News4JAX Super 6 softball: Episcopal moves up to top spot, win milestone for Middleburg coach

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The News4JAX Super 6 high school softball rankings will be published Thursday’s during the regular season. Records are through April 17.

News4JAX Super 6 softball rankings

Rank, previous, team, record, classification

1. (2) Episcopal (19-1, Class 3A)

Notable wins: Baker County, Fernandina Beach, Fletcher, Glenwood (Alabama), Nease, Oakleaf, Paxon, Ponte Vedra, Providence, West Nassau, West Orange, Yulee.

Glance: The Eagles trade spots with Baldwin to give the area a new No. 1 team for the first time since last year. They’ve won 15 straight, including a 9-7 win over Bartram Trail and an 8-4 win over Yulee since our last Super 6. They’ve got Bishop Kenny, Clay, Creekside and Mandarin up next to wind down the regular season. They used extra innings to beat Paxon (3-2) and Nease (1-0), then handled Ridgeview (5-1) since our last Super 6. Grace Jones remains the frontrunner for the area’s top player. She’s hitting .585 (7 HR, 14 RBI) and has whiffed 247 in 123.1 innings.

2 (1) Baldwin (19-1, Class 3A)

Notable wins: Baker County, Mandarin, Middleburg, Paxon (twice), University Christian.

Glance: The Indians won two games and lost their first of the season since our last Super 6. They belted Paxon (10-0) to win the Gateway Conference tournament and then drilled Beachside (24-9). The winning streak stopped at 19 in a 4-2 loss to Super 6 team Oakleaf. They wind down the regular season with four games over the next week with Hilliard, Bradford, Keystone Heights and Creekside. Kendall North (.500, 3 HR, 27 RBI), Amiyah Jones (.453, 24 RBI), Riley Page (.448, 14 RBI), Raven Watson (.423, 17 RBI) and Cali Hartung (.413, 6 HR, 36 RBI) are the lethal bats for Baldwin. Shaylen Byrd (154 Ks, 92.1 IP, 1.29 ERA) is one of the area’s top arms. No reason to worry about that loss. That 19-game run was Baldwin’s best to start a season.

3. (3) Middleburg (18-2, Class 5A)

Notable wins: Baker County, Branford, Creekside, Mandarin, Nease, Oakleaf, Paxon, West Nassau.

Glance: The Broncos have three straight since a loss to University Christian, beating Oakleaf (3-0), Fletcher (3-0) and Keystone Heights (3-1) in that stretch. Their losses are to UC and Baldwin, not bad Ls at all. Middleburg coach Ashley Houston picked up her 100th win at the school with that win over the Senators. They wrap up the regular season with Tocoi Creek, Baker County and Bartram Trail. Alyssa Prather (.525, 32 RBI, 6 HR), Kerra Clarida (.468, 31 RBI, 10 HR) and Kaelyn Hagan (.444, 25 RBI, 5 HR) haven’t let up all season, with 21 combined long balls between them.

4. (4) Oakleaf (14-7, Class 6A)

Notable wins: Baldwin, Creekside, Fleming Island, Jensen Beach, Keystone Heights (twice), Ponte Vedra, University Christian.

Glance: The Knights went 1-1 since our last Super 6, losing to No. 3 Middleburg (3-0) and beating previous No. 1 Baldwin (4-2). Columbia and Nease are up next for Oakleaf. The Knights have faced one of the area’s most difficult schedules, right behind West Nassau in terms of stout competition. Charley Maddox (.441), Ava Tolbert (.407), Meshayla Pettaway (.406, 15 RBI) and Jaydyn Beall (.400) lead the Knights at the plate. Maddox is also one of the area’s better two-way players (9-3, 1.45 ERA, 81 Ks).

5. (6) West Nassau (11-7, Class 4A)

Notable wins: Baker County (twice), Creekside, Fernandina Beach, Hilliard, Oakleaf, University Christian.

Glance: The bottom portion of the Super 6 has been a turnstile this season, with teams here beating others ahead of it or losing to teams just outside the top six. The Warriors play one of the state’s most difficult schedules. Since our last rankings, West Nassau drilled previous No. 5 Creekside (10-0) and laid a 16-1 thrashing on Hilliard. It lost a tight game to University Christian (4-3). I kept the Warriors in because that loss to UC is a wash; they beat the Christians earlier this year. And the win over Creekside, which was a top 25 team in Florida before that loss, was a significant one. They close out the regular season with games against Palatka, Yulee, Ponte Vedra and Keystone Heights.

T6. (NR) Baker County (14-5, Class 4A)

Notable wins: Fort White (twice), Keystone Heights, Paxon, University Christian, Yulee.

Glance: The Wildcats rejoin the Super 6 after a week out. They’ve won four straight, including a 10-1 rout of defending Class 2A state champ University Christian. Bartram Trail and No. 3 Middleburg remain on the regular season schedule. Sophomore Baleigh Shields (.456, 3 HR, 15 RBI) and Haley Marker (.391, 3 HR) lead the Baker County attack.

T6. (5) Creekside (16-4, Class 7A)

Notable wins: Bartram Trail (twice), Columbia, Fleming Island, Mandarin, Merritt Island, Nease, Ponte Vedra, Providence, Trinity Catholic.

Glance: The Knights went 2-1 since our last Super 6, beating Columbia (14-4) and rival Bartram (9-2), then getting blasted in a 10-0 dime by West Nassau. The back half of Creekside’s schedule is a beast, with games against Baldwin, University Christian and Middleburg rounding out the regular season. Bella Campbell (.406, 20 RBI) and Hailey Cunningham (.400, 12 RBI) are leading the Knights. Kaylee Martineau has whiffed 96 in 94.1 IP and has a 2.08 ERA.

Others

Bishop Kenny (11-6, Class 4A); Columbia (10-10, Class 5A); Fernandina Beach (10-6, Class 3A); Fleming Island (15-6, Class 6A); Fort White (10-4, Class 1A); Mandarin (12-6, Class 7A); Matanzas (15-3, Class 5A); Menendez (12-4, Class 4A); Nease (13-5, Class 6A); Paxon (11-7, Class 4A); Ponte Vedra (11-9, Class 5A); Suwannee (11-9, Class 3A); University Christian (12-6, Class 2A); Yulee (13-5, Class 4A).