Updated Illinois Power 25 Rankings

In our third installment of the season, the top three teams remain unchanged with Brother Rice sitting at the top. The Crusaders are now 14-0 after a 4-0 week where they outscored opponents 58-14. 

Undefeated Edwardsville (11-0) remains at No. 2 in the state after yet another spotless week where they went 2-0, cruising to big wins over Granite City and Jackson (MO).

Rounding out the top-3 is Huntley (8-1) who went 3-0 on the week, pushing their record to 8-1 on the year. The Red Raiders took down Crystal Lake Central 5-0 and 13-4 while also knocking off McHenry 7-5.

Read on below for a look at the notable Power 25 action that took place over the past week.

CLIMBING

+ No. 4 Saint Viator (10-0): The Lions continue to roll and pick up impressive wins along the way. Their most recent win was against fellow Top-10 conference-foe Nazareth. The game was tight until late when Viator broke it open, eventually winning 9-1. They also took down Palatine 3-0 and Deerfield 14-2 during their perfect 3-0 week. 

+ No. 5 St. Laurence (13-0): Few teams are hotter offensively across the state right now than the Vikings, who allowed two runs in four games last week while scoring 51 of their own. They’ve been firing on all cylinders throughout the season, having scored 10 or more runs in 10 of their 13 games this spring. Several players contributed to the Vikings’ offensive outburst, but senior OF Angelo Luna (2022; Illinois-Springfield) had arguably the loudest week of the bunch. He tallied six hits in total, including three doubles, two triples, and a home run - driving in 12 runs total. LHP Joe Olson (2025) and RHP DJ Helwig (2023) each twirled five scoreless innings, punching out nine and eight batters in their respective starts. Few teams are in sync like the Vikings are right now and they look every bit the part of a title contender. 

+ No. 6 Naperville Central (7-0): The Redhawks just continue to impress, staying undefeated on the young season with two huge wins under their belt this past week. The eye-opening performance was a 9-6 win over No. 8 Lockport, who was undefeated at the time. They also took down former Power 25 Marist 12-2 during their spotless 2-0 week.  Central continues to bolster their stock with quality wins and are showing no signs of slowing down. 

+ No. 15 Lincoln-Way East (8-2): The Griffins are back with their arrow pointing up after a 3-0 week. The Griffins offense, which was stale the previous week, seems to be waking up, scoring double digits in all three games last week. The Griffins knocked off St. Charles North 10-5, Bradley-Bourbonnais 11-1 and Stagg 11-7. The road ahead does not get any easier as the Griffins are scheduled to play four games this week, one against No. 5 St. Laurence on Wednesday.

+ No. 23 Normal University (6-3): The Pioneers bounced back in impressive fashion after a rough start to the season, rattling off four wins last week. They won their first two games in emphatic fashion on Monday, scoring 32 runs in total while allowing just one hit. They followed that up with back-to-back wins against a quality Glenwood team, including a 15-strikeout no-hitter on Wednesday by senior Illinois commit Jake Swartz. U-High started the season towards the top of our preseason rankings and they certainly have the star power to go on a tear as the season rolls on, especially with a few key players returning. 

SINKING

+ Two top-10 teams, No. 8 Lockport (11-1) and No. 10 Nazareth (10-2), dropped four spots after losing a game a piece to Power 25 squads but it is hard to say they are sinking. Both teams are still highly regarded and have played a number of high-level teams from across the state to open up the season. 

+ No. 14  Providence Catholic (6-2): The Celtics went 3-1 week, sliding four spots in this update. The lone loss came to Montini 13-11. Outside of that, the Celtics took down DePaul College Prep 1-0, De La Salle 8-4 and Fenwick 8-7. Providence still boasts some of the top arms in the state and should be in the mix to take home the Chicago Catholic League-Blue title.

+ No. 16 Belleville East (9-2): The Lancers had an up-and-down week finishing 1-1. A hard fought win over Waterloo 4-3 was a bright spot but a 3-2 loss to Mount Vernon has the Lancers down three spots to No. 16. Keep an eye on this club as they can quickly get their arrow pointed in the right direction with five games on the schedule this week. 

+ No. 21 Minooka (8-2): The Indians are yet another team listed as “sinking” despite only losing one game on the week, which speaks to how hard it is to get a spot, and keep a spot, in the Power 25. The lone loss came to No. 18 Plainfield Central, who just jumped into the Power 25 for the first time, by a score of 9-4. Minooka also won two games on the week, knocking off Sandburg 7-5 and Joliet West 15-0.

NEW TO THE TOP 25

+ No. 17 Yorkville (10-1): The Foxes, who were the preseason No. 22 team in the state, are back in the rankings after a busy, undefeated 4-0 week. The Foxes offense put up double digit runs in three-of-the-four games, led by sophomore Nate Harris who went 9-for-16 with three doubles, three home runs and eight RBIs. On the week, Yorkville knocked off Joliet Central 11-2, former No. 19 Plainfield East 13-4, Romeoville 15-12 and Morris 5-4. 

+ No. 18 Plainfield Central (11-1): The Wildcats are yet another squad entering the rankings after a perfect week. Plainfield Central went 3-0 with their biggest win coming against No. 21 Minooka 9-4. The Minooka series is now 1-1 after Plainfield Central lost to them 1-0 the week prior. The Wildcats other two wins on the week were a 9-2 win over Oswego and an 8-0 win over Metea Valley. Plainfield Central has a tough test today as they matchup against No. 17 Yorkville.

+ No. 20 Stevenson (9-1): Nine wins and just one early season loss have the Patriots slotted into the Power 25 for the first time in 2022. They defeated Lake Forest rather handedly to start the week, 11-3 and 9-1 respectively, and took down Prospect 9-5 on Wednesday. They’re getting contributions in all areas by key pieces, headlined by an impressive junior class that’s living up to the preseason hype. Stevenson’s most important series starts today, as the Patriots draw conference foe Mundelein on back-to-back days in what’s certainly going to be an action-packed matchup. 

+ No. 22 Mount Carmel (10-3): Another team back in the Power 25 after some early season struggles, the Caravan have won nine straight games dating back to March 22nd. Pitching was always going to be a strength for Mount Carmel, but their offense appears to be trending in the right direction. They scored 15 runs in their last two games of the week and defeated DePaul College Prep 11-2 on Tuesday as well. Their vaunted pitching staff did anchor them in a tight-knit 4-2 win over Marist, with the senior southpaw duo of LHP Julien Hachem (Oklahoma) and LHP Michael Kelly (Western Michigan) blanking the Redhawks for six straight frames. Mount Carmel appears to be hitting their stride with key conference games against St. Rita, Brother Rice, and St. Laurence on the horizon. 

+ No. 24 Breese Central (14-0): Breese Central caught our attention at the Kickoff Classic early this year and hasn’t slowed down since, ripping off 14 straight victories to start the 2022 season. They scored 12 or more runs in three of their four wins last week and defeated Columbia in comeback fashion last Tuesday, plating four in the bottom half of the sixth inning. The Cougars do have arguably their most important matchup of the season tomorrow against Freeburg, where two of the more talented teams in the 2A classification will square off. 

DROPPED OUT

+ Plainfield East (5-4)

+ Warren (9-1)

+ Oak Park-River Forest (4-2)

+ Marist (4-5)

JUST MISSED THE CUT

+ Warren (9-1)

+ St. Joseph-Ogden (11-2)

+ Mascoutah (10-1)

+ Washington (12-2)

+ Evanston (7-2)

+ North Clay (11-1)

+ Bloomington (11-2)

+ Maroa Forsyth (12-0)

+ Paris (12-0)

+ Riverside-Brookfield (7-2)

+ Willowbrook (4-1)

+ Triad (10-3)

+ Morton (9-1)

+ CLICK HERE to view entire Power 25 Team Rankings

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