Class 2A state champion Trinity Christian (Jacksonville) near unanimous No. 1
GAINESVILLE — As the 2025-26 school year comes to an end, it’s been another interesting year for teams in The Prep Zone’s coverage area.
And the final baseball all-classification regional rankings ended up with two state champions at the top.
FHSAA Class 2A state champion Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville), which captured its second title in school history and first since 2015, was a near unanimous No. 1, collecting nine of the 10 first-place votes.
The Conquerors (27-8) lost the first game of their three-game 2A-Region 1 final against No. 4 Bishop Snyder (Jacksonville), but rallied to win the next two games to advance back to Fort Myers for the third straight year.
Trinity Christian, which finished as 2A runner-up in 2025, defeated Lakeland Christian, 7-2, in the state semifinals, followed by an 8-4 win against True North Classical (Miami) in the title game to win its first state title in 11 years.
Class 1A state champion St. Johns Country Day (Orange Park) finished second.
The Spartans (26-8), who split a 2-game series with Trinity Christian this season, advanced to their third straight state title game. They won the FHSAA Class 1A championship for the second time in three years with a 6-2 win over Orangewood Christian (Maitland) in the state title game in Fort Myers.
SJCD, which went through the postseason without a loss, received the other first-place vote.
Buchholz (Gainesville), which was the 6A state runner-up for the third straight season, moved up to No. 3 in The Prep Zone Power Poll, which ranks the top 20 teams across 26 counties in Florida.
The Bobcats (25-8) also didn’t lose a game in regional play, winning 6A-Region 1 for the second year in a row at nationally ranked Pace.
Buchholz slipped past Martin County (Stuart), 3-2 in 9 innings, in the state semifinals before losing for the second year in a row to St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale) in the 6A state championship game, 5-1.
Bishop Snyder finished 4th.
The Cardinals (23-8), who came close to knocking off eventual state champion Trinity Christian in the 2A-Region 1 Final, defeated No. 20T Providence (Jacksonville), 9-5, in the regional quarterfinal and No. 10 Bolles (Jacksonville), 8-5 & 10-0, in the regional semifinals.
Rounding out the top five is Spruce Creek (Port Orange). The Hawks (26-5) were upset, 2-1, by eventual 7A state semifinalist Hagerty (Oviedo) in the 7A-Region 1 Semifinals.
Rural state champion Union County (Lake Butler) makes the huge leap from receiving votes in the previous poll, to No. 6 in the final rankings.
The Tigers (24-7) swept through Madison County and Lafayette (Mayo) to advance to Fort Myers. They blanked Cottondale, 2-0, in the state semifinals, taking them into a state championship game showdown with rival Trenton.
Union County was down to its last out before rallying with three runs in the bottom of the 7th to tie Trenton, and walked it off in the bottom of the 8th for a 10-9 win and Union County’s first state baseball title since 2012.
Creekside (St. Johns) is 7th, followed by rural state runner-up Trenton at No. 8, Trinity Catholic (Ocala), which was eliminated by Trinity Christian in the Region 1-2A semifinals, at No. 9, and No. 10 Bolles.
Two big movers into the second 10 are 12th-ranked Clay (Green Cove Springs) and No. 14 South Sumter (Bushnell), neither of who were ranked in the previous poll.
Clay (19-14) upset Choctawhatchee (Fort Walton Beach) in the Region 1-4A final to advance to the 4A state semifinal against Jesuit (Tampa), who knocked off the Blue Devils 5-2 and won the state title against Bishop Moore (Orlando).
South Sumter (19-12) beat Palatka, 17th-ranked North Marion (Citra), and No. 16 Hernando (Brooksville) on the road to advance to the 3A state semifinals. The Raiders were eliminated in Fort Myers by North Broward Prep 4-0.
Besides Clay and South Sumter, moving into the final rankings are North Marion and Mount Dora Christian Academy, who finished tied for 20th with Providence and Beachside (St. Johns).
Dropping out from the previous poll were Bartram Trail (St. Johns), Vanguard (Ocala), and Nature Coast Tech (Brooksville), who are all receiving votes in the final poll.
The Prep Zone Power Poll ranks the top 20 high school football, girls basketball, boys basketball, softball & baseball teams (regardless of FHSAA classification) across 26 counties in North Florida (Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Flagler, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Hernando, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lake, Levy, Madison, Marion, Nassau, Putnam, Sumter, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, Union & Volusia counties). It is voted on by sportswriters and sportscasters and it is powered by Be Well Fitness.
THE PREP ZONE POWER POLL– 2026 BASEBALL POLL #4 (FINAL POLL)
(School, followed by classification, first place votes, final 2026 record, and total voting points)
1. Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville) (2A) (9) (27-8) – 199
2. St. Johns Country Day (Orange Park) (1A) (1) (26-8) – 191
3. Buchholz (Gainesville) (6A) (25-8) – 176
4. Bishop Snyder (Jacksonville) (2A) (23-8) – 161
5. Spruce Creek (Port Orange) (7A) (26-5) – 146
6. Union County (Lake Butler) (Rural) (24-7) – 142
7. Creekside (St. Johns) (7A) (23-5) – 134
8. Trenton (Rural) (23-6) – 119
9. Trinity Catholic (Ocala) (2A) (22-7) – 118
10. Bolles (Jacksonville) (2A) (19-9) – 92
11. Suwannee (Live Oak) (3A) (19-14) – 87
12. Clay (Green Cove Springs) (4A) (19-14) – 76
13. Lake Minneola (6A) (24-7) – 75
14. South Sumter (Bushnell) (2A) (19-12) – 72
15. Fernandina Beach (3A) (23-6) – 65
16. Hernando (Brooksville) (3A) (23-8) – 51
17. North Marion (Citra) (3A) (20-8) – 32
18. Columbia (Lake City) (5A) (16-11) – 24
19. Montverde Academy (2A) (17-10) – 19
20T. Beachside (St. Johns) (5A) (17-11) – 18
20T. Mount Dora Christian Academy (1A) (24-7) – 18
20T. Providence (Jacksonville) (2A) (13-13) – 18
Also receiving votes: Vanguard (Ocala) (4A) (19-9) – 13; Bartram Trail (St. Johns) (6A) (16-11) – 11; Nature Coast Tech (Brooksville) (3A) (22-4) – 10; Eustis (4A) (17-15) – 9; Saint Francis Catholic Academy (Gainesville) (1A) (22-6) – 4; Newberry (2A) (18-7) – 2; Tocoi Creek (St. Augustine) (6A) (15-15) – 2.
