SSBR Fall Elite Eight – Final Rankings – Sooner State Baseball Report

The weekly SSBR Fall Elite Eight is sponsored this season by our partner, Conner Darnell Designs. If you have a need for a graphic designer, photographer, or sports media, give Conner a look at his website: connerdarnelldesigns.com.

Here at SSBR we try to have fun with what we do. We cover a sport that is supposed to be fun and we want to convey that in our content.

One of the ways we do it is by doing our version of a ranking system. We take all the teams regardless of classification and do our best to rank them on how they are doing relative to their class.

*In the Spring we have the caveat that says we are not ranking them on a “head to head” basis. In the Fall since teams may play each other regardless of class more regularly, “head to head” is more of a factor.

We also do our rankings based on results more than what we think who would necessarily win a game. If a spot comes down to two teams, if they’ve played head to head the result of that game weighs heavily in that decision. (The first week’s rankings, however, do have what a team’s expectations for the season factored in, but as the season goes along it will be the results that matter.)

In the Spring we do a “Sweet Sixteen. In the Fall we do an “Elite Eight.” because there aren’t as many teams as the Spring, but six is too little for the Fall

As always, this is for fun so please treat it as such.

Dropped Out

Silo Rebels (26-3), PR 4: Lost in semifinals to Tushka
Calera Bulldogs (22-8), PR 6: Lost in quarterfinals to Byng

1. Okarche Warriors (A), 30-2

Previous ranking: 3
Final Result: Class A State Champions

Okarche was the top ranked team in our Week 1 rankings and finished as #1 after dominating Class A this season. They were undefeated against Class A competition this season including a perfect 5-0 in the postseason outscoring their opponents in the Regionals and State Tournament a combined 61-6.

Okarche is one of only 2 teams to win 30 games this Fall season. The Warriors didn’t use a soft schedule to earn those 30 wins as they beat top teams from across all classes this season. They started the season beating eventual State runner up Canute. Then Okarche beat Ft Cobb-Broxton and Dale on the way to winning the Dale Invitational on the first weekend of the season. Other wins included FCB (2x), Dale (again), Cameron, Latta, Calera (2x), Byng (2A State Champ) twice, Calumet (B State Champ), Wright City (2x), Canute (a total of 3x), Calera, and Dover.

2. Calumet Chieftains (B), 22-8

Previous ranking: 5
Final result: Class B State Champions

In our preseason preview for the Chieftains, Cody Thiessen (Calumet head coach) said, “It’s time we win one.” That is what the Chieftains did as they broke through and beat Ft Cobb-Broxton in the state championship game.

Calumet was 11-1 against Class B this season. Other wins for the Chieftains included Latta, Hammon, Silo, and Canute.

All of Calumet’s losses this season came against State Tournament teams from Class A and 2A along with a mid season loss to the Mustangs.

In the State Tournament, Calumet beat (8) Mill Creek, 11-0, (3) Stuart, 9-3, and (1) FCB 5-3 in 8 innings.

3. Byng Pirates (2A), 20-7

Previous ranking: 7
Final Result: Class 2A State Champions

Coming into the season, there were high expectations for the Byng Pirates. It was an up and down season for Byng including a 1-5 stretch in September before the Pirates got hot to win their last 7 games on their way to the Class 2A State Championship.

In Byng’s 5 postseason’s games, they outscored their opponents a combined 50-5.

In the state tournament, Byng defeated (4) Calera, 5-1, (8) Colbert, 9-0, and (7) Tushka, 13-1.

4. Canute Trojans (A), 30-8

Previous ranking: 8
Final Result: Class A Runner Up

As much as Okarche was the dominant team in Class A this season, Canute was clearly the #2 team in the class.

The other team to win 30 games this season, the Trojans had wins over Tushka, FCB, Navajo (2x), Calumet, Byng, Dover, and Leedey.

In the state tournament, Canute beat (9) Wister, 4-3, and (3) Navajo, 10-0 before dropping the final to Okarche.

5. Ft Cobb-Broxton Mustangs (B), 23-13

Previous ranking: NP
Final Result: Class B Runner Up

For most of the season, it looked like that Class B was as wide open as it had been in several years. However, when the dust settled it was still Ft Cobb-Broxton and Calumet in the finals.

In the final game, it looked like the Mustangs would once again take home the championship, but Calumet chipped away and broke through beating the Mustangs.

FCB still had some big wins this season including wins against Navajo (2x), Colbert, Canute, Leedey, Calumet, Wister, Wright City, Arapaho-Butler, and Mill Creek.

The Mustangs beat (10) Tupelo, 4-1, and (4) Leedey, 7-1 in the state tournament before the loss to Calumet.

6. Tushka Tigers (2A), 23-9

Previous ranking: NA
Final Result: Class 2A Runner Up

In our season preview for Tushka, head coach Landon Carper talked about how the Tigers would need to replace some key players lost due to graduation and how players would need to develop into new roles.

After August, Tushka stood at 6-6 as they were heading into September. Since the turn of the calendar to September, Tushka turned a corner and finished 17-3 over their last 20 games of the season and a Class 2A State Runner Up finish.

Some of the wins Tushka notched on the season included Ft Cobb-Broxton, Wister, Tupelo, Calera, Wright City (2x), Latta, and Rattan.

At the 2A State Tournament, Tushka took down the #2 seed Dale, 3-2, and #3 seed Silo, 6-5, before bowing out to Byng in the final.

7. Dale Pirates (2A), 25-4

Previous ranking: 1
Final Result: Class 2A Quarterfinalist

Under new head coach, Cody Merrell, Dale did just about everything except win the State Championship.

Dale is one of only 2 teams to beat Okarche on the season as they won the Okarche/AmPo Tournament in the 2nd to last weekend of the season.

The Pirates also went a perfect 4-0 in winning the Hydro-Eakly Labor Day Tournament.

Dale was also the only team to beat Preston before the State Tournament.

Other wins for Dale included Stuart, Calumet (2x), Canute, FCB (2x), Leedey, Navajo (2x), Byng (2x), Colbert, and Arapaho-Butler.

8. Preston Pirates (2A), 28-2

Previous ranking: 2
Final Result: Class 2A Quarterfinalist

For the majority of the season, Preston looked like they were the favorite in Class 2A. After a loss to Dale in the 3rd game of the season, the Pirate ran off 26 wins in a row before their upset loss to Colbert in the quarterfinals of the State Tournament.

Along the way, Preston beat Colbert, Latta, Dale, Cameron (2x), Okarche, Wister, and Stuart.

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