Prep Baseball Report

Utah Power 25 Rankings: Week 4 (March 28 - April 2)


Jeff Scholzen
Utah Scouting Director

As the season is now heading into week 5 of the UHSAA slate of region games now being played, look for the top teams in each region to beat up on each other and to feed and grow their win totals against the bottom feeders. One team is standing out above the rest right now, and that's the Crimson Cliff Mustangs.

Led by a coaching staff of all former professional baseball players. Head Coach Justin Abbott, who is in his 3rd year as the schools only baseball coach to date, has built the program with a lineup of college commits as well as other players that have offers already on the table. Abbott pitched at SLCC and Southern Utah U, and then pitched in the Texas Rangers organization. Pitching Coach, Mike Gargano pitched at Dixie State U and for a handful of years in the St. Louis Cardinals chain. Hitting/3rd Base Coach, Kyle Boyer played at Kansas State and then transferred to Dixie State when it was a national powerhouse JUCO. Boyer then was selected in the 4th Rd of the 2002 MLB draft, playing in the St. Louis Cardinals chain as well, before a devastating wrist injury curtailed his career.

Many of the juniors dotting the lineup for the Mustangs, grew up playing on an Abbott/Gargano led travel team and were freshman in the 1st year of the program. I have mentioned numerous times, that when last years senior class from Snow Canyon graduated, that the Mustangs may be in line to take charge down south and throughout the state as well. That has been the case so far, as many of the top players are juniors, along with a a top senior and super sophomore. All but a few in the lineup have college commitments and/or are actively speaking with schools, along with one that has a Power 5 offer, but is holding off until fall to make a decision. Three of the juniors were selected to play for Team Utah last July at the PBR Future Games. The Mustangs sit a top the rankings for the second straight week as the state's #1 team.

Utah Power 25 Rankings: Week 4 (March 28 - April 2)

Last weeks results 

  1. 4A Crimson Cliffs 13-0 (Beat Snow Canyon twice - #1 RPI)

  2. 6A Fremont 10-1 (Won 3 games vs Layton - 2-1 vs ranked teams, 6-0 Region-  #2 RPI)

  3. 5A Lehi 11-2 (Won 3 games vs Mountain View by a total score of 33-3, #2 RPI)

  4. 4A Dixie 12-3 (SHO Pine View twice - #4 RPI)

  5. 5A Jordan 10-3 (Beat Timpanogos 3 times - #3 RPI)

  6. 5A Spanish Fork 10-2 (Best Provo twice - #6 RPI)

  7. 6A Lone Peak 7-1 (Beat Clearfield and Bingham - #1 RPI)

  8. 6A Riverton 6-2 (Beat American Fork - #3 RPI)

  9. 6A American Fork 6-3 (Lost to Riverton - #6 RPI)

  10. 5A Park City 8-2 (Took 3 from Highland - #1 in RPI)

  11. 4A Pine View 12-3 (SHO twice by Dixie - #2 RPI)

  12. 4A Snow Canyon 11-5 (Lost twice to #1 Crimson Cliffs - #3 RPI)

  13. 4A Desert Hills 10-5 (Took 2 from Cedar. On a 5 game winning streak - #5 RPI)

  14. 6A Skyridge 7-2 (Took 2 vs Bingham and Mountain Ridge - #5 RPI)

  15. 5A Cottonwood 7-3 (Beat Woods Cross twice, lost to West Jordan - #5 RPI)

  16. 6A Bingham 7-3 (Lost to Skyridge and Lone Peak - #4 RPI)

  17. 4A Bear River 10-2 (Took 3 from Skyview - #7 RPI)

  18. 5A Orem 7-3 (Beat Mountain Ridge - #4 RPI)

  19. 6A Pleasant Grove 5-3 (SHO Herriman - #9 RPI)

  20. 6A Herriman 7-3 (Beat Juan Diego and Corner Canyon - #7 RPI)

  21. 6A Copper Hills 6-3 (SHO Clearfield - #8 RPI)

  22. 4A Hurricane 8-4 (10 runned an Area Code top 10 rank LHP, Parowan - #6 RPI) 

  23. 3A Juab 9-5 (3 wins vs higher classes - #1 in RPI)

  24. 3A Canyon View 8-5 (#2 in RPI)

  25. 5A Bountiful 5-1 (Beat Brighton - #7 in RPI)

 

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