 18
20. West Stanly (N.C.)
Record: 17-1 | PR: 19
21. Spanish Fork (Utah)
Record: 12-1 | PR: 20
22. Donovan Catholic (N.J.)
Record: 10-0 | PR: 21
23. Queen Creek (Ariz.)
Record: 24-1-1 | PR: 23
24. Bend (Ore.)
Record: 13-2 | PR: 24
25. Bingham (Utah)
Record: 8-2 | PR: 25
Dropped out: None.
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