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LOS ANGELES, CALIF. - For the third consecutive year, the 2024 CIF-Southern Section high school baseball season will again kick off with the premier spring high school baseball tournament in Southern California, the Prep Baseball California Spring Invitational.  The 16 team field will compete in a bracketed, winner-take-all format that will once again feature many of California's top prep baseball teams. This tournament holds massive implications for our Power 25 State Rankings and annually gives pro scouts an early glimpse into how some of the area's top draft prospects perform out the gate.  

We continue with the Notre Dame Knights, a CIF-Southern Division I school out of Sherman Oaks competing in the Mission League. Led by 33 year head coach Tom Dill, the Knights went 28-4 last year turning in a quarter-final appearance in playoffs.

Notre Dame enters the 2024 season with returning impact players such as '24 RHP Levi Sterling (Texas), '24 RHP Sammy Petrocelli (Stanford), '24 RHP Erik Puodziunas (Michigan), and '24 RHP Nate Kugler (Dartmouth). Dill said, "The 2024 Knights return a lot of talent on the mound. We are looking to continue our success on the field by competing for a Mission League Title and ultimately a CIF Division 1 Championship."

And while they may be a year away in some instances, the Knights have some underclassmen who may be looking to break into the lineup and rotation including, '26 RHP Patrick Arranaga, '26 RHP JuJu Diaz-Jones, '26 C/1B Jacob Madrid, and '26 C Brody Thompson.

Dill spoke on younger players stepping into roles saying, "We are excited for our team as we will have some new guys step into some big roles. We also have some great younger talented guys so we are excited for them to help us pursue our team goals at the varsity level this season."

We will get to see a full range of players and the first test of Notre Dame's depth at the Preseason Invitational as the Knights look to solidify and define their lineup and rotation for the 2024 season. 

College Commitments:

'24 RHP Levi Sterling - Texas - 6'4 190 lbs. 

'24 RHP Sammy Petrocelli - Stanford - 6'2 205 lbs.

'24 RHP Erik Puodziunas - Michigan - 6'3 190 lbs.

'24 RHP Nate Kugler - Dartmouth - 6'1 185 lbs.

'24 OF Kai Gonzaga - Pomona-Pitzer - 5'7 150 lbs.

Top Uncommitted ‘26s:

’26 RHP Patrick Arranaga - 5'10 160 lbs.

'26 RHP JuJu Diaz-Jones - 5'11 160 lbs.

'26 C/1B Jacob Madrid - 6'3 175 lbs.

'26 C Brody Thompson - 5'10 170 lbs.

 

UPCOMING EVENTS

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