Prep Baseball Report

Updated Illinois Power 25 Rankings


By Illinois Scouting Staff

Today marks the third update to the Power 25 on the season after another loaded week of games. The top team in the state remains Nazareth who continues their winning ways, now sitting at 14-0 on the season and at No. 1 for the third straight week. The Roadrunners did not allow a run on the week and outscored their three opponents 30-0. Nazareth has three games on the docket this week with two against conference-foe St. Patrick and one against Glenbrook North. 

Check out the rest of the movement in the Power 25 below. 

CLIMBING

+ No. 2 Providence Catholic (12-1): The Celtics find themselves in the No. 2 position after another dominant undefeated (3-0) week, boasting wins over Bolingbrook (16-1), Marist (13-3) and Lockport (28-17). This coming week will be a good test for Providence as they will square off with a young but talented Montini club, a quality Joliet West team and new No. 18 St. Rita for a two game set. 

+ No. 7 Father McGivney (18-0): Now one of only two undefeated teams in the Power 25, Father McGivney finds themselves up three spots to No. 7. They went an impressive 5-0 this past week with wins over Maryville Christian 22-0, Alton 4-1, Bunker Hill 14-2 & 31-0, and Southwestern 13-2 - outscoring their opponents by an astounding 83-5 on the week. 

+ No. 9 Downers Grove North (12-2): The Trojans moved up two spots to No. 9 after a strong 4-1 week, highlighted by a conference series win over Lyons Township who was ranked No. 14 at the time. Their lone loss of the week came against Lyons by the narrow margin of 2-0, but they picked up two more wins on the week over Morton (11-10) and York (7-5). The Trojans have one of the more complete lineups in the state and are getting enough on the mound to make them a formidable contender moving forward.

+ No. 10 Evanston (14-2): Rising up seven spots up to No. 10 after a 3-0 week and outscoring opponents 40-5, the Wildkits are proving they deserved a spot in the Preseason Power 25. They have quality arms at their disposal, with RHP Hank Liss (2023; Belmont), RHP Mason Denlow (2023) and RHP Jared Lortie (2023; Hamilton College) all set to see a good chunk of innings. INF/RHP Eron Vega (2024), a standout from this past winter, is another quality arm that Evanston can run out to the bump, and he’s also an intriguing right-handed bat that can hold his own on the infield with above-average defense. C Brandon Brokowski (2023) handles the pitching staff from behind the plate, and he’s a reliable right-handed hitter that adds depth to their lineup. 

+ No. 12 Lincoln-Way East (13-4): Another big riser in this update is Lincoln-Way East, who has been up-and-down the Power 25 this season already. In the most recent update the Griffins move up eight spots to No. 12. They had a dominant week, going a perfect 4-0 while taking down No. 22 Lemont 8-5, Andrew 8-4, Chicago Hope 14-3 and Lincoln-Way Central 11-10. They will have a tough test this coming week, as they are set to square off with No. 14 Lockport for a two-game set, as well as No. 16 Minooka for one game. 

+ No. 13 Sandburg (12-3-1): Sandburg also rose eight spots from last week, now coming in at No. 13 in the Power 25 thanks to their impressive 4-0 record last week. They saw wins over Joliet West 6-4, Bradley-Bourbonnais 4-3 (new to the Power 25 at No. 17), Thornton Fractional South 5-1 and Stagg 6-5. They’re scheduled for another four games this week - with two coming against conference-foe Homewood-Flossmoor. 

+ No. 21 DePaul College Prep (10-4): Moving up four spots to No. 21, the Rams continue to prove themselves as a team to pay close attention to in the state with a 3-0 record this past week. Wins over Riverside-Brookfield 6-5, Aurora Christian 22-16 and Marmion 5-4 improved their record to 10-4. They also have quality wins over the likes of Mount Carmel and St. Laurence on the year. They have a busy week ahead as they are slated to play four games. 

SINKING

+ No. 14 Lockport Township (9-5): The Porters had a difficult four-game stretch this past week and emerged with a 2-2 record, falling to 9-5 on the season. They had two quality wins over Mt. Carmel 17-4 and No. 5 Lincoln-Way West, but fell to No. 17 Bradley-Bourbonnais 5-3 and the new No. 2 Providence Catholic by the score of 28-17. The Porters remain an extremely dangerous team as they have wins over No. 5 Lincoln-Way West, Andrew, Joliet Catholic, Mascoutah and No. 8 Edwardsville.

