Race for D1 girls lacrosse title remains wide open at start of playoffs

Trying to pick a favorite heading into the Division I high school girls lacrosse playoffs might be a little like trying to pick your favorite flavor of ice cream.

In the end, it’s still ice cream, and going into Wednesday’s quarterfinals, there are five – maybe even six – teams to pick from that have a good chance as any to be the last one standing.

Bedford and Souhegan may be the top two seeds going into the tournament, but the rest of the division wasn’t that far behind. The Bulldogs had one-goal games with No. 3 Bishop Guertin and No. 5 Pinkerton, while the Sabers had narrow victories over the Cardinals, Astros and Bulldogs during the regular season.

Londonderry has also played itself into the mix. After playing well against the top teams early in the season, the Lancers finished the year by winning seven in a row to climb up to the fourth seed. Sixth-seeded Merrimack has also taken great strides, including a one-goal loss to Pinkerton in the regular-season finale.

All four quarterfinal games are scheduled to be play on Wednesday. Here’s a look at each matchup.

No. 8 Concord (8-8) at No. 1 Bedford (15-2), 4:30 p.m.

• These two teams played on May 23, with the Bulldogs claiming a 19-6 win over the Crimson Tide to finish out their regular season. Both teams stumbled a bit down the stretch, as Bedford was just 2-2 in its last four games after starting the year 13-0, while Concord went 3-5 in the second half of the regular season. The Tide are in the playoffs for the first time since 2013, while the Bulldogs are the top seed for the second straight year.

No. 5 Pinkerton (13-5) at No. 4 Londonderry (14-4), 5 p.m.

• The defending-champion Astros will have to pull off a couple of upsets if they are to win their fourth title in the last five years. Pinkerton dropped four straight games in mid-May, including an 11-7 loss against Londonderry, to drop to the fifth seed. The Lancers, meanwhile, went 8-1 in the second half of the season, which included an 8-7 win over Souhegan. During that stretch, Londonderry has allowed an average of just 6.9 goals per game.

No. 7 Nashua South (8-8) at No. 2 Souhegan (15-2), 5 p.m.

• The Panthers are making their first playoff appearance since 2010, and their eight wins in 2017 is just one fewer than their combined total from 2011-16. South will face a tall task against a Souhegan team that beat it 17-0 on April. That was part of a start that saw the Panthers go 1-5 before finishing the year 7-3. The Sabers enter the tournament having won six straight, including wins over Pinkerton and Bedford. While Souhegan has played well offensively, the defense has been a strength, as the Sabers have allowed just 4.2 goals per game.

No. 6 Merrimack (9-7) at No. 3 Bishop Guertin (13-3), 6 p.m.

• The Cardinals won the only regular-season meeting, 14-4 on May 9, part of a stretch that saw Bishop Guertin win nine out of 10 games. Ten has been a key number for BG this season, as its 13-0 when allowing nine or fewer goals this year and 0-3 when giving up double digits. Merrimack struggled against playoff teams, going 3-6 against the other tournament teams while allowing an average of 11.2 goals in those games.

Quarterfinal winners: Bedford, Souhegan, Bishop Guertin, Pinkerton.

Final: Souhegan over Pinkerton.

Schedule: Quarterfinal, May 31, