By Sean Duncan
Executive Director

Ahh, yes, the weather started to turn for the better, which meant more baseball was played. Here’s a look at the week that was:

+ Lincoln-Way North remains perched atop the state rankings again, improving to 19-0. Barring some tiny 1A school that’s having a great season off the grid, the Phoenix appears to be the last remaining unbeaten in Illinois after No. 7 Mundelein (18-1) and No. 8 Rock Island Alleman (17-1) both dropped their first games of the season. Mundelein fell to Lake Zurich while Alleman split a big Western Big 6 double-header with Galesburg on Saturday.

+ St. Rita (22-2) moves up a spot to No. 2 after the Mustangs swept Providence by identical 3-2 scores last week. The road doesn’t get any easier the Mustangs, as they begin a two-game set with No. 3 St. Laurence on Monday and Wednesday.

+ No. 3 St. Laurence (16-5) and No. 4 Mount Carmel (19-4) split their big two-game series last week. The series split gave St. Rita sole possession of first place in the Chicago Catholic Blue. And speaking of the Catholic Blue, the powerhouse conference has three of the four top-ranked teams in the state.

+ Next to Mundelein (18-1), No. 6 Lincoln-Way East (15-2) is the season’s biggest surprise. The Griffins, who jump 10 spots in the poll, continue to knock off ranked opponents. Some of their quality wins include Mount Carmel, Lockport, Joliet West, Loyola, Andrew, Lincoln-Way West and Oak Forest. The Griffins will look to put another big notch on their belt on Monday night when they host No. 1 Lincoln-Way North at 7 p.m. Perhaps the most surprising aspect of East’s success is it has done it without a frontline ace. The Griffins have used pitcher-by-committee philosophy this season. RHP Karl Henderson leads the team in victories with a 3-0 record.  

+ No. 5 Normal West (16-3) has ripped off 10 consecutive victories and is playing at the level which earned the Wildcats a preseason No. 5 ranking.

+ No. 9 Naperville Central (13-4) and No. 15 Wheaton North (15-3) square off this week in a big DuPage Valley Conference three-game set on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

+ No. 10 Downers Grove South (18-3) is one of the hottest teams in the state. Only one of the Mustangs’ losses is in Illinois; the other two were in Arizona at the beginning of the season. South isn’t the only Downers Grove team making waves this season. No. 17 Downers Grove North (15-3) continues to play stellar baseball.

+ No. 11 Harrisburg (21-3) moved up three spots after going unblemished last week. Illinois-bound RHP/SS Ryne Roper is putting up player of the year type numbers for the Class 2A powerhouse.

+ No. 12 Glenbrook South (14-2), No. 13 Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin (14-4) and No. 14 Carmel (13-3) all make significant moves up the rankings. After sweeping Joliet Catholic two weekends ago in a doubleheader, the Corsairs swept previously-ranked Nazareth in a two-game set last Saturday.

+ No. 20 Edwardsville (17-6) has ripped off 11 straight victories after starting the season at 6-6. In a crowded Southwestern Conference race, the Tigers now hold sole possession of first place. Other new teams in the top 25 include No. 21 Metamora (18-4) and No. 24 Galesburg (18-6), which handed Alleman its first loss on Saturday.

+ No. 22 Lockport swept a two-game set from No. 25 Sandburg (11-5) last week.

+ No. 18 Huntley (17-2) fell to Crystal Lake South last week.

+ No. 23 Joliet West dropped three games last week, leading to a 12-spot fall in the rankings. The team’s strength of schedule and quality victories kept it in the rankings.

+ Teams who dropped out of the top 25: Nazareth, Cary-Grove and Libertyville.

+ Team that just missed cracking the top 25 this week: Lake Park.

Click Here to view complete top 25 team rankings