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Fountain Valley caused quite the stir last week in defeating former number one Huntington Beach twice to take over first place of the Sunset League. As a result, the Barons jumped all the way to number three in this weeks polls.
JSerra reclaims the top spot after a 2-1 week in the Trinity League with their only loss coming in walk-off fashion to new number 10, Orange Lutheran.
Dana Hills jumps to number three after a 2-0 week which included a sweep of Laguna Hills.
Below is the rest of this weeks Top 10 with previous rankings in parentheses.
1. JSerra 15-5 (2): The Lions lost a heart breaker in their final meeting of the season with Orange Lutheran. The good news for JSerra is that Quentin Longrie appears to be rounding into form heading into the final weeks of the season. JSerra has a chance to make a statement this week and go for the season sweep.
Up Next: 4/29 & 5/02 v Servite
2. Dana Hills 18-5 (3): The Dolphins got the sweep of Laguna Hills by outscoring the Hawks 9-3. The pitching held up in game two which was a 1-0 victory to move to 7-1 in league, good for first place. Dana Hills will finish the Edison tournament before facing of against a gritty league opponent this week.
Up Next: 4/28: Covina; 4/30 & 5/02: San Juan Hills
3. Fountain Valley 15-6 (NR): The reason I had the Barons unranked was because they hadn't beaten a quality opponent (in my opinion) to date. Well, they certainly changed that perspective last week with a two-game sweep of then number one, Huntington Beach. Pitching was the big question coming into the season for Fountain Valley, but led by Scott Shultz (9-0), the Barons have both pitching and a quality lineup to make a deep run in the postseason.
Up Next: 5/02: Newport Harbor
4. Huntington Beach 16-4 (1): The Oilers 14 game win streak was bound to come to an end sooner or later, what surprised many last week was the fashion in which it ended. Huntington Beach's offense went quite in game two against Fountain Valley last week after pounding out seven runs in game one. Look for Hungtington Beach to bounce back from last weeks disappointment and be there in the end.
Up Next: 5/02: Marina
5. Aliso Niguel 14-8 (7): Coming off a sweep of then number 10 Capo Valley, the Wolverines appear to be getting things going in the right direction. Using solid pitching and timely hitting, Aliso Niguel heads into this week with a chance to gain some ground on league leading Dana Hills. They'll need some help from other league teams if the Wolverines are to catch the Dolphins as the two teams have finished their season series.
Up Next: 5/02: Laguna Hills
6. Beckman 18-2 (6): The Patriots continue to win games in a quiet, unassuming fashion while riding an 11 game winning streak. Beckman went 4-0 last week beating Irvine and Katella twice apiece and will have a chance to build on their league leading 8-1 record and their winning streak.
Up Next: 4/29 & 5/02: Corona Del Mar
7. San Clemente 19-6 (4): The Tritons slipped a bit this week but not because of poor play but as result of the quality of opponents they faced. San Clemente went 2-1 against one teams that would be on the outside looking-in, and another that would squeak in if the playoffs were to start today. The Tritons can't get caught looking ahead to their huge showdown next week against Dana Hills, because this weeks opponent could beat them.
Up Next: 4/30: Tesoro
8. Edison 15-5 (8): The Chargers new head coach, Cameron Chinn, will likely get a lot of votes for coach of the year for what he's done with this team. Coming off an atrocious season in 2013, Edison is primed for a playoff spot with a young roster. Many people feel they're doing this a year early, which makes the prospects of the 2015 season even greater for the Chargers. After this weeks series, Edison will face Huntington Beach and Fountain Valley to close out the season.
Up Next: 4/30 & 5/02: Los Alamitos
9. Servite 13-8 (10): The Friars split with Santa Margarita and beat St. John Bosco last week to stay in the hunt for the third and final guaranteed playoff spot out of the Trinity League. While the road will be anything but easy, this may be the most complete Servite team in the last five years. The Friars have pitching along with a stout lineup and you can always count on any Jeff Sears team to play fundamentally strong defense. The Friars will have a huge opportunity to shake up the league standings this week.
Up Next: 4/29 & 5/02: JSerra
10. Orange Lutheran 8-11 (NR): Any time you go 3-0 in one week of Trinity League play you're going to open some eyes. Any time you do it against JSerra and Mater Dei, you're going to get votes for the Top 10. The Lancers used a walk-off to beat then number two, JSerra, before pounding Mater Dei in game one and using yet another walk-off to beat the Monarchs in game two. Coach Eric Borba and his staff deserve a lot of credit for not letting the season slip away after a rough start. Orange Lutheran is tied with Servite for third place in league standings, but currently own the tiebreaker.
Up Next: 4/29 & 5/02: Santa Margarita
Others: Santa Margarita, Laguna Beach, Cypress, Tesoro