+ No. 15 Mahomet-Seymour (13-3): The Bulldogs dropped two slots this week after going 3-1 on the week, highlighted by a split with conference-foe Charleston. They defeated Charleston (8-3) and lost 6-5. They also picked up wins over Gibson City (15-2), and Oakwood (13-3) on the week. The Bulldogs are led by one of the top arms in the entire country Blake Wolters (Arizona) who we have seen up to 99 mph this spring and he is also one of their most dangerous bats. The Bulldogs are set to face Paxton-Buckley-Loda, Pontiac, and St. Thomas More this week with a conference doubleheader versus Taylorville on Saturday.

+ No. 19 Lyons Township (8-3): The Lions had an up-and-down 3-2 week. They had a hard-fought three-game Conference series against Downers Grove North that did not go their way, losing two games 7-6 and winning one game 2-0. The competitive series speaks to the quality of both teams but a 3-2 week has Lyons down five spots to No. 19. This week should be another busy one as the Lions have five games scheduled, wth three of them coming against conference-foe Hinsdale Central. 

+ No. 20 Mundelein (7-3): The Mustangs had an up-and-down week with wins over Zion-Benton 8-4 and Waukegan 11-6. A 13-0 loss to Lane Tech has them sliding down the list three spots to No. 19. They’ll have an opportunity to climb again with a two-game conference set against Stevenson and a single game scheduled against Fremd. 

NEW TO THE TOP 25

+ No. 17 Bradley-Bourbonnais (9-2): The Boilermakers find themselves in the Power 25 after a 3-1 week with wins over Marshall (12-2), Champaign Central (6-4), and Lockport (5-3). Their only loss on the week was to No. 13 Sandburg (4-3). This week  should be telling for the Boilermakers as they are set to play two games against No.5 Lincoln-Way West and one game against Bishop McNamara.

+ No. 18 St. Rita (12-3): The Mustangs enter the Power 23 for the first time after finishing this past week at a perfect 4-0 which puts them at 12-3 on the season. Rita had wins over Simeon 12-2, Montini 6-0, Saint Ignatius 8-7 and Brooks 11-1 on the week. Rita has some firepower in their lineup, headed by Illinois State commit Sir Jamison Jones and senior Heartland commit Tommy Atikinson, as well as a number of quality bats behind them. They are getting enough from their guys on the mound to make them a dangerous team moving forward. Rita has six games on the schedule this week with two of them coming against conference-opponent and No. 2 Providence Catholic. 

+ No. 23 Columbia (11-1): The Eagles made their first appearance into the Power 25 this week after an impressive 5-0 week with wins over Belleville East (4-3), Freeburg (5-0), Wesclin (11-1), Roxana (19-9), and Red Bud (7-1). Their win over Belleville East was even more impressive with the fact that RHP Zander Mueth (Ole Miss commit), one of the top arms in the country, started on the mound. Columbia looks to be one of the top programs in the state at the 2A classification, making a run to the state semi-finals last year and returning a large crop from that group. Upcoming this week the Eagles take on Alton Marquette, Wood River, O’Fallon, and Belleville West.

+ No. 24 St. Charles East (8-1): After a perfect 4-0 week catapulted their record to 8-1, the Saints break into the Power 25 for the first time this spring. A three-game sweep over a solid Lake Park squad and a 15-9 victory over Plainfield South has East trending in the right direction as we get deeper into the season. They are set for a busy week ahead with four games scheduled. Their offense is headlined by Illinois commit Jake Zitella (2023) and SS/RHP Seth Winkler (Kirkwood). Zitella can single handedly help catapult the Saints to victory as he did this past week, notching three home runs and seven RBIs in the victory over Plainfield South. Winkler was the DuKane Player of the Year last year after hitting .422 with five home runs and seven doubles. He was also lights out on the mound going 7-1, throwing 46 innings, scattering 29 hits, eight earned runs (1.22 ERA) and striking out 59. 

DROPPED OUT

+ Brother Rice (8-9)
+ Mascoutah (12-3-1)
+ Crystal Lake South (10-3)
+ Joliet Catholic (10-4-1)

JUST MISSED THE CUT

+ Harvest Christian (14-1)
+ Moline (15-4)
+ St. Charles North (11-3-1)
+ Quincy Notre Dame (14-1)
+ Antioch (8-2-1)
+ Glenwood (9-2)
+ Cary Grove (12-3)
+ Kenwood (12-2)
+ Harrisburg (15-2-1)
+ Gillespie (13-0)

UPDATED TOP 10



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