The Western Mass high school girls soccer tournament is set to start on Sunday Nov. 4 with several good match ups on tap.
The Western Mass high school girls soccer tournament is set to start on Sunday Nov. 4 with several good match ups on tap.
DIVISION I
-No. 10 Central will travel to No. 7 Westfield for a 3 p.m. start at Bullens Field. The Golden Eagles (9-5-4) didn’t play the Bombers (9-6-3) during the regular season, but there’s a lot on the line as they’ll be playing for a date with No. 2 West Springfield (10-4-4) on Tuesday night at 6:30 in the quarterfinals.
-No. 11 Renaissance (11-5-1) will take on No. 6 Ludlow at 5:30 Sunday. The Lions (9-9-0) clinched a playoff spot in their last game of the season with a big win over Minnechaug.
The winner of this match up will take on - you guessed it - No. 3 Minnechaug (9-5-4), Tuesday at 7. You can bet the Lions want to set another date with the Falcons in the quarterfinals and you can also bet on Minnechaug being up for the challenge.
-No. 8 Agawam hosts No. 9 Chicopee Comp for a 6 p.m. start. In their first meeting of the season in September, Agawam (7-8-3) cruised to a 5-1 win, but on Oct. 18, the Colts (9-9-1) ran away with a 4-1 win. This match up will decide who wins the season series and who gets a date with No. 1 East Longmeadow for a quarterfinal game on Tuesday night.
--East Longmeadow, West Springfield, Minnechaug, Northampton and Pittsfield all have first round byes.
DIVISION II
Just two first round games in D-II as the other two quarterfinal match ups are set.
-No. 8 Easthampton will host No. 9 Athol at 1 p.m. Sunday. In their only meeting of the regular season, Easthampton (9-4-2) beat Athol, 2-0. The Red Raiders (9-4-5) were in and out of the Fab 5 rankings all season. The winner of this game will take on No.1 Belchertown (16-0-2), the defending D-II champs on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
-No. 10 Mahar will play No. 7 Cathedralat Lusitano Stadium in Ludlow at 5 p.m. Sunday. Cathedral (2-13-2) will be playing in the Division II tournament for the first time.
Their record may look deceiving, but the Panthers lost just one game to Division II or Division III opponents. Their record against D-II and D-III was 2-1-2, giving them enough to qualify for the postseason. Mahar (9-6-3) will give them tough competition. The winner will have its hands full with No. 2 Monson (16-0-2) in the quarterfinals Tuesday night.
--Belchertown, Monson, Southwick, Mt. Greylock, Hoosac Valley and Wahconah all have a first round bye.
DIVISION III
-No. 11 Holyoke Catholic will travel to No. 6 Gateway for a 6 p.m. start Sunday. Gateway (10-4-2) won the first meeting of the season 1-0 back in September. The Gaels (7-7-4) fought hard in the last week of the regular season, clinching a playoff spot after a scoreless tie with Gateway. The winner will take on No. 3 McCann Tech (16-1-1) in the quarterfinals, Tuesday.
-No. 7 St. Mary’s will host No. 10 Pathfinder.These two teams know each other well as they both play in the Tri-County. In their first meeting of the season, they ended in a 2-2 tie. In the final game of the season, St. Mary (9-8-10) edged Pathfinder (8-7-2) in a 1-0 win. The winner will have a quarterfinal date with No. 2 Smith Academy (16-2-0) on Tuesday.
-In the final game of the first round, No. 9 Franklin Tech will travel to No. 8 Saint Joseph’s.Franklin Tech finished the season 8-6-4. These two teams haven’t met all season, but Saint Joseph’s (7-7-3) has played McCann Tech, coming out with a win and a loss. The winner will take on No. 1 Lenox (11-4-2) in the quarterfinals Tuesday.
--Lenox, Smith Academy, McCann Tech, Granby and Lee all have a first round bye.
QUESTIONABLE SEED:
Although they didn’t lose a game all season, Granby (16-0-1) was somehow seeded No. 4 behind Lenox, Smith Academy and McCann Tech. Most thought the Rams would’ve been the top seed in the Division III tourney.
What does that mean? Well that means you can kiss the Lenox vs. Granby WMass final rematch goodbye. They could, however, meet in the semifinals. Granby beat Lenox, 1-0 during the regular season.