Prep baseball rankings: Ponderosa moves to No. 3 after impressive win

A special season is brewing in Shingle Springs for the Ponderosa High School baseball team. The Bruins have won 10 in a row, including a 3-0 victory over Rio Americano on Friday.

This team is full of talent and characters. Ponderosa (11-2) is ranked No. 3 in the latest Bee rankings, the highest in program history (the school opened in 1963). This figures to be the school’s best team since at least the 2008 club that won the 2008 Sac-Joaquin Section Division II championship. With no playoffs this season in the Sac-Joaquin Section, regular season success will loom large.

Sacramento State-bound senior pitcher Tyler Stewart pitched a complete-game and allowed two hits against the Raiders. Stewart is 5-0 with 42 strikeouts, six in his latest outing.

Stewart was backed by the infield of Nate Stoddard, Dean Bernaldez, Logan Schweizer, Jack Moore and batterymate Bradley Morris.

“There’s a lot of energy (on this team),” Stewart said. “Every game has been a blast. It’s awesome to (have that energy). It makes you play way better. We fit the (rowdy baseball stereotype) perfectly.”

The leader of the Bruins is first-year coach Grant Tonelli. He spent the previous nine seasons as head coach at Golden Sierra in Garden Valley. Tonelli is a longtime Ponderosa teacher. When former coach Ben Peterson took the baseball job at new West Park in West Roseville, Tonelli jumped at the opportunity to lead the Bruins.

“Being at Pondo has been a blast,” Tonelli said. “Ben did a great job with these guys before me. I was coaching at Golden Sierra and teaching at Ponderosa. I was a door over from Ben.”

He added, “It’s really nice to walk out of your classroom and see the kids you coach every single day. It’s been a great time. These guys work hard. I’m lucky to be here.”

Ponderosa’s ace is Stanford signee Ty Uber, who is generating major MLB Draft buzz at 6-foot-4. Uber is the three-hole hitter in the Bruins lineup. He ripped a loud RBI single to left field for Ponderosa’s first run of the Ponderosa game.

The Ponderosa pitching staff is a combined 11-1 with 124 strikeouts. Brett Robinson is a longtime coach in El Dorado County and told Tonelli “this is the best pitching staff he’s ever seen.”

Then there is Schweizer, who drove in a run and stole a base. He is the team’s energizer bunny and helps keep the dugout loud. On this day, Ponderosa’s dugout was so boisterous that the umpire came to the dugout to give them a warning.

“I show up for my guys every day,” Schweizer said. “When everyone is down, I have to keep them up. We have played with each other for a long time and we have a strong senior class. It goes to show how much team chemistry we have.”

He added, “I have played middle infield since I was really young. Since I started playing baseball (shortstop) has been my favorite position to play. It’s a challenge, but it’s a good challenge.”

Quick hits

▪ Bear River is 4-1 after wins over Forest Lake Christian and Foresthill. In the 14-0 win over Foresthill, Kenny Baltz tossed a one-hitter with 13 strikeouts and no walks on 65 pitches. Colby Lunsford drove in four.

▪ Granite Bay had its series canceled against Oak Ridge after the Trojans had COVID-19 issues. The Grizzlies found a game with Oakmont and won 10-0. Thomas Meyer allowed three hits and struck out six and drove in four at the plate.

▪ Cordova swept Natomas and outscored the Nighthawks during the series 82-2 to improve to 5-9. Top performers on the Lancers include Eli Campbell, Matt Jernigan, Andrew Tran, Cody Fennel and Justin Nelson.

▪ West Campus improved to 7-3 after a sweep over Florin. Evan Leu and Gavin Smith-Wilhelm have both been huge for the Warriors.

▪ After losing its first game of the season against Vista del Lago, Laguna Creek responded by beating previous unbeaten River City twice. In the second game against River City, Noah Lucchesi pitched a complete game shutout and struck out eight. Matthew Walkup was 4-for-4 with an RBI.

▪ For the first time in 10½ months. Woodcreek junior Braeden Sloan pitched in a game since having his UCL surgically repaired and supported. The USC commit was up to 88 MPH on the radar gun and struck out two in one inning.

▪ Placer went 4-0 last week with a three game sweep over Rio Linda and a 7-0 win over Vista del Lago Saturday night at James Field in Auburn. Myles Meyer struck out nine and allowed no hits through 5⅔ innings and drove in two.Struck out nine and allowed no hits through 5⅔ innings and drove in two.

▪ Davis also went 4-0 last week with wins over McClatchy, Pioneer, Christian Brothers and Del Campo. Senior infielder Rockwell Lybbert leads his team in hits (16) and RBIs (18).

▪ Pioneer beat Woodland 4-1 behind RBIs from Antonio Martin, Hunter Timothy and Isaiah Morales. Austin McKinney struck out nine in five innings.

▪ Del Oro is back in the top 25 this week after taking two of three from Rocklin. In the rubber match, Jaren Ekkelboom pitched a complete game shutout and struck out nine. J.T. Maloney drove in the lone run of the game.

THE BEE’S TOP 25

1. Granite Bay (9-1)

2. Elk Grove (11-1)

3. Ponderosa (11-2)

4. Franklin (9-6)

5. Pleasant Grove (12-2)

6. Laguna Creek (10-1)

7. Woodcreek (11-4)

8. Davis (10-3)

9. Jesuit (5-6)

10. Cosumnes Oaks (9-4)

11. Placer (11-5)

12. Oak Ridge (3-5)

13. Vanden (12-5)

14. Vista del Lago (6-4-1)

15. Folsom (7-4-1)

16. Roseville (11-5)

17. Del Campo (4-4)

18. Del Oro (5-9)

19. Rocklin (6-7)

20. Rio Americano (6-1)

21. McClatchy (5-1)

22. River City (8-2)

23. Oakmont (5-9)

24. Lincoln (6-8)

25. Colfax (11-4)

On the bubble: Alpha Charter (5-3), Bear River (4-1), Bella Vista (8-7), Christian Brothers (2-4), Vacaville (8-9), West Campus (7-3), Winters (0-0), Wood (6-7), Woodland (1-1), Yuba City (6-9)

This story was originally published April 26, 2021 at 7:33 AM.