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Baseball's 'Chosen One' wants to skip high school for MLB
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 Bryce Harper, a 16-year old aspiring professional baseball player, has set his sights on getting to the big leagues as soon as possible - by skipping his last two years of high school and inking a pro contract. He obviously wants to upgrade his locker selection next year.
Harper was referred to recently in a Sports Illustrated issue as "the Chosen One" for his phenomenal skills on the field. He was actually featured on the cover of the June 9 issue of SI and compared to LeBron James of the NBA Cavaliers, who went right from high school to the pro game.
While playing for Las Vegas High School last year, the 6'3" catcher had a .626 batting average, hit 14 home runs, and added 55 RBIs. And, oh yeah... he also burned up the base paths, stealing 36 bags.
He has signed a letter of intent to play for the College of Southern Nevada, but would prefer to embark on his new game plan: take a high school equivalency test and throw his name into the 2010 or 2011 draft. MLB rules would allow it since a player becomes eligible to enter the draft at age 16, as long as he has completed his high school studies.
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Junior Sunbelt squad finishes 3rd in Oklahoma
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The Arizona Junior Sunbelt Team has returned from its title defense at the 13th annual Junior Sunbelt Classic in McAlester, Okla., with some success - but not the repeat championship it was looking for. Last year’s Junior Sunbelt team was the first Arizona team since the state joined the tournament in 1997 to win the event.
Team Arizona, which included players from 13 different high schools, finished third after defeating Team Tennessee, 9-7, in the prestigious10-team event that included teams from Oklahoma, Tennessee, Canada, Texas, Mississippi, Georgia, Missouri, and  Ohio.
This year’s title went to Team Georgia, which scored 12 runs in the second inning of the championship game against Team Texas, and then went on to a 21-2 route in just five innings of play. The final was played at Eastern Oklahoma State College.
In addition to Mountain Ridge pitcher, Cody Gray, pictured here (photo by Porky Falcon, McAlester News-Capital) the Arizona roster included: Josh Alexander, p/of, Mountain Pointe HS; Austin Arias, c, Centennial HS; Jaycob Brugman, p/of, Desert Vista HS; Kasey Coffman, 1B/3B, Brophy Prep; Jake Cole, p/1B, Sahuaro HS; Joey Danner, p/1B, Horizon HS; Zach Davies, p/If, Mesquite HS; Taylor Erwin, p/1B, Willow Canyon HS; Dillen Everett, If, Horizon HS; Travis Flores, p/3B, Desert Ridge; Rocky High, p/of, Mesquite HS; Jacob Hunter, p/If, Salpointe HS; Tyler Kamtz, p/of, Gilbert HS; Taylor Lindsey, If/of, Desert Mountain HS; James McDonald, If, Chaparral HS; Jake Peevyhouse, p/of, Pinnacle HS; D.J. Peterson, If, Gilbert HS; Greg Ryan, p/of, Corona del Sol HS; Jose Sierra, c, Tolleson HS.
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Desert Ridge gets lion's share of All-Arizona picks
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 Desert Ridge HS not only won the 5A-II state baseball title this year, but the was the only team to place more than one player on the All-Arizona Team. The Big Schools Player of the Year Jake Barrett, Desert Ridge's senior pitching sensation, joined with teammate, Alex Villar, a senior outfielder who hit .505 in his final season, on this year's All-Arizona roster.
Barrett had 96 strike-outs this season - but also contributed big-time at the plate, with a .510 batting average and 20 home runs (highest in the state). And add to that 66 RBIs in 104 trips to the plate!
It was a different story in the 'small school' division, where Jay Baumgardner, the Small Schools Player of the Year, was the only representative of Scottsdale Christian Academy on either the first or second team All-State rosters. The outfielder racked up 11 home runs and 60 RBIs (10 of those in one game).
While the All-State teams are made up of the best players from each conference, the All-Arizona team represents those considered the best, regardless of the conference in which they play. Sports writers at the Arizona Republic make the selections for both squads.
