Ashland County Baseball Power Rankings: South Central jump, Hillsdale stays at No. 1

There was little movement in this week's Ashland County baseball power rankings, but the one team that made the biggest impression was South Central. Let's see how far they jumped.

NOTE: The Power Rankings reflect performances from April 8-13.

More: Ashland County Baseball Power Rankings: Ashland makes jump, Hillsdale stays in top spot

9. New London (0-5)

New London remain winless on the season, and didn't fair too well against Mapleton last week, as the Wildcats lost a two-game set (5-2, 10-0) to the Mounties.

8. Northwestern (3-4)

Unfortunately for Northwestern, three games were canceled last week. The Huskies only got one game in, as that ended up being a 1-0 loss to Chippewa on Tuesday.

7. Loudonville (3-5)

After defeating Mansfield Christian 9-1 away on Tuesday, Loudonville pulled off the biggest win of any Ashland County team last week by beating Hillsdale 7-6 on the road on Saturday. Catcher Baylor Weiser and designated hitter Josh Serrato each drove in two runs, as Matt Sprang earned the win as the starting pitcher.

6. Crestview (2-4)

Last year's Firelands Conference champions are on a slide at the moment, having dropped three in a row, including losing a two-game set to South Central last week. The slate will be pretty full for the Cougars this week, as they will play six games in six days starting Monday.

5. Mapleton (3-2)

Mapleton is one of the many teams that's schedule has been altered because of the inclement weather. Yet made the most of its time last week sweeping New London in a two-game series. It's still early, but the Mounties remain in firm contention in the Firelands Conference standings with St. Paul and South Central.

4. Black River (3-3)

After not being able to get on the field much in the first two weeks of the season, Black River played four games last week and went 2-2 in the process. The Pirates got wins over Clearview and Dalton, while losing to Dalton and Buckeye. In the Pirates 5-2 win over Dalton in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday, Evan Ladina picked up the win (seven innings pitched, two strikeouts, two earned runs, one walk, nine hits).

3. Ashland (4-2)

Ashland stays within the top three (No. 2 last week), as the Arrows went 1-1 on the week. They fell to New Philadelphia 3-1 on Tuesday, then defeated nonconference foe Marion Harding 4-2 on Saturday. Second baseman CJ Cox drove in two runs and Tyler Holt struck out six batters, while giving up no earned runs in earning the win versus New Philly.

2. South Central (5-1)

South Central produced quite the week, and for that jumped to the No. 2 spot.

South Central's two-game sweep (8-5, 2-0) of Crestview was big, with Eric Sanders (three RBIs) and pitcher Aaron Hauler (earned the win as a starter) leading the way in the first game. Sanders turned in a solid performance in the second game, throwing a complete-game shutout to earn the win (four strikeouts, three hits, three walks, no earned runs). The Trojans carried that over into Saturday's nine-inning 9-8 win over Plymouth at home.

1. Hillsdale (7-2)

Hillsdale stays in the No. 1 spot after taking two games from Dalton throughout the week. Even a 7-6 loss to Loudonville on Saturday, didn't hurt their positioning. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the Falcons are set to face Norwayne in a matchup between two teams that are undefeated in Wayne County Conference play so far. It could be an important series that could play a factor in the league race by season's end.

jsimpson@gannett.com

Twitter/X:@JamesSimpsonII

This article originally appeared on Ashland Times Gazette: Ashland Baseball Rankings: South Central jump, Hillsdale stay No. 1