Peyton High School is streaking on the baseball diamond. It’s senior Logan Nickell is making sure of it.
Nickell has all parts of an all-state player this spring. As a pitcher and hitter, he has helped the Panthers to 13 straight wins to open the spring.
Look at these numbers: Through 13 games, he’s hitting .543 with three home runs and 21 RBIs. And in 24 innings on the mound, he hasn’t allowed an earned run.
In this week’s look at the sport of baseball, let’s play “Is it smooth or bumpy?”
Also popular for such topics as “different routes to the airport” and “what it feels like when I shave my head”, this version of “smooth or bumpy” will focus on one top-10 team from each classification hitting on all cylinders and one that has hit a tough stretch.
Class 2A
Smooth — No. 1 Peyton: AJ Krantz drove in his team-leading 22nd run of the season in a 12-5 win over No. 8 Rye on Tuesday.
That came after he had five RBIs in Saturday’s 14-4 win over last week’s No. 2 team, Buena Vista.
Led by Krantz and Nickell, Peyton’s offense has scored more than 10 runs in 10 of their 13 games this season. Its pitching staff, meanwhile, has an ERA of 1.59.
Together, it’s made up the best team in the classification through the middle of April.
The Panthers are at Ellicott Thursday.
Bumpy — No. 4 Buena Vista: The Demons (8-4) lost three of four before bouncing back with a 12-2 win over Centauri on Tuesday.
Earlier in the month, they lost to 4A Grand Junction Central and Roaring Fork at the Trent Goscha Memorial Tournament in Carbondale. Then in a 1-vs.-2 matchup, they were beaten in six innings by Peyton.
Buena Vista certainly has the weapons to get back on track, led by freshman shortstop Edgardo Cubero-Villanueva and the Camp brothers, Haden and Caleb.
All three of those players are hitting above .350. Caleb, meanwhile, has a 3.59 ERA through a team-most 25 1/3 innings pitched.
The Demons are at Cedaredge Friday.
Smooth — No. 2 Broomfield: The Eagles have a star in senior Noah Scott. He can pitch, hit and field along with the best players in the classification.
Scott delivered a couple defensive gems and came in to close on the mound during a 12-8 win over Monarch on Tuesday. The win pushed the Eagles to 12-0 on the season.
Aside from Scott, Bailey Smith added two more hits in the win, pushing his hitting streak to seven games. Luke Blackmon drove in a pair, giving him a team-leading 16 RBIs on the season.
The Eagles are home against Fairview Thursday.
Bumpy — No. 8 Regis Jesuit: The Raiders (8-4) are just 2-2 in their last four games, though there looks to be plenty of upside ahead.
Early in the month, they lost to a Californian team, St. John Bosco, which is just 10-14 on the season. Then last week, they fell by way of the mercy rule against No. 6 Legacy.
But it’s been a good start to this week for the Raiders. On Monday, Jack Carey allowed just one run on two hits over 5 1/3 frames in a 3-1 win over Douglas County.
They’re at Highlands Ranch Thursday.
Class 4A
Smooth — No. 4 Longmont: The Trojans have won 14 straight to start the season.
Griffin Taylor’s batting average is up more than 250 points from last year at .630. Jacob Moats is next on the team at .511.
On the mound, meanwhile, Moats leads a pitching staff with an ERA of 1.55. He is 4-0, allowing eight earned runs over 34 2/3 frames.
The Trojans are home against No. 8 Holy Family Saturday.
Bumpy — No. 3 Windsor: The Wizards (11-4) have lost three straight after starting the year 11-1.
Outscored 36-18 during their skid, they lost to Silver Creek on April 10, then twice to Mead. Both of those teams are currently unranked.
Windsor will look to get back on track behind a powerful lineup. Ethan Fillinger has three of the team’s nine home runs this season and is one of five players with double-digit RBIs.
The Wizards are home against Centaurus Saturday.
Class 3A
Smooth — No. 1 Eaton: Arkansas commit Walker Martin has a state-most nine home runs (thanks to a nine-game home run streak) and the Reds are 13-0.
Over the last week, Eaton beat Sterling 15-0 and No. 8 Resurrection Christian 11-0.
Against the Cougars, Mitch Haythorn tossed a one-hitter over six innings, striking out 10. He has an ERA of 0.29 through 24 innings this spring.
Eaton is at No. 2 University Friday.
Bumpy — No. 8 Resurrection Christian: A large part as to why their week has been rough is because they faced the top two teams in the classification.
They lost 7-1 to No. 2 University Saturday and 11-0 to No. 1 Eaton Tuesday.
However, the Cougars (7-5) did get back on track Wednesday with a 9-5 win over Jefferson Academy. Deegan Corrigan homered in the win, driving in his 19th run of the year.
RC is at Wellington Friday.
Class 1A
Smooth — No. 3 Holly: The Wildcats (12-2) have won 11 straight.
Through 13 games, sophomore Tyler King had 11 doubles and 20 RBIs. And he along with Julian Terrazas were each hitting above .610 from the plate in more than 40 plate appearances.
Holly is home against Granada Friday.
Bumpy — No. 10 Otis: The Bulldogs have lost three of their last four. The latest coming to Wray, which is under .500 on the season.
During this stretch, they also split with Stratton and lost to No. 1 Haxtun. In their last four games, they’ve allowed 44 runs. They’d given up 14 through their first six games.
They’re at No. 9 Flatirons Academy Saturday.