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SBLive Arkansas Super 7 baseball rankings (March 20)

This week's Arkansas prep baseball rankings

By Kevin Bohannon 

Spring break is upon us, and teams will be traveling across the nation to get ready for the stretch run of conference play. SBLive will have coverage of the Robinson Spring Break Tournament along with updates from other well-known events this week. We want to wish safe travels to all our teams headed out of state this week. 

6A 

1. Conway (9-3)

T2. Rogers (6-1)

T2. Bryant (8-0)

4. Cabot (6-1)

5. FS Northside (6-4)

6. Springdale Har-Ber (5-3)

7. Fayetteville (5-2)

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN: Rogers Heritage (6-2) LR Catholic (5-3)

Conway: The Wampus Cats are riding an eight-game winning streak where they have outscored teams 112-9 including no-hitters by Hugh Hill and Preston Prock against El Dorado and Batesville, respectively. Conway beat North Little Rock this past week 16-2 to remain unbeaten in conference play. The meat of their conference schedule is on the horizon.

Rogers: Ty Anderson has a couple of shutouts against Springdale Har-Ber and Fayetteville and the rest of the pitching staff hasn’t allowed many runs either. The sweep of Fayetteville was impressive as the Mounties dominated every phase of the game.


Bryant: Gage Johnson started the game off against Catholic with a homerun and the Hornets never looked back. Gideon Motes was solid over five innings and Jace Ruffner continued his hot start. Coach Travis Queck is proud of this group and said they have answered some challenges so far this season.

Cabot: Cabot went 2-0 on the week defeating Catholic and LR Southwest. The 3-2 extra-inning win over Catholic was one of the best early-season games in the state. Aden Velasquez and Caleb Short had a pitcher’s duel going into the eighth inning. Sophomore Derek Larson hit the go-ahead home run in the top of the ninth for the win.

FS Northside: The Grizzlies are new to the rankings this week after sweeping Har-Ber for the first time in recent memory. McLane Moody is the big name on the roster, but this team is deep and has teams in NWA very comfortable. They currently sit in second place behind Rogers in the 6A-West.

Har-Ber: The Wildcats’ offense has been anemic lately but with the pitching and defense being in midseason form, it is only a matter of time before the bats get hot. A couple of key players will return from injury in the next couple of week so expect this team to bounce back from three straight conference losses.


Fayetteville: The offense outside of Landon Schaefer couldn’t do much against Rogers but not many teams have so far this season. This team will go through some growing pains which is expected for a young team but it will make them dangerous at the end of April going into the state tournament.

5A

1. Valley View (4-2)

2. Little Rock Christian (5-0)

3. Marion (6-0)

4. Greene County Tech (6-0)

5. Sheridan (8-2)

6. Arkansas High (7-1)

7. Sylvan Hills (4-3)

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN: El Dorado (7-3), Mountain Home (5-0), Maumelle (5-3)

Valley View: The Blazers have won three straight games allowing only a single run over that span. It is easy to forget that the nucleus of this team is still young in terms of age but not in experience. The Blazers will find out how deep their squad is this weekend with three games in three days against Benton, Catholic and North Little Rock before getting back into conference play against Marion on March 28th.


Little Rock Christian: The Warriors swept Vilonia to start conference play and boast nonconference wins against Lonoke, Jonesboro and Harding Academy. Tarini continues to deal on the mound and Gross launched a massive homerun against Vilonia. Charlie Carter is the best catcher in the state and Cade Bowman and Jackson Kircher are high college prospects. They head down to Gulf Shores this week for some fun in the sun and take on a few teams from Alabama.

Marion: The Patriots started out conference play defeating Searcy combined 24-2. The showdown with Valley View is March 28th and all eyes will be on that series.

Greene County Tech: This team can swing it. They scored 14 runs against Harding Academy and outscored Nettleton 17-1 this past week in 5A East action. Hudson Guinn has signed with Louisiana Tech and is one of the best power hitters in the state.

Sheridan: The winning streak came to a screeching halt against El Dorado but the Yellow Jackets evened the score on Friday to remain at the top of the 5A-South for the time being. Sheridan will take on Houston HS out of Memphis next weekend followed by a matchup with Bryant before getting back into conference play.

Arkansas High: Ty Waid lead the state in home runs with five. He has also been walked seventeen times with thirteen of those being intentional walks. The righty slugger has the Razorbacks back in the rankings and looking to capture a conference title. Waid had an all-state year on the mound last season and looks to do so again this season.

