LOUISVILLE, Ky. — East Coweta swept its state 6A playoff series on Tuesday night to advance to the Georgia Elite Eight for the 19th time in the last 20 seasons and keep a firm grasp on the No. 1 spot in the NFCA Summer/Fall High School Top 25 Coaches Poll for an eighth week.
The (33-0) Indians had three players homer in each victory over North Paulding, including a second-game blast by Jada Savage, who was the winning pitcher in both contests. The tournament will conclude next week with state quarterfinals, semis and finals all played at the South Commons Complex in Columbus.
Meanwhile, second-ranked Gretna (38-0) wrapped its unbeaten season with the Nebraska state Class A crown. The Dragons scorched then-No. 18 Millard North, 8-0, in Monday’s championship following a 5-0 triumph over then-No. 15 Lincoln Southwest in a bracket final last Thursday.
Like East Coweta, No. 3 Buford reached the Georgia 6A Elite Eight following a lopsided sweep of Walton on Tuesday. The (27-1) Wolves won 12-0 and 9-0, behind Florida commit Caroline Stanton’s 10-strikeout, four-inning perfect game and LSU-bound Addison Rackley’s one-hitter. Rackley also hit the third of three straight homers in the second-game victory.
Colorado teams Broomfield (25-0) and Lutheran (23-1) remained fifth and sixth, after advancing in the 5A and 4A playoffs, respectively. No. 9 Wesleyan (23-1) finally returns to action Thursday with a best-of-three series against Greater Atlanta Christian following its bye into the Sweet 16 of the Georgia private school state tournament.
Caddo, which won a fourth consecutive Oklahoma state Class A title on Oct. 12, is the only change in the top 10 this week. The (33-2) Bruins moved up one spot to replace Grain Valley (33-3) following the Eagles’ 4-1 loss to new-No. 18 Rock Bridge in Monday’s Missouri Class 5, District 6 final.
Elsewhere, No. 12 North Cobb completed two playoff series in the past week to become the third ranked team to reach Georgia 6A Elite Eight. The (32-3) Warriors wrapped a series with Tift County last Thursday then swept a best-of-three against Dacula with two wins on Tuesday.
No. 20 Raymore-Peculiar (24-6) completed the rare Lee’s Summit trifecta in the Missouri Class 5, District 7 tournament. The Panthers defeated Lee’s Summit North, 3-0, last Friday, then rolled past Lee’s Summit, 11-1, last Saturday and topped Lee’s Summit West, 7-1, on Monday. Raymore-Peculiar plays Liberty North on Saturday in a Class 5 state quarterfinal.
State rankings submitted by the 2024 NFCA High School Steering Committee are used to compile the NFCA Summer/Fall High School Top 25 Coaches Poll. Teams are chosen based on performance, roster quality and strength of schedule. Five states — Colorado, Georgia, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Missouri — play a fall fastpitch schedule, while Iowa recently completed its summer season.
NFCA Summer/Fall High School Top 25 Coaches Poll – Oct. 24, 2024
|
Rank |
Team |
2024 Record |
Previous |
|
1 |
East Coweta (Ga.) |
33-0 |
1 |
|
2 |
Gretna (Neb.) |
38-0 |
2 |
|
3 |
Buford (Ga.) |
27-1 |
3 |
|
4 |
Van Meter (Iowa) |
43-1 |
4 |
|
5 |
Broomfield (Colo.) |
25-0 |
5 |
|
6 |
Lutheran (Colo.) |
23-1 |
6 |
|
7 |
Dale (Okla.) |
36-1 |
7 |
|
8 |
Pocola (Okla.) |
34-1 |
8 |
|
9 |
Wesleyan (Ga.) |
23-1 |
9 |
|
10 |
Caddo (Okla.) |
33-2 |
11 |
|
11 |
Grain Valley (Mo.) |
33-3 |
10 |
|
12 |
North Cobb (Ga.) |
32-3 |
12 |
|
13 |
Pleasant Valley (Iowa) |
40-3 |
13 |
|
14 |
Eaton (Colo.) |
22-3 |
14 |
|
15 |
Valor Christian (Colo.) |
21-4 |
16 |
|
16 |
Lincoln Southwest (Neb.) |
36-5 |
15 |
|
17 |
Dewar (Okla.) |
35-5 |
17 |
|
18 |
Rock Bridge (Mo.) |
30-6 |
NR |
|
19 |
Owasso (Okla.) |
29-6 |
19 |
|
20 |
Raymore-Peculiar (Mo.) |
24-6 |
21 |
|
21 |
Millard North (Neb.) |
31-7 |
18 |
|
22 |
Lassiter (Ga.) |
21-6 |
22 |
|
23 |
Helias Catholic (Mo.) |
22-6 |
23 |
|
24 |
Blue Springs South (Mo.) |
23-7 |
20 |
|
25 |
Piedmont (Okla.) |
30-7 |
24 |
Dropped out: Papillion-LaVista (Neb.).
2024 NFCA High School Steering Committee
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