Prep baseball season preview: Basic looks to repeat in ‘competitive’ 5A

Don’t bring up any preseason national rankings to Basic baseball coach Gino DiMaria.

The Wolves are the defending Class 5A Southern Region and state champions. With most of their team back from last season, the Wolves are ranked No. 16 nationally by MaxPreps and No. 18 by Perfect Game.

But with how competitive the 17-team 5A Southern Region is expected to be, DiMaria is making sure the Wolves aren’t on their laurels.

“We got to do everything correctly that we did last year because everybody’s going to be gunning for us. We know that,” DiMaria said. “There’s a lot of good teams this year. … It’s not going to be easy. This is going to be a very competitive season this year.”

The new high school baseball season is underway, with many local teams already participating in tournaments and opening nonleague play.

Offseason realignment grew the 5A Southern Region to 17 teams split into three divisions based primarily on geography. That has also expanded the region tournament to 12 teams, which will be played over two weeks.

Basic and Faith Lutheran, last year’s two Southern representatives in the 5A state tournament, are two of the favorites to get those spots again this year with each team bringing back most of its core from last year.

But there will be plenty of teams vying for those spots in the state tournament, which include Bishop Gorman, Centennial, and Palo Verde.

“We got a good group and we’re bound to get one of these,” Faith Lutheran coach Dave Anderson said. “We’ve been knocking on the door so long our knuckles are bloody. We’re hungry and we’re ready to go.”

‘Pretty deadly’ lineups

Basic’s returning lineup is filled with Division I talent, which includes infielders Matthew Kelley (Texas A&M commit), Troy Southisene (Oregon State), Lyndon Lee (Arizona) and outfielders Andruw Giles (Oregon) and Ace Sapp (Notre Dame).

The Wolves graduated four-year starters Tate Southisene, who was selected in the 1st round of last year’s MLB draft by the Atlanta Braves and catcher Koa Won (who is playing collegiately at Hawaii), who DiMaria said kept the team together last year on its title run.

“Now, we got to start playing with consistency,” DiMaria said. “Consistency has been my biggest thing since I’ve been here, but I have no doubt in these young men. It’s a family. They’re tough kids and they work hard. I have no doubt that when it comes time to start playing on Friday, they’ll flip that switch and be ready to roll.”

College of Southern Nevada commit Lincoln Evans and Saint Mary’s (California) signee Johnny Villarreal will lead Basic’s pitching staff. The fall and winter were “up and down” for Basic offensively and defensively, but DiMaria is optimistic about the Wolves’ pitching.

“Our pitching is really going to be key because we need them to at least keep us in the game,” DiMaria said. “We haven’t been consistent, but the lineup should be a very potent lineup. It’s just a matter of when we pop out of it.”

Basic beat Faith Lutheran twice in the Southern Region playoffs to get the region title and a third time in the state tournament. Anderson said the team is still “fired up” and has been playing with a chip on its shoulder after how last season ended with losses to Basic and Reno High in the state semifinals.

The Crusaders have most of their team back, including a deep starting rotation led by juniors Cash Martin (Stanford), Liam Radke (TCU) and Keegan Burke, and seniors Macen Collura and Dylan Othick, who dealt with injuries last year.

“We feel like we have plenty of arms in the tool shed,” Anderson said. “The schedule’s a little different this year as far as volume of games and how the playoffs shakes out. We feel like we are going to be as ready as anybody on the mound and offensively, having some more consistency. We are going to be pretty deadly.”

Miami (Florida) signee Rookie Shepard is Faith Lutheran’s top returner hitter. The senior shortstop hit .424 last year and is a top-100 draft prospect by MLB.com

“It just helps that cohesion. Rookie’s a great leader,” Anderson said. “He wants to win and he drives guys to compete every day. It’s been really nice to have him and he looks good.”

Other contenders

There isn’t a shortage of contenders in 5A. Bishop Gorman has plenty of talent, led by pitcher Hudson Ciulla (Gonzaga) and newcomers Jack Stoner, a pitcher, (East Carolina) and infielder/pitcher Connor Long (Oregon).

Centennial had a young team last year that snuck into the playoffs and upset No. 1-seeded Gorman in the first round and had one-run losses to Basic and Las Vegas. The Bulldogs return most of their club, which includes TCU commit Jake Turner and sophomore TJ Otis.

“We have a lot of returning kids in the lineup from last year that were a part of all that and a lot of innings returning on the mound returning from that whole thing,” second-year Centennial coach Chris Martinez said. “The big takeaway is they can play with anybody and compete with anybody around town.”

Tommy Krier has taken over at Palo Verde after Dustin Romero, who led the the Panthers to the 2024 5A state title, was removed before the start of last year’s Southern Region playoffs.

Palo Verde fell to Faith Lutheran 7-6 in a losers’ bracket elimination game that sent the Crusaders to the state tournament. The Panthers graduated several seniors that helped them win that title, but Krier is optimistic about the athleticism his returning group has.

“Pitching is probably our strength, and we have a lot of speed too,” Krier said. “We have a good, athletic team. I like that on the basepaths, they’ll create some havoc. It’s a fun group to watch play. … Pitching is going to lead the way. I think we’ll go as far as our pitching takes us.”

In 4A, Silverado, which lost to Durango for last year’s state title, is the favorite to contend for the title led by TCU commit Giovanni Guariglia and BYU commit Hogan Hawkins. SECTA and Spring Valley could challenge Silverado.

Two-time defending 4A state champion Durango moved up to 5A, along with Sierra Vista, Bonanza and Legacy.

Field issues

Basic and Palo Verde are among many local high school baseball and softball teams that will not be playing on their home fields due to renovations as part of a Clark County School District-wide initiative to reduce water by turning baseball, softball and soccer fields to turf.

Palo Verde will play its home games at Bishop Gorman and The Meadows.

“We aren’t going to have a field all year. … It’s going to be tough on our boys,” Krier said. “We’re going to be on the road pretty much every game, so we got to get on the bus every game. It’ll be a challenge for us, but we already talked about not making any excuses. We’ll make do the best we can.”

Coronado, Foothill and Desert Oasis are some of the other 5A teams that will not have their home fields for most of the season. Basic is planning to play its home games at Heritage Park.

“We’re not complaining about it because there’s like eight or nine other high schools that have to do the same thing,” DiMaria said. “They’re practicing somewhere else, it’s been really chaotic. I feel like it is a disadvantage for all the teams that have to do it.”