Neshoba No. 1 in USA TODAY Sports/NFCA High School Super 25 Poll for 10th straight week

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Unbeaten Neshoba Central won five more games to extend its run atop the USA TODAY Sports/NFCA High School Super 25 poll to 10 consecutive weeks.

The (9-0) Rockets are led by Mississippi State-bound senior pitcher Aspen Wesley, the three-time reigning Gatorade Mississippi Player of the Year. Neshoba defeated then-No. 5 Fairhope, 2-0, on Saturday at the Jubilee Shootout in Alabama, dropping the previously-unbeaten (13-1) Pirates two spots to seventh this week.

The other three top teams remained unchanged. No. 2 James Madison doesn’t open defense of its two-straight Virginia state 6A titles until March 26, while third-ranked Norco (14-0) topped then-No. 19 Los Alamitos (8-2) in Saturday’s title game of the 32-team Dave Kops Tournament of Champions, and Texas’ Cedar Ridge (10-0) added two wins to stay fourth.

Back-to-back Kansas state 5A titlist Shawnee Heights (opening April 5) and Alabama’s Spain Park (13-1) both jumped ahead of Fairhope at Nos. 5 and 6, while two-time Indiana state champ New Palestine (opening April 2), Texas’ Forney (9-1) and poll newcomer Pinnacle (6-0) of Arizona round out the top 10. Since suffering their only loss — 4-2 to College Station on March 2 — the Jackrabbits have outscored their last four opponents by a combined 66-0.

California’s San Marcos was the lone team to drop out of the poll this week.

State rankings submitted by NFCA member coaches are used to compile the USA TODAY Sports/NFCA High School Super 25. Teams are chosen based on performance, roster quality and strength of schedule.

USA TODAY Sports/NFCA High School Super 25 Poll – March 14, 2019

Rank

Team

2019 Record

Previous

1

Neshoba Central (Miss.)

9-0

1

2

James Madison (Va.)

0-0

2

3

Norco (Calif.)

14-0

3

4

Cedar Ridge (Texas)

10-0

4

5

Shawnee Heights (Kan.)

0-0

7

6

Spain Park (Ala.)

13-1

8

7

Fairhope (Ala.)

13-1

5

8

New Palestine (Ind.)

0-0

9

9

Forney (Texas)

9-1

10

10

Pinnacle (Ariz.)

6-0

NR

11

Huntington Beach (Calif.)

5-0

11

12

Foothill (Pleasanton, Calif.)

4-0

12

13

Winter Springs (Fla.)

9-0

13

14

Oakleaf (Fla.)

7-1

6

15

Marist (Ill.)

0-0

15

16

Olathe Northwest (Kan.)

0-0

16

17

Center Grove (Ind.)

0-0

17

18

Donovan Catholic (N.J.)

0-0

18

19

Immaculate Heart Acad. (N.J.)

0-0

20

20

Louisville Male (Ky.)

0-0

21

21

Eagle (Idaho)

4-1

22

22

Los Alamitos (Calif.)

8-2

19

23

Wachusett Regional (Mass.)

0-0

23

24

Orange Lutheran (Calif.)

6-3-1

25

25

Hamilton (Ariz.)

3-2

24

Dropped out: San Marcos (Calif.)