 |
| Nick Irby (2) and Groton-Dunstable suddenly look like a team nobody wants to face in D3 CE. |
The playoffs are nearly upon us here in Central Mass, and a few teams are still fighting for a spot in the state tournament in the final week of the regular season. Check out who's in and who's on the bubble below.
Division 2 Central/West
Already In: Algonquin (12-5), Marlboro (14-3), Shrewsbury (14-5), St. John's (12-5), Tantasqua (14-2), Westboro (11-4), Worcester (12-6)
On the Bubble: Leominster (8-9)
Leominster had a chance to win its way into the field yesterday, but fell to an underrated Wachusett team. The Blue Devils will get another chance to clinch their third straight playoff berth Tuesday against 3-13 North Middlesex.
It's certainly a winnable game, but nothing is automatic, especially at this point in the year.
Division 3 Central/West
Already In: Assabet (15-0), Blackstone Valley Tech (8-8) Grafton (12-5), Northbridge (10-8), St. Bernard's (12-7)
On the Bubble: Monty Tech (7-8)
Ed. Note- I messed up and forgot to include Monty Tech as a bubble team when this article first ran. The Bulldogs are, in fact, still alive in the race for the tournament, and face Lowell Catholic at home this Tuesday with a chance to win their way in.
My apologies for the mistake.
On the bubble we have Monty Tech, a young program looking for its first ever playoff berth, and the Bulldogs will host Lowell Catholic, a team that defeated them by one goal earlier this season, in a do-or-die game. Monty Tech has come a long way since that loss, though, and has a chance to make the tournament in just its third season as a varsity program.
For the rest of the field, it's all about fighting for seeding, and it will be interesting how undefeated Assabet, and beaten up, but battle tested Grafton are ranked.
Division 3 Central/East
Already In: Groton-Dunstable (10-7), Littleton (8-6), Oakmont (8-7), Tyngsboro (15-1)
On the Bubble: Bromfield (8-9), Hudson (6-9)
Bromfield has lost five in a row against a brutal stretch, but the Trojans can still make the tournament with a win against winless Fitchburg Tuesday. You don't want to take anything for granted, but the Red Raiders are in their first year as a varsity program, so you would expect Bromfield to come out on top there.
Still, denying someone a playoff spot and collecting their first win would give the Red Raiders some momentum heading into the offseason, and Fitchburg did play Lunenberg, a team that beat Bromfield 10 days ago, tough twice. My point is, nothing is guaranteed this time of year.
Things will be even tougher for Hudson, who faces a massive challenge to qualify for postseason play. The Hawks must win all three of their games this week, starting with 15-1 Tyngsboro and continuing with playoff-bound Littleton. If Hudson can get through those games, though, they do finish the year with a winnable contest at struggling Milford.
At the top of this bracket we have a huge showdown between Groton-Dunstable and Tyngsboro. G-D picked up a home win over the Tigers earlier this year, but this second meeting between these rivals could determine which one gets a higher seed in the upcoming tournament.
No comments :
Post a Comment