Which teams made our South Jersey Mean 15 softball rankings after the second week? (2024)

The South Jersey softball season is in full swing.

Check out our latest Mean 15 rankings for the seven-county coverage area.

More: Who were the shining stars of South Jersey softball for Week 2?

Mean 15 rankings

1. Haddon Heights (6-0, last week’s ranking: 1). While the Garnets have only mustered 28 runs in six games, they have only surrendered three. There are few teams in the Garden State that can pitch and play defense better than Haddon Heights.

2. Egg Harbor Twp. (5-0, 2). After taking their game south to the Sunshine State for a few games, the Eagles will put their unbeaten record up against Paul VI, Cedar Creek and Lenape this week. EHT has a plus-41 run differential in its first five games.

3. Delsea (5-0, 4). The Crusaders overcame a two-run deficit to beat Pennsville and keep their unbeaten record intact. Big week ahead includes a spot in the Hammonton Invitational where Delsea will meet Bordentown, which was a finalist at last year’s tournament.

4. Clayton (7-1, 6). The Clippers reeled off six straight wins, including four in the Battle of the Conferences tournament at Overbrook en route to the title. The team hadn’t allowed a run in four consecutive games before earning a 3-2 victory over Lenape in the title contest.

5. Northern Burlington (7-1, NR). After winning three straight one-run games (1-0, 2-1 and 1-0), the Greyhounds busted out the bat during a 13-8 victory over Paul VI in the championship game of the Rancocas Valley Elite Tournament. Northern Burlington has won six straight games. Junior Abigail Todd powers the Greyhounds with a team-best batting average of .519.

6. Paul VI (6-2, 10). One of the top scoring teams in the Olympic Conference, the Eagles have pushed across 61 runs in eight games (7.6 runs per game). Paul VI owns two wins over heavy-hitting Rancocas Valley this season, but couldn’t outslug Northern Burlington during a 13-8 loss.

7. Audubon (5-1, 8). The Green Wave had their five-game unbeaten streak snapped with a 4-1 setback to Haddon Heights. Freshman Emma Speyerer leads the team in runs (10), hits (11) and stolen bases (13).

8. Lenape (7-3, 11). Lenape's season resume includes runner-up finishes at the Ron Vinick and Battle of the Conferences tournaments. The offense is off to a fast start with 91 runs and 91 hits over its first 10 games. Maya Knasiak and Vanessa Meyers have double-digit hits and RBIs for the squad.

9. Rancocas Valley (4-3, 13). Throw out a pair of losses to Paul VI and the Red Devils’ run differential is a much prettier plus-14. There’s a power surge at RV as the team has blasted eight home runs, including a team-best three by Melanie Earley. Stephanie Kraska and Ava Sweet have two homers apiece.

10. Shawnee (3-1, 14). All four of Shawnee’s games have been decided by three or fewer runs. Pitcher Alexandra Prey has a solid 24-4 strikeout-to-walk ratio and has yielded 21 hits over her 20 innings of work.

11. Cherokee (6-2, 15). The team’s two losses are both by a run to Shawnee and Northern Burlington. Senior Emily Lafferty leads Cherokee in hits (14), runs scored (12) and stolen bases (seven).

12. Kingsway (3-2, NR). The Dragons finally got on the field last week and produced double-digit runs in their three victories. Sophom*ore Olivia Sciulli crossed home plate a team-best eight times and shares the team lead in hits (five) with junior Ava Paoletti and freshman Ava Snyder.

13. Burlington Twp. (2-3, NR). Sandwiched in between losses to Northern Burlington, Cherokee and Shawnee is a 7-1 victory over defending sectional champion Bordentown. Sara Slimm drove in three runs and Rylee Reid contributed two RBIs for the Falcons in the victory.

14. Delran (3-2, NR). The Bears check into the rankings after knocking off previously unbeaten Moorestown, 4-3. Emma LaCour delivered the walk-off hit, scoring Gabbi Spinelli in the seventh. Senior Cheyenne Jackson is batting .562 with nine hits, eight RBIs and seven runs scored.

15. Bordentown (2-3, NR). After a 10-0 win over Holy Cross, the Scotties scuffled in losses to Burlington Township and perennial power Hillsborough. The three losses are the program’s most in a season since 2019.

Under consideration (listed alphabetically): Eastern (2-4), Gloucester (4-3), Gloucester Catholic (3-1), Gloucester County Tech (5-2), Moorestown (6-1), St. Joseph (5-2), Vineland (4-3), West Deptford (4-3).

• Records through Sunday.

Tom McGurk is a regional sports editor for the Courier-Post, The Daily Journal and Burlington County Times, covering South Jersey sports for over 30 years. If you have a sports story that needs to be told, contact him at (856) 486-2420 or emailtmcgurk@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @McGurkSports. Help support local journalism with a digitalsubscription.