BASEBALL RANKINGS: Menlo Passes Serra for No. 1

Supremacy in San Mateo County high school baseball has been the exclusive property of Serra for ages. But with the 2011 season in the books, the Padres no longer appear to be the top dog in the area.

Menlo School, which won its second straight Central Coast Section Division III championship, ascends to the No. 1 spot in Patch’s season-ending county rankings. The Knights became the first county program to win consecutive section titles since Serra in 1993-94.

Throughout the season, Carlmont, El Camino and Burlingame jockeyed for position behind the private school powers, Menlo and Serra. In the end, Carlmont’s 19 wins and shocking postseason victory over mighty St. Francis move the Scots past an El Camino team that owned a two-game edge over Carlmont and Burlingame in the final Peninsula Athletic League Bay Division standings.

Here are Patch’s final top-10 rankings, as well as a few thoughts on the year that was and the year to come. The rankings are drawn from all schools in the county.

1. Menlo School 26-5 (Last rank: 2) Back-to-back Division III champs hurled three CCS shutouts; Bruml will be biggest loss to graduation, but core of Avis, Batchelder & Diekroeger means three-peat a decent bet

2. Serra 17-12 (1) Fell fall short of program’s high expectations with 7-7 WCAL showing and dispiriting 7-2 loss to Homestead in CCS opener; defense and offensive consistency need overhaul but returning arms are bright spot

3. Carlmont 19-9 (5) Unforgettable upset of top-seeded St. Francis was No. 16 seed Scots’ first playoff win in 16 years; soph-to-be Barret leads young contributors but team loses top pitchers plus slugger Hicks

4. El Camino 15-11-1 (3) Historic season that included first PAL Bay title ends on down note as Colts’ CCS win drought now at 15 years; Knudson & Eclavea era comes to end; junior-to-be Pastora takes torch

5. Burlingame 16-12 (4) Strong season considering repeated offensive struggles; Panthers usually seem able to develop top arms, so losing Grotz doesn’t appear as concerning as improving run production in 2012

6. Half Moon Bay 23-7 (10) Class of PAL Ocean shined on CCS stage with semifinal run in Division III; Garcia and Moody will be big losses, but Jenkins, Berghammer & Jenkins should continue to blossom

7. Sacred Heart Prep 17-12 (7) Highlight was mid-April win over Menlo to enable co-WBAL title; returns three of top four pitchers; deep CCS run needs to be expectation in watered-down Division III bracket

8. Hillsdale 17-10 (8) Quick playoff ouster to eventual Division II champ Monterey puts incredible ’10 run in perspective; senior-laden team seems ticketed for overhaul; Fajardo and Foiles lead returnees

9. Terra Nova 14-11-1 (6) Youthful Tigers bring nearly everyone back next year meaning another CCS miss will be big disappointment; program needs to kick ineligibility issues that have proved costly

10. Menlo-Atherton 15-12 (9) Red hot in winning Rancho Cordova tourney in late April, ice cold in then going 1-5 to complete PAL Bay season; Bears missed postseason for just second time since ’05