Each week, O-Zone will release local spring softball power rankings. Because there is only one Class for spring softball, these rankings – unlike our traditional power rankings for every other team sport – can be viewed as overall head-to-head rankings.
It’s not a perfect system. Once all these teams start to play each other, we’ll run into a “Team A beat Team B, Team B beat Team C, Team C beat Team A” scenario. There may be some debate about which teams deserve to be slotted where. That’s the fun of it.
Recent success and strength of schedule are also factored into the rankings.
Current record, Class and previous ranking are listed in parenthesis.
CLICK HERE TO SEE APRIL 6 SOFTBALL RANKINGS
1. Purdy (16-0, PR: 1) – Can anyone challenge the Eagles? Purdy continues to roll. The Eagles drilled Exeter, Wheaton and Verona in Ozark 7 games last week. Purdy has now run-ruled opponents in 12 of 16 games. Purdy’s closest games thus far have come against Mt. Vernon (8-3) and Pierce City (4-0). The three runs by Mt. Vernon are the most Purdy’s pitching and defense has allowed in a game this season. Purdy’s schedule gets much tougher coming up. The Eagles travel to Mt. Vernon (April 14), the Mt. Vernon Invitational (April 15-16), Sarcoxie (April 18, Sarcoxie’s 9-1-1 overall), Morrisville (April 19) and Pierce City (April 21). If the Eagles can get through that stretch and emerge with 20+ overall wins by next week, they’ll have validated this top ranking.
*** Note: These rankings were written and published before Strafford played Mt. Vernon on Wednesday night. My rankings were already messed up from last week, I didn't need another game to potentially change them. ***
2. Strafford (9-0, PR: 2) – The Indians keep winning and are one of the few undefeated teams remaining at this point. Since April 5, Strafford owns wins over Diamond, Ash Grove and Skyline. The Indians were scheduled to face Mt. Vernon Wednesday night in a makeup game for the Marionville Tournament championship. Strafford’s getting hitting from top to bottom in its lineup; eight starters currently own a .300 or better batting average. Sophomores Zoey Mullins and Presley Floyd, along with freshman Brooke Bishop, all currently have over 10 RBIs. Mullings sports a 9-0 record with a 1.34 ERA and 78 Ks in the circle. Strafford faces another tough test Friday when it travels to a Plato team that’s currently 8-0 overall. The Indians then play at Stockton on Monday.
3. Liberal (8-1, PR: 5) – There can’t be many players having a better spring season than Liberal sophomore Delanie Freeze. How’s this for an MVP-like effort so far: Freeze is 7-1 overall in 47 innings with a 1.93 ERA, 106 strikeouts to 7 walks, two perfect games (Arma, Kan. and Golden City) and a five-inning no hitter against Miller. If that wasn’t enough, Freeze is also hitting .593 at the plate with 15 RBIs and 2 homers in 27 official at-bats. We may be seeing the rise of the Bulldogs, as Liberal’s top hitters are underclassmen. Freshman first baseman Mallory Gazaway (.615 BA, 7 RBIs, 13 runs), sophomore shortstop Kaylee Daniels (.467 BA, 13 runs, 14 steals), sophomore utility player Jaci Coleman (.393 BA, 9 RBIs), sophomore third baseman Callie Cornell (.367 BA, 7 RBIs) and freshman catcher Brooke Bearden (.333 BA, 12 runs) fill out a young but talented Liberal lineup. After squeezing by College Heights Christian 9-7 on April 7 – a key win for district seeding purposes – Liberal thumped Greenfield 16-0 at home last night. Liberal’s lone loss was 4-3 in extra innings to Galena (Kan.) in its season opener. The Bulldogs travel to Sarcoxie on Tuesday, April 19, with the winner having the inside edge toward the SRVC championship.
