Bedford, Portsmouth, Gilford will be No. 1 seeds in boys tennis playoffs

A change in divisions hasn’t slowed down the Bedford High School boys tennis team.

The Bulldogs will be the top seed in the Division I tournament, which begins on Tuesday, and will be looking to win a fourth-straight championship in their first season in the top division. Bedford won three consecutive titles in Class I/Division II, and have gone 65-1 in the last four seasons.

The Bulldogs (14-0) will host No. 8 Bishop Guertin (8-6) in the quarterfinals on Tuesday at  4 p.m. Bedford won the regular-season meeting, 9-0 on April 2.

The winner will face either No. 4 Keene (12-2) and No. 5 Londonderry (11-3) in the semifinals. The Lancers won the regular-season match, 6-3 on April 17, but the Blackbirds will host the playoff match at 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

No. 2 Concord (13-1) will host No. 7 Pinkerton (8-6) on Tuesday at 4 p.m. in the quarterfinals. The Tide defeated the Astros during the regular season, 7-2 on April 22.

The winner of that match will take on the winner of No. 3 Exeter (12-2) and No. 6 Timberlane (10-4) in the semifinals. The teams didn’t meet during the regular season, and the Blue Hawks will host the Owls at 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

The semifinals will be held on Thursday at 4 p.m. at the home of the higher seed, while the final will be May 28 at 4 p.m. at Manchester West.

Division II

Just like on the girls side, Portsmouth and Hanover both finished the season 14-0 and tied for first in the division.

The Clippers (14-0) will host No. 8 Hollis Brookline (8-6) in the quarterfinals at 4 p.m. on Tuesday. Portsmouth won the lone regular-season meeting, 9-0 on April 19.

The winner will face either No. 4 Windham (12-2) and No. 5 Oyster River (11-3) in the semifinals. The Jaguars won the regular-season match, 7-2 on May 18, and Windham will host the playoff match at 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

No. 2 Hanover (14-0) hosts No. 7 Souhegan (9-5) on Tuesday at 4 p.m. in the quarterfinals. The Marauders won the regular-season match 9-0 on May 10.

The winner will play the winner of No. 3 Lebanon (12-2) and No. 6 Kennett (11-3) in the semifinals. Kennett and Lebanon did not play during the regular season, and will meet at Lebanon on Tuesday at 4 p.m.

The semifinals will be held on Thursday at 4 p.m. at the home of the higher seed, while the final will be May 28 at 4 p.m. at Bedford.

Division III

No. 1 Gilford finished the regular season 14-0 and handed No. 2 Bow (13-1) its only loss, but both teams will receive byes into the semifinals, which will take place on Thursday.

In the quarterfinals, No. 4 Prospect Mountain (11-3) will host No. 5 Profile (11-3) at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, while No. 3 Kingswood (11-3) will take on No. 6 Moultonborough (9-5) at the same time.

Gilford will host the winner of Prospect Mountain-Profile at 4 p.m. on Thursday in the semifinals, while Bow will host either Kingswood or Moultonborough at the same time.

The championship match will be held on May 28 at 4 p.m. at the Derryfield School.