LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Lake Creek and Oaks Christian — the two teams with Lion mascots atop the USA TODAY Sports/NFCA High School Super 25 — kept winning to remain undefeated and in full control with playoff games looming.
No. 1 Lake Creek (32-0) has started the Texas 5A tournament already, beating Magnolia twice last week to set up a best-of-three with Weiss in the next round starting on Friday. The Lions have now won 70 of their last 72 contests.
Meanwhile, No. 2 Oaks Christian (28-0) opens the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section playoffs with a matchup against Valley View later today.
Fellow California school Clovis North (19-1) remains third in the rankings, while eight-time reigning Mississippi Class 5A champion and No. 4 team Neshoba Central (25-2) has Saltillo standing between itself and another state final four berth. Fifth-ranked Lakewood Ranch (24-2) has a Florida 7A, District 8 playoff contest today versus Venice.
No. 6 Roncalli (17-0) beat a pair of ranked teams — Marist and New Palestine — on Saturday to maintain its position, while undefeated newcomers Benton (27-0) and Anthony Wayne (20-0) both made a big statement by debuting in the top 10.
State rankings submitted by the 2022 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 – May 5, 2022
|
Rank |
Team |
2022 Record |
Previous |
|
1 |
Lake Creek (Texas) |
32-0 |
1 |
|
2 |
Oaks Christian (Calif.) |
28-0 |
2 |
|
3 |
Clovis North (Calif.) |
19-1 |
3 |
|
4 |
Neshoba Central (Miss.) |
25-2 |
4 |
|
5 |
Lakewood Ranch (Fla.) |
24-2 |
5 |
|
6 |
Roncalli (Ind.) |
17-0 |
6 |
|
7 |
Benton (Ark.) |
27-0 |
NR |
|
8 |
Anthony Wayne (Ohio) |
20-0 |
NR |
|
9 |
Riverton (Utah) |
21-1 |
8 |
|
10 |
Villa Park (Calif.) |
23-4 |
10 |
|
11 |
North Augusta (S.C.) |
25-1 |
12 |
|
12 |
Eastern Alamance (N.C.) |
18-1 |
13 |
|
13 |
Jackson (Wash.) |
16-1 |
7 |
|
14 |
Lexington (S.C.) |
20-2 |
11 |
|
15 |
Alexander Central (N.C.) |
21-2 |
15 |
|
16 |
Deer Park (Texas) |
33-2 |
16 |
|
17 |
Damascus (Md.) |
16-0 |
17 |
|
18 |
Donovan Catholic (N.J.) |
16-0 |
18 |
|
19 |
Monroe-Woodbury (N.Y.) |
13-0 |
19 |
|
20 |
Allen Park (Mich.) |
15-0-1 |
NR |
|
21 |
New Palestine (Ind.) |
13-2-1 |
14 |
|
22 |
Marist (Ill.) |
15-4-1 |
9 |
|
23 |
John Curtis (La.) |
29-3 |
21 |
|
24 |
South Caldwell (N.C.) |
14-2 |
23 |
|
25 |
Lakota West (Ohio) |
22-3 |
24 |
Dropped out: Hewitt-Trussville (Ala.), Pineville (La.) and South Lyon (Mich.).
State rankings submitted by the 2022 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.
The NFCA (National Fastpitch Coaches Association) is the professional organization for fastpitch softball coaches. Known for its highly-regarded coaches polls and All-America awards, the NFCA also educates and supports softball coaches on a variety of different levels: from podcasts to awards, to in-person events and National Convention.
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