4. Pierce City (11-2, PR: 6) – I mentioned the “Team A > Team B > Team C > Team A” scenario in the introduction, and we may soon have a case of it with these next three teams. Start with Pierce City, who’s only lost to Liberal and Purdy this season. Pierce City gave Sarcoxie its only loss of the season thus far. Sarcoxie beat Mt. Vernon last night, and Mt. Vernon faces Pierce City next week. These rankings could again like much different next week depending on outcomes. As for Pierce City, what’s behind that 11-2 record? Start with clean-up hitter and sophomore Ali Raley, who has been one of the area’s most productive batters, owning a .738 average, 1.119 slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .766. She has 24 RBIs and just three strikeouts on the season. Sophomore Ragan Blinzler is a productive two-way player for the Eagles, hitting .632 from the leadoff spot with a .708 on-base percentage and 10 RBIs. In the circle, she’s 11-2 overall in 74 innings with a 1.61 ERA, 94 Ks and just nine walks. Pierce City, which beat Jasper 18-3 at home last night, hosts Greenfield on Friday, then Mt. Vernon on April 18, before traveling to Stockton April 19.
5. Sarcoxie (9-1-1, PR: Unranked) – The Bears have built a solid resume through 11 games, owning wins over College Heights Christian, Jasper and, last night, Mt. Vernon. All of those teams have winning records. The win over Mt. Vernon last night helped push the Bears into the Top 8 this week. Sarcoxie’s lone loss came to Pierce City in late March. We’ll know a lot more about this Sarcoxie team come next week. After competing in Marionville’s White Squirrel Classic on Thursday, Sarcoxie begins next week with home games against Purdy (April 18) and Liberal (April 19).
6. Mt. Vernon (12-3, PR: 2) – Maybe a little harsh to drop the Mountaineers from No. 2 to No. 6 this week, but no other team 1-through-5 has more than two losses. Sarcoxie’s win over Mt. Vernon really shook things up this week. As for the Mountaineers, Morgan Hull has been Mt. Vernon’s top hitter thus far, batting .568 with 22 RBIs, 20 runs and a .818 slugging percentage (5 doubles, 3 triples). Hull also serves as Mt. Vernon’s No. 2 pitcher, where she’s 5-0 overall (18 innings pitched) with 20 Ks and a .375 ERA. Kaitlyn Foulk’s hitting 5.13 with 22 RBIs, an .821 slugging percentage and seven extra-base hits, including four triples. Pitcher Maddi Brown is 7-3 overall in 51 innings pitched, with 43 strikeouts and a 1.81 ERA. After playing Strafford tonight, Mt. Vernon has a big game ahead tomorrow afternoon when it hosts Purdy.
7. Clever (10-1, PR: 7) – After winning the Forsyth Tournament over the weekend, Clever trounced Hurley 17-0 on Tuesday for its 10th win of the season. Leading the way for Clever has been Emily Mendenhall, who’s put up staggering numbers thus far. She’s hitting .633 (1.113 slugging) with an OPS of a 1.858, 2 homers, 22 RBIs, 23 runs, five doubles and two triples. She’s started every game for Clever in the circle and has struck out 61 batters in 44 innings (.477 ERA, .795 WHIP). Also for Clever, Taylor Farmer’s hitting .567 with four doubles, 14 RBIs and 19 runs. The Blue Jays close out the week with a home game against Blue Eye, then host Clever on April 19.
8. Southwest (13-2, PR: Unranked) – The Trojans won the Ash Grove Tournament over the weekend, beating Miller, Skyline and Pleasant Hope to claim the title. After sweeping Wheaton in a doubleheader last night, Southwest currently stands at 13-2 overall. Southwest’s only losses have come to Diamond in the season opener and Purdy on March 29. Freshman Maggie Robbins has played a big part in Southwest’s success. She’s 12-2 on the season and, according to coach Jeff Atchison, is on pace to break a state record for strikeouts per 7 innings with over 16 per. Robbins had 158 strikeouts on the season following last weekend’s Ash Grove Tournament. At the plate, Taylor Swindle is batting a team-high .534 for the Trojans. Southwest heads to the Jasper Invitational this weekend and plays at Miller on Tuesday.
Knocking on the door (teams listed alphabetically): College Heights Christian (8-4), Fair Grove (8-5-1), Mtn. Grove (11-2), Plato (8-0), Stockton (8-4)
