High school softball rankings: Wild weekend in Texas causes shakeup in this week’s MaxPreps Top 25
A wild state title weekend in Texas shook up this week’s MaxPreps Top 25 high school softball rankings. Weslaco entered the bottom of the seventh trailing Midway (Waco) 9-3 in the Class 6A state championship game. The Pantherettes cut the deficit to 9-7 before Andrea Ortiz stepped to the plate. The sophomore blasted a 2-2 pitch over the left-field fence for a grand slam and 11-9 walk-off victory. Weslaco won its first state title and moved to No. 8 in this week’s rankings. Texas commit Caigan Crabtree hit a pair of home runs to help lift No. 13 Melissa to an 8-0 win over Harlingen South (Harlingen) in Saturday’s Class 5A state softball championship. The Cardinals hit an incredible 92 home runs this season. Coahoma (32-0) finished an undefeated season with its second-straight title. Brynn Rodgers’ go-ahead double provided the difference in a 3-2 win over Grandview in eight innings in the Class 3A state championship.
In Ohio, No. 6 Austintown-Fitch (Youngstown) was crowned the Division 1 champion for the second straight season. Class of 2025 and Georgia Tech commit Sydnie Watts continued to dominate on the mound for the Falcons with a two-hit shutout and 10 strikeouts. Her performance followed a perfect game in Friday’s semifinal. The junior also blasted a massive home run over the left-field fence in the title game. In Illinois, Carterville captured the Class 2A championship Saturday night with a 1-0 walk-off win over North Boone (Poplar Grove). Taryn Ford was the hero for the Lions with the clutch hit in the seventh to lift the team to their first title since 2016. After losing five out of six games in early May, the Dons won seven straight games to capture the Northern California Division 1 title, beating previous No. 2 Saint Francis (Mountain View) and Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills) in the final.
Elsewhere, Garner won its first Class 4A state championship Saturday in North Carolina, sweeping a two-game series (3-2, 12-1) over Weddington (Matthews). Junior Lily Keefer hit a home run in each of the victories, bringing her season total to eight. Another new entry in the rankings this week is St. Anthony’s (Melville, N.Y.). The Friars capped a 25-0 season capturing the school’s third consecutive CHSAA state title. Cornell commit Milana Fiordalisi was nearly flawless this season with 208 strikeouts and 0.55 ERA in 124 innings. Andrea Ortiz is greeted by her Welasco teammates after blasting a grand slam to win the UIL Class 6A title on Saturday. The Pantherettes jump to No. 8 in the MaxPreps Top 25 softball rankings.
MaxPreps Top 25 high school softball rankings
1. Orange Beach (Ala.) Record: 46-1 | Last week: 1 Season complete. Class 4A state champion.
2. Northwest Rankin (Brandon, Miss.) Record: 34-0 | Last week: 3 Season complete. Class 7A state champion.
3. Pacifica (Garden Grove, Calif.) Record: 27-2 | Last week: 4 Season complete. Southern Section Division 1 champion.
4. Pace (Fla.) Record: 28-2 | Last week: 5 Season complete. Class 6A state champion.
5. Summerville (S.C.) Record: 30-0 | Last week: 6 Season complete. Class 5A state champion.
6. Austintown-Fitch (Youngstown, Ohio) Record: 23-1 | Last week: 15 Ayla Ray started things off in the first inning of the Division 1 title game with her 14th home run of the season.
7. Kaukauna (Wis.) Record: 27-0 | Last week: 7 Karly Meredith struck out 15 and Chloe Herzfeldt drove in a pair of runs as the Ghosts advanced to the 1A state quarterfinals.
8. Weslaco (Texas) Record: 37-6 | Last week: NR The Panthers are the first team from the Rio Grande Valley to capture a state championship.
9. Hewitt-Trussville (Trussville, Ala.) Record: 37-6 | Last week: 9 Season complete. Class 7A state champion.
10. Xavier College Prep (Phoenix, Ariz.) Record: 28-4-1 | Last week: 11 Season complete. Class 6A state champion.
11. Calvary Baptist Academy (Shreveport, La.) Record: 35-2 | Last week: 12 Season complete. Division III Select state champion.
12. Ridgeline (Millville, Utah) Record: 30-1 | Last week: 13 Season complete. Class 4A state champion.
13. Melissa (Texas) Record: 38-2-1 | Last week: 14 Freshman Hutton Adrian, sophomore Kennedy Bradley and senior Caigan Crabtree all finished this season with 20-plus home runs.
14. Carterville (Ill.) Record: 37-1 | Last week: 17 Kennedy Rushing was the hero as she hit the go-ahead base hit during a 1-0 11 inning-win over Rockridge (Taylor Ridge) in the state semis.
15. Woodgrove (Purcellville, Va.) Record: 23-0 | Last week: 18 Grace Anderson went deep and Abbey Lane mowed down eight hitters as the Wolverines blanked John Champe (Aldie) 10-0 on Thursday.
16. Silverdale Academy (Chattanooga, Tenn.) Record: 50-3 | Last week: 19 Season complete. Division II-A state champion.
17. Marist (Chicago, Ill.) Record: 34-3 | Last week: 20 The RedHawks play Monday night for a chance to move on to the Class 4A state semifinals.
18. Jackson (Mill Creek, Wash.) Record: 25-2 | Last week: 22 Season complete. Class 4A state champion.
19. Hudsonville (Mich.) Record: 37-0 | Last week: 24 Elly Koopman, Megan Beemer and Tessa Heffelbower all went yard during an 8-1 win over Jenison on Saturday.
20. Coahoma (Texas) Record: 32-0 | Last week: NR Junior Texas commit Hannah Wells was the team’s ace and biggest slugger, batting .685 with 15 bombs.
21. St. Anthony’s (Melville, N.Y.) Record: 25-0 | Last week: NR Valentina Lula had a pair of hits and three RBI in the Friars’ 9-0 state title victory.
22. Amador Valley (Pleasanton, Calif.) Record: 19-11 | Last week: NR Kaylee Davis, Taylor Oxe and Mai Falcone all went deep in the thrilling 13-11 victory over Oak Ridge in the NorCal Division 1 title game.
23. Garner (N.C.) Record: 28-1 | Last week: NR Gabriella Czuczuk pitched the bulk of the innings for the Trojans, helping them bring home the school’s first title.
24. Mount St. Dominic Academy (Caldwell, N.J.) Record: 29-1 | Last week: NR The Lions have rolled off 28 straight wins and now play for the North Jersey Non-Public A final on Tuesday.
25. Sterlington (La.) Record: 33-1 | Last week: NR Season complete. Division III Non-Select champion.
On the bubble: Hamilton Southeastern (Fishers, Ind.), 23-4; Bartow (Fla.) 30-2; Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.), 21-4; Mercy (Farmington Hills, Mich.), 33-1; Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills, Calif.), 24-5, Capital Christian (Sacramento, Calif.), 26-3-1; Watkins Memorial (Pataskala, Ohio), 31-2; Penn (Mishawaka, Ind.), 27-6; South Warren (Bowling Green, Ky.), 37-3; Calallen (Corpus Christi, Texas), 41-3.
