The start of the 2013 state baseball tournaments are just a few days away, Saturday April 27 for Division I and Division II, to be exact. Here are a few notes from teams who have qualified from D-I and D-III. Teams learn their specific playoff position Thursday afternoon (April 25) during the AIA’s first ever baseball/softball bracket release show.

DIVISION I

DESERT RIDGE: The Jaguars, who won state titles in 2009 and 2010 under Pat Herrera, are the hottest team in D-I entering postseason with 15 consecutive wins. They've been solid in all phases, but Herrera is especially appreciative of the pitching. The returing staff members this year had one win. The ace is senior right-hander Skyler Cohn, who is 9-1 after racking up another win Tuesday over Highland in the Jaguars' regular-season finale. Bryan Natter (5-0) and Caleb Rodriguez (4-1) have backed Cohn up nicely.

Switch-hitting shortstop/closer Riley Unroe, a USC signee, batted .566 with 10 homers and 59 RBI. Unroe didn't allow an earned run until Tuesday when Highland got to him for a couple of runs late in a blowout victory. Senior Taylor Flores batted .400 and has supplied defense as well behind the plate. Leadoff hitter Cam Richins has given Unroe plenty of RBI chances with his .380 average and 20 stolen bases. Junior transfer Jayden Eggiman (Highland) hit .360 and been as good in the clutch as any in the lineup. He finished the season with a double, triple and home run against Highland.

SANDRA DAY O'CONNOR: Sandra Day O'Connor opened the season winning its first 22 games and finished 29-3 overall. Coach Jeff Baumgartner has plenty of pitching weapons at his disposal. They are: Cameron Ming, 7-1, 1.43 ERA, 41 strikeouts; Jade Bilbrey, 5-1, 2.12 ERA; Corey Wilson, 5-1, 1.25 ERA, 26 strikeouts; Degan Harte, 3-0,  four saves. 0.00 ERA 11 strikeouts. On the offensive side Bilbrey is hitting .434; Ming .390 with three homers and 25 RBI; Owen Sanborn .400, 20 RBI and Harte .329, 26 RBI.

TUCSON: The Badgers posted an impressive 26-4 record and are led by senior pitcher Alex Robles. Robles is 8-0 with an ERA at 1.51 ERA. He's fanned 63 batters in 51 innings. Robles also leads the team in hitting .473, runs, hits, RBI (25) and home runs (3).

HORIZON: The old axiom "It's not how you start, it's how you finish", has a ring of truth from Horizon baseball coach Eric Kibler's perspective this season. Horizon, a perennial power in the sport with six state titles and three runners-up, missed the playoffs last year. They are back. "We started out 1-6 and are 16-13," Kibler said. "We won 11 of our last 14 games." Kibler's 2013 squad starts three freshmen and three sophomores. Chris Isbell (6-2), Trevor Horn (4-1) and Luke Messer have anchored the pitching staff on a team that's played solid defense and gotten timely hitting. Kibler is appreciative of an unselfish group for keeping the ultimate goal of winning in perspective. "Our seniors have been great even though some underclassmen are playing in front of them," Kibler said. "I give them a lot of credit keeping our team chemistry very positive. After we won our national tournament (late March) we gathered some confidence and momentum for the rest of the season."

DIVISION III

ESTRELLA FOOTHILLS: Junior second baseman Cameron McCubbins is batting .478 with 33 hits, 28 runs, 12 doubles and 9 steals. First baseman Baylor Giannini is batting .471 with 32 hits and 32 RBI. Third baseman Sam Williams is batting .424 wit, 28 hits, 24 RBI and four home runs. Senior pitcher-right fielder Zach Miller was co-pitcher of the year for D-III last year. Miller is batting .400 with 20 RBI. On the mound he is 5-2 with a 0.93 ERA and has 62 strikeouts in 45 1/3 inning. Giannini is 3-1 with a 1.40 ERA and 42strikeouts in 30 innings. Josh Nelson is 4-0 with a 0.74 ERA and 32 K’s in 19 inning.

FOUNTAIN HILLS: Andrew Bryniarski is the ace of a deep Falcons' pitching staff. Bryniarski is 7-1 with an 0.91 ERA and 63 strikeouts in 46 innings. He also leads the team in hitting with a .453 average, 8 homers and 34 RBI. Nick Wojtysiak is 5-2 with a 2.45 ERA and 75 strikeouts in 49 innings. Devin Foyle checks in at 8-1, 1.58 ERA and 47 strikeouts in 40 innings. Cory Kukkola and Cameron Russo are hitting .405 and .402, respectively. Russo matches Bryniarski with 34 RBI. Bryniarski and Wojtysiak are juniors and Foyle is a sophomore.