Sylvan Hills: The Bears have likely faced three of the toughest arms in the state in their losses. Coach Zach James said, “Kade Smith and Steele Eaves are two of the best in the state, but we need to see those guys to get us ready for conference play and the South come state tournament time.” Alex Davis picked up a solid win on the mound against CAC this past week.

4A

1. Lonoke (7-1)

2. Robinson (8-1)

3. Brookland (4-6)

4. Huntsville (6-3)

5. Prairie Grove (9-1)

6. Stuttgart (4-2)

7. Ashdown (5-5)

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN: Nashville (8-2), Arkadelphia (4-4)

Lonoke: Lonoke improved to 4-0 in conference play with a sweep of Clinton. The Rabbits are clearly the best team in Class 4A. During their six-game winning streak, they have only allowed one run. They have a couple of tough games against 6A powers Bryant and Conway coming up before getting back into conference play.


Robinson: Coach Isaac Dulaney keeps expecting his Senators to come back down to Earth any time now, but they have been one of the most consistent teams in 4A so far this season. They will have to take care of business before their series with Lonoke. The Senators have one of the better in-state spring break tournaments coming up this week.


Brookland: The Bearcats have won three straight to start conference play and have gotten their younger guys some really good experience with the tough non-conference schedule. They will travel to Missouri powerhouse Kennett and Greenwood over spring break.


Huntsville: The Eagles have won five straight games and will spend the next week taking on out of state competition before a big conference matchup with Prairie Grove on March 28th.


Prairie Grove: Speaking of the Prairie Grove, the Tigers make their debut in our Super 7 rankings after a hot start including a 9-0 win over previously unbeaten Class 3A No. 2 Elkins.

Stuttgart: Ricebirds head coach Dontrell Brown’s squad is heating up right now and remains unbeaten in 4A-8 play after a 13-0 win over Hamburg. Jatavian Gaddy was 4-4 with a couple doubles. Dylan Duncan and Landon Melnychuk combined for five doubles with Melnychuk taking a perfect game into the fourth inning before giving up his only hit in the fifth inning.

Ashdown: The Panthers finished as the runner-up in Class 3A last season, but they are no strangers to the teams in the 4A-7. They defeated previously ranked Arkadelphia and are currently tied with Nashville atop the conference.

3A

1. Harding Academy (5-2)

2. Elkins (6-1)

3. Rose Bud (6-2)

4. Camden Harmony Grove (10-3)

5. Booneville (4-2)

6. Melbourne (4-1)

7. Bismarck (5-0)

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN: West Fork (6-0), Genoa Central (6-0), Charleston (5-1)

Harding Academy: The losses have come to #2 and #4 teams in Class 5A but they were close games and the Wildcats combined for 28 hits in those close losses. Kade Smith and Levi Lang each hit grand slams this past week and each got some work on the mound in a 9-3 win over Sylvan Hills.


Elkins: I was a little surprised that Prairie Grove defeated the Elks 9-0 this past week. I know Elkins used their top arms for their conference twin bill with Flippin, in which they won by a combined score of 34-2, but I expected a closer game. West Fork and a likely conference title is at stake on March 27th. .


Rose Bud: Last season the Ramblers rounded into form after spring break and played their best ball of the season down the stretch before the postseason. Rose bud head coach Taylor Cooper is hoping for the same this season. A tougher non-conference schedule usually prepares teams for better postseason play. A big conference matchup with Harding Academy is coming up soon.

Camden Harmony Grove: The Hornets went 4-0 on the week with a conference win over DeWitt and big wins over Prescott and Class 5A Vilonia. CHG is the first team in the state to reach 10 wins this season. Braden Brown had a complete game win with seven strikeouts over DeWitt. The Hornets will play in the Mayflower Tournament over Spring Break with Bauxite being the first opponent.

Booneville: The Bearcats quietly defeated Paris and Hackett this past week by a combined score of 31-3. Booneville will be at Greenwood this week and their April 6th matchup with Charleston is circled on the schedule.


Melbourne: The Bearcatz are 4-0 in conference play after convincing wins over Salm and Mountain View this past week. University of Arkansas commit Grant Wren is considered at Top 50 MLB Draft Prospect for the 2025 MLB Draft. Melbourn’s path to a conference title will go through new conference member Walnut Ridge. The teams will play at Walnut Ridge on April 5th and Melbourne on April 21st.

Bismarck: The Lions have yet to play a conference game yet but are still undefeated on the season at 5-0 after beating Poyen 11-1 last week. Bismarck will step up in class and play Bauxite and Pulaski Academy over the next two week.

