Mundelein, Wauconda and Grant move up in the rankings, and Lake Zurich’s George DiCanio is the player of the week.
TOP 10
With records through Wednesday and previous rankings in parentheses.
1. Libertyville 12-4-1 (1)
Freshman Ryan Wilberding is hitting .387 with seven doubles and two home runs while splitting time among the outfield, third base and catcher.
2. Stevenson 11-7 (2)
Brandon Schultz and Aidan Crawley each bats .421 over the past week, combining for 16 hits, six walks and seven stolen bases.
3. Mundelein 11-4 (4)
Joey Kafka and Sean Sanderson have given the Mustangs multiple strong starts this season.
4. Grayslake Central 9-4 (3)
Pitching depth has been one of the Rams’ strengths, with five players recording wins, despite the graduation of hurlers accounting for more than 200 innings in 2023.
5. Wauconda 10-5 (10)
The Bulldogs have won seven of eight games since returning from spring break, and Zac Johnson is among four players still hitting over .400.
6. Highland Park 12-7 (5)
The Giants, who beat Stevenson in the season opener, add a win against Libertyville behind pitcher Brett Karman on Wednesday.
7. Grant 9-4 (8)
Kyle Stigler allows two runs in six innings in the Bulldogs’ win against Grayslake North on Tuesday.
8. Lakes 11-4 (7)
Jaden Jackson and the hard-hitting Eagles have already scored at least 10 runs nine times this season.
9. Lake Forest 7-6 (6)
Luke Callahan is carving out a spot in the rotation, allowing only one earned run in 5 1/3 innings over his past two starts.
10. Lake Zurich 8-7 (9)
Riley O’Donnell stretches his hitting streak to seven games on Wednesday after going 3-for-4 with two RBIs in the Bears’ win against Warren on Monday.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Lake Zurich junior outfielder George DiCanio goes 2-for-4 with four RBIs, including a walk-off three-run homer on an 0-2 count with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, in the Bears’ 9-8 win against Warren on Monday.
Steve Reaven is a freelance reporter.