In addition to Barrett and Villar, the All-Arizona roster includes: Joey DeMichele, Arcadia HS, infield; Mike Felton, Corona del Sol HS, infield; Trey Ford, Chaparral HS, infield; Taylor Lindsey, Desert Mtn HS, infield; Jaycob Brugman, Desert Vista, outfield; Tony Vocca, Mingus HS, outfield; James Pazos, Highland HS, pitcher; Andrew Walter, Cactus HS, pitcher; Tom Joseph, Horizon HS, catcher; Sergio Burruel, Trevor Browne HS, DH; and Jordan Luvisi, Notre Dame Prep, UT.
Selections to the All-State teams included... (continued next page)
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Offensive firepower wins out in AZ baseball state finals
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Corona del Sol HS mercy-ruled defending champion Hamilton HS, 11-1, to take the 5A-I state title, while Desert Ridge HS and Horizon HS stacked up 17 runs before Desert Ridge won out in a 9-8 decision in 5A-II. In 4A play, Canyon del Oro HS (Tucson) downed Cactus HS, 15-5, for the Division I title, and Mingus repeats as the 4A-II state champion with a 7-4 victory over Notre Dame Prep.
An eight-run outburst in the sixth inning propelled Desert Ridge, while Corona used a four-run rally in the fifth inning to begin its offensive downpour over Hamilton - finishing with 19 hits! Canyon del Oro was up 10-4 over Cactus by the fourth inning, and Mingus was able to hold down the usually potent bats of Notre Dame, which entered the contest as the No. 2 ranked team in the nation. The Saints didn't help their cause any by giving up four unearned runs to fall a game short of the title for the second year in a row.
Memorable moments from the title runs...a big-stage performance for Corona's senior pitcher, Tyler Giannonatti, who held Hamilton to two hits, and then contributed at the plate with three hits, a run, and an RBI... Doug Steele and Hayden Cota-Robles chipping in 7 hits for Canyon del Oro, as Steele went 3-for-5 and had six RBIs as the dh and Cota-Robles added four more hits... Travis Flores providing the winning hit to defeat Horizon, with a double in the two-out seventh inning... Greg Ryan's three-run double for Corona del Sol in a two-out rally in the fifth... a blue-collar effort by Mingus' pitcher Tony Vocca, who struck out nine and held Notre Dame in check for five innings before allowing the Saints to score, and then went 2-for-4 at the plate... and a clutch catch by Desert Ridge center fielder Kyle Raidy of a blast off the bat of Horizon's Dylan Scott that could have scored runners on first and second.
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Xavier softball still surprising; Horizon's boys rally
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 A couple of the biggest stories on the high school diamond this weekend...Xavier HS racked up its third straight upset by beating No. 4 Sierra Vista Buena HS to advance to the Pool A finals in the 5A-I state softball tournament, while the Horizon HS boys team scored eight runs to overcome a 5-0 Pinnacle HS lead and win the Pool B contest, 8-7, in Division II play.
After opening tournament play with a huge upset of No. 1 seed Red Mountain, No. 16 Xavier then knocked off No. 9 seed Mesquite, and now the No. 4 seed. And Horizon HS, although the defending state champion, was seeded No. 3 behind No. 2 Pinnacle HS, which had outscored its first two opponents 19-2.
In the other baseball games, Corona del Sol HS beat Desert Mountain 9-3 in 5A-I, and Desert Ridge HS rolled past Deer Valley HS , 13-3. On the softball diamond, it was Basha HS over St. Mary's HS, 1-0, and Sunrise Mountain HS also racking up a shutout, 4-0 over Sunnyside HS.
Reviewing some of the more exciting moments in this round... Justin Rosales hitting an inside-the-park grand slam for Hamilton, as they tried to rally from a 10-4 deficit... Horizon's Nick Stein tying the game with Pinnacle at 7-7, and then Dillon Engelhart notching the winning run on a single to right in the final inning; Brandon Snyder came to the mound for the bottom of the seventh to wrap up the 8-7 win for Horizon... Tyler Wilson coming in as designated hitter for Highland HS to park a home run and tie the game... Xavier's Emma Bogart's RBI double to tie their game with Sierra Vista Buena HS... a one-hitter by Deer Valley's Lauren Haeger, who finished the game with 15 strike-outs to hold Centennial HS scoreless... and Centennial's own Morgan Montemayor, pitching a four-hit gem of her own... and an all-around effort by Deer Valley's Clair Zampini, who beat out an infield hit and then stole second base to be able to eventually score the final run in the upset over No. 2 Centennial.
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