2A

1. Woodlawn (9-2)

2. Carlisle (7-4)

3. Bigelow (1-0)

4. Horatio (8-5)

5. Rector (4-0)

6. Episcopal (1-6)

7. Parkers Chapel (6-2)

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN: Southside Bee Branch (7-3), Greenland (5-1).

Woodlawn: The Bears lost consecutive games to Cross and Horatio over the weekend with the latter being a 7-6 setback. The good news for the Beas is they sit atop the 2A-8 conference with a 3-0 record having already defeated Parkers Chapel 12-3 earlier in the season.


Carlisle: The Bison have won four straight games against Class 2A competition including a 4-3 win over conference rival McCrory. Zack Busic, Holden Jones, and Dalton Ward combined for a two-hit shutout over Pangburn.


Bigelow: The Panthers announced their presence with authority this week with a 16-3 win over former conference foe Conway St. Joseph. Carter Alexander and Rhett Neumeier are fresh off winning a basketball state title and Beau Billeck is one of the top pitchers in the 2025 class.

Horatio:: The Lions are roaring once again after a 7-6 win over No. 1 Woodlawn this week, Their five losses have come at the hands of two out of state teams, Arkansas High, Nashville and Monticello. I expect this veteran team to contend for a conference title with Dierks being their main competition.


Rector: The Wildcats had to deal with Mother Nature this week and had two conference games rained out, but they did get to complete the conference sweep of Marmaduke earlier in the week winning 18-1. Rector pounded out fifteen hits with Cooper Rabjohn going 4-5 with a double and a triple. Landon Haywood and Brett Fair chipped in with two hits apiece. Drew Henderson got the win on the mound scattering three hits while striking out seven hitters.


Episcopal: Yes, I know the Wildcats are 1-6. Their losses this week were to Class 5A Vilonia and Class 6A Central. They defeated Southside Bee Branch earlier in the season and dropped a close 5-4 contest to No. 2 Carlisle. Conference play starts next week and the big matchup with Bigelow is March 31st.


Parkers Chapel: The Trojans have won five of their last six games with the only loss coming against conference rival Woodlawn. The rematch with the Bears comes on April 7th and if the Trojans take care of business then that game could decide the conference.

1A

1. Taylor (6-4)

2. Norfork (1-0)

3. Viola (4-0)

4. Wonderview (4-0)

5. West Side Greers Ferry (4-1)

6. Mount Ida (3-2)

7. Nemo Vista (3-2)

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN: Armorel (2-0), County Line (2-0)

Taylor: The Tigers had won four straight games before dropping the second game of a doubleheader to Junction City in a close 6-5 contest. Conference games with Lafayette County and Hampton are upcoming. I do not expect the Tigers to drop a conference game and playing some tougher competition from Louisiana will have them ready for the postseason.

Norfork: The “Party Crashers” started their 2023 season in style with a 3-2 win over conference foe West Side Greers Ferry. Ike Barrow and Coty Foster threw a combined one hitter while striking out sixteen batters. With Viola back in the fold, this could be a three way race once again for a conference title.

Viola: The Longhorns are off to a fast 4-0 start overall and 2-0 in conference play after beating Shirley 16-1 this past week. Gavin Blevins opened up the game with a grand slam in the second inning. Viola will play in the Flipping tournament this coming weekend taking on Green Forest, Bergman and Cotter.

Wonderview: Head coach Phil Golden’s crew is off to a 5-0 start and 2-0 in conference play. Gage Looney has been really good on the mound and Sam Reynolds was a double short of the cycle in a 12-5 win over Conway Christian on March 11th. Reynolds and Matt Bingham threw a combined one hitter against Bradford earlier this season. The Dare Devils will host the Class 1A Showdown March 30th through April 2nd.

West Side: The Eagles started off their season in dominant fashion winning their third straight Classic Championship by beating Bradford and Mount Vernon-Enola by a combined score of 32-4. Coach Shane Davis will have his team ready come postseason after navigating their top heavy conference.

Mount Ida: The Lions dropped a close 8-7 contest to Class 4A Dardanelle and also lost to Class 2A Horatio before defeating Murfreesboro 11-6 last week. The Lions will have an easier time in conference play with only four opponents. They have scheduled some tough contests against West Side and Nemo Vista to prepare for postseason play.

Nemo Vista: The 2022 Class 1A state runner-up lost a little fire power from last year’s team but have had a good start to this season opening conference play with a perfect 3-0 record including a 6-5 win over previously ranked St. Joseph. A home and home with Wonderview on April 6th and April 21st will likely decide the conference championship.