The whole state is well into conference play this week. They only team’s that are not taking part in conference play this week are the Division 3 school and Weatherford. This week we dive into a top matchup from every conference across the state.

#10 Midland vs #22 Clarendon

Midland is coming off of a huge week. They swept Luna (NM) to open in a dominant fashion. Midland is currently tied for 1st in the with Odessa. Leading the offense for Midland this season has been Week 7 Hitter of the Week SO C Garret Wilkinson (Liberty), FR INF Mason Weathers, and SO INF Fernie Zubia (uncommitted). Wilkinson is leading the team hitting .391 with 7 doubles, 6 home runs (9th in the country), 23, runs batted in, and 19 runs. Weathers is hitting .349 with 2 doubles, 3 home runs, and 15 runs batted in. Zubia is hitting .304 with 2 doubles, 2 triples, 1 home run, and 16 runs batted in.

Clarendon is currently tied for 6th with El Paso and New Mexico Military. Leading the way for their offense this season has been SO SS Shawn Ross (uncommitted), SO INF Tommy Reyes-Cruz (uncommitted), and FR OF Kevin Bermudez. Ross has been one of the top power hitters in the country this season far. He is hitting .474, with 9 doubles (16th), 4 triples (6th), 4 home runs, a .982 slugging % (10th) and 20 runs batted in. Reyes-Cruz is hitting .411 with 7 doubles 2 triples, 3 home runs, and a team-leading 25 runs batted in (19th). Bermudez is hitting .391 so far in his freshman campaign with 7 doubles, 2 triples, 1 home run, with 14 runs batted in.

#3 Grayson vs #6 Cisco

This is the highest rank matchup of the week and two of the top teams in the NTJCAC. Grayson is currently tied for 2nd with McLennan and North Central. While Cisco is in 8th because they have not played any conference games.

Grayson is coming off of a week where they went 3-1 against Temple. Leading the offense for them this season has been SO UTIL Brandon Webb (uncommitted), SO C Cordell Dunn Jr. (uncommitted), and FR INF Blake Ramusch. Webb is another guy who has been one of the top hitters in the country this season. He is his hitting .432, with 11 doubles (3rd), 2 triples, 6 home runs (9th), a .878 slugging % (21st), 26 runs batted in (13th), and 65 total bases (6th). Dunn has been leading from behind the plate for them this season with a .377 average, 4 doubles, 4 home runs, and 22 runs batted in. Ramusch is hitting .343 with 3 doubles, 1 triple, 1 home run, and 16 runs batted in.

This will be Cisco’s first real test of the season and first taste of conference play. Leading their offense this season has been SO INF Zach Sweet (Lamar), SO UTIL Christian Smith (uncommitted), and SO UTIL Bryce Holmes (uncommitted). Sweet leads the team with a .424 average along with 4 doubles, 1 home run, and 20 runs batted in. Smith is hitting .407 with 5 doubles, 2 triples, 4 home runs, 20 runs batted in and 9 stolen bases. Holmes is hitting .377 with 11 doubles (3rd in the country), 3 triples, 3 home runs, and a team-leading 21 runs batted in.

#7 Panola vs #11 Angelina

Panola is currently tied for first in Region 14-East with Navarro who are both 5-1, while Angelina is tied for 3rd with Bossier Parish at 3-3. So this series will have a huge impact as to how the top spots will look the rest of the season.

Panola’s offense has been leady by SO OF Joseph Stevens (uncommitted), SO INF Cameron Sibley (uncommitted) and FR 3B Austin Bost. Stevens is hitting .371 with 7 doubles, 1 home run, and 18 runs batted in. Sibley is hitting .360 with 3 doubles, 1 home run and 10 runs batted in. Bost is hitting .317 with a team-leading 8 doubles, 3 home runs and a team-leading 16 runs batted in.

Angelina is coming off of a big conference sweep last week over Bossier Parish last week. They offensively led by SO OF Euro Diaz (uncommitted), SO INF Rylan Meek (uncommitted), and FR UTIL Drake Pierson. Diaz is currently hitting .377 with 5 doubles, 3 triples (17th in the country),  and 14 runs batted in. Meek is hitting just behind Diaz at .357 with 2 doubles, 2 home runs, and 10 runs batted in. Pierson is hitting .328 with 3 doubles, 3 home runs, and 16 runs batted in.

#16 Wharton vs #19 Alvin

Both Wharton and Alvin are currently tied for 2nd in Region 14-South which as of right now will be the top seed in the regional tournament come May. Both teams are 6-3 in conference.

Wharton comes off of a 3-game sweep of Galveston last week. They are led by SO OF Caleb Maly (uncommitted), SO UTIL Josiah Ortiz (uncommitted), and FR SS Alex Carr. Maly leads the team with a .408 average, 6 doubles, and 8 runs batted in. Ortiz is hitting .349, with 2 doubles, a triple, home run, 16 runs batted in, and 12 runs. Carr has been one of the surprises across the state this year. He is currently hitting .333 with 8 doubles, 2 triples, 5 home runs, 24 runs batted in, and 7 stolen bases.

Alvin comes into the week after sweeping the weekend series last week against Blinn. Leading their offense this season has been SO OF Dylan Dougherty (uncommitted), SO OF Javeon Cody (uncommitted), and FR INF Garrett Poston. Dougherty is hitting .377 with 8 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home runs, and 12 runs batted in. Cody is hitting .369, with 5 doubles, 1 triple, 5 home runs, and 15 runs batted in. Poston is hitting .333 with 5 doubles, 3 home runs, and 18 runs batted in.

The rest of the weekend action happening across the state here is what is happening:

JUCO WIRE