April 26 Baseball Power Rankings

Every other week O-Zone will release the Top 15 Power Rankings based on dominance by class, so essentially their pound-for-pound comparison to the best the area and the state have to offer.  Records are as of April 25.
(Class, record and previous ranking in parenthesis)

1. Conway (C3, 19-2, 1) – The highly anticipated Class 3 showdown between the Bears and Stockton didn’t come to fruition last weekend, but Conway did have a successful run in the Lebanon Wood Bat Tournament.  Led by their dominant 1-3 starters Conway dispatched Camdenton 9-0, Joplin 3-2 and Timberland 4-0 before falling 9-5 to the host Yellow Jackets in the championship.  We may not have seen the dream matchup against Stockton, but there’s a good chance they meet up in sectionals next month.
2. New Covenant (C1, 11-3, 3) – Chalk up four more wins for the Warriors.  They’ve now beaten a team in every class except Class 3 (lost to Catholic 5-4 Monday).  The stats remain mind-boggling with a team batting average of .387; five players hitting over .421 (Siebert, Searson, Morgan, Malan and Isbell).  Meanwhile the team ERA is just 1.38!  A couple of big tests await NCA this week with Class 2 state ranked Galena Wednesday afternoon at Hammons Field and Fordland Friday.
3. Stockton (C3, 13-2, 4) – As mentioned above, the Tigers didn’t meet Conway in the Lebanon Wood Bat Tournament, but had about as similar of a weekend as you can have.  They beat Ladue Horton Watkins 6-2, John Burroughs 7-5 and Timberland 9-6, but fell to host Lebanon 6-1.  Their 1-3 rotation of Burns, Hubbard and Burns might not be as heralded as Conway’s 1-2 punch of Dame and Huckaby, but their numbers are every bit as good.  Depth might be the difference.  Again, hope we get to see that matchup in sectionals.
4. Kickapoo (C5, 16-6, 2) – The Chiefs were incredibly inconsistent in all aspects of the game the last two weeks according to Coach Howser.  While they picked up some solid wins over Branson, Mtn Home, Ft. Smith Southside and Glendale, the Chiefs also fell to the likes of Bentonville, Fayetteville and OC rival West Plains.  Time and talent is certainly on the Chiefs’ side, but they’re not hitting on all cylinders right now.
5. Monett (C4, 17-2, 6) – The Cubs have been very good the last couple years, but this team might be the best yet led by senior all-stater Cameron Witt.  They remain unscathed in the Big, including a big win over fellow Class 4 contender Carl Junction last week.  More good news this week as senior outfielder John Saunders returns from injury as the Cubs hit the home stretch.  Some big games await, but none bigger than May 3 when Monett hosts upstart Aurora in what should decide the Big 8 title.
6. Walnut Grove (C1, 12-4, 8) – Since starting the season 1-3 in the highly competitive Clever Tournament the Tigers have been great.  They’ve now won 11 in a row since a close loss to New Covenant.  According to Coach Wallace the Tigers are hitting 1 through 9 and everyone is throwing well.  Can’t wait to see a potential rematch with NCA in the district championship next month.  And this time you can bet the Tigers will bring their full arsenal of weapons to the party.
7. Mtn Grove (C3, 14-3, 5) – The Panthers are currently the forgotten team in Class 3, but are undefeated in the SCA with just two to play.  They lost 10-9 to Plato in the Dora Tournament championship, which isn’t a bad loss, but consider they fought back from an 8-0 early deficit to tie it in the 7^th and it certainly seems like a missed opportunity.
8. Carl Junction (C4, 17-6, 7) – The Bulldogs continue to play one of the toughest schedules of any team in the area regardless of class.  They took a quality Big 8 loss to Monett in a very good game, but pulled out big wins over Glendale, Aurora, Nevada and Neosho.  Pitching continues to be the key led by the dynamic duo of Justice Hylton (.452 ERA) and Ethan Frack (1.50 ERA).
9. Galena (C2, 16-2, 10) – The Bears continue to lead the way in Class 2.  Pitching has been dynamite all year, especially in the current stretch where they’ve allowed 1, 3, 0, 0, 2, 0, 0 in the last seven games.  That included a 10-0 shutout of College Heights headlined by Logan Sorrell’s 5-inning no-hitter in which he struck out the first nine batters! Also dominating is Jake Baker and his 6-0 record and .563 ERA.  Got a good one on tap this week as the Bears square off against Class 1 3^rd ranked New Covenant after the Springfield Cardinals 11:10 am game Wednesday at Hammons Field.
10. Hurley (C1, 9-4, 9) – Similar to Mtn Grove in Class 3, Hurley is the current “third wheel” in Class 1.  Most believe NCA and Walnut Grove are the cream of the crop, but when you’ve got senior lefty Justice Jones and junior Isaac Carlson both with ERAs under 2.00 don’t count out the red Tigers.  There’s a big test with quarterfinalist Dora this Thursday and of course a pair with Mark Twain rival NCA looming next week.  We should learn a lot in this stretch.
11. Plato (C2, 17-3, 13) – The Eagles were a perfect 4-0 since our last Power Rankings which included a win in their own tournament, highlighted by a 10-9 championship thriller over Class 3 Mountain Grove.  The Eagles are getting it done at the plate led by Wiley Miller (.469 avg) and Jesse Bohannon (.446 avg), but it’s the pitching that will blow your mind.  Miller has 52 strikeouts in 33.2 innings.  Connor Hathaway has 53 punchouts in just 26 innings.  With numbers like those I hope their fielders brought a magazine or something to keep them busy.
12. Bolivar (C4, 14-2, 11) – Already COC Small champs in football and basketball, the Libs are looking to complete the sweep this spring.  Coach Roweton’s crew is 5-0 in conference play, but they’ve got a HUGE one coming up Tuesday as they host surprising Springfield Catholic (12-2) with the conference title on the line.  Certainly no looking ahead as Thursday features a rematch against Class 3 top ranked Stockton; a game the Liberators won 4-1 to open the season.    
13. Aurora (C4, 16-2, 12) – For my money Aurora has been the biggest and brightest surprise in the area this season.  The Houn’ Dawgs continue to roll with big wins over Mt Vernon, Glendale, Parkview and Forsyth over the last two weeks.  In fact, their only loss during that stretch came in a 1-0 setback to Carl Junction in which they had a no-hitter going into the 7^th.  PITCHING PITCHING PITCHING! The Dawgs team ERA is a miniscule 1.37 led by Shoemaker and Sparks.  Hitting hasn’t exactly come around yet, but according to Coach Hoffman, “if I had a dollar for every ball we have crushed right at fielders in the last two weeks I could stop trying to win the million dollars playing Monopoly at McDonald’s.”
14. Springfield Catholic (C3, 13-2, NR) – Just two years removed from a Class 3 state championship, the Irish are back in business.  The rebuilding process moved quickly as SC is young, but talented.  Their schedule is full of good (but not great) wins.  The two losses were a smidge head scratching (Strafford 14-4) and Billings (6-2), but they came back to avenge the Strafford loss with a 9-3 win in the Indians’ own tournament.  Tuesday will be the true test as they go for the COC Small title at Class 4 power Bolivar.
15. Dixon (C3, 12-4, 14) – The Bulldogs are weathering the storm right now.  They managed a 3-3 mark over the last two weeks with one of those losses 2-0 to state ranked South Callaway and another 2-0 loss to Crocker; a game where half their team showed up late because they were taking the ACT test.  The Bulldogs are certainly hanging on to the top 15 by a thread, but if they can get ace Andrew Meier back in time for the playoffs that could turn around in a hurry. 

KNOCKING ON THE DOOR: Forsyth (C3, 14-5, NR), Willard (C5, 16-8, NR), Crocker (C2, 9-4, NR), Lebanon (C5, 14-4, NR), Mansfield (C2, 12-2, NR), Purdy (C2, 11-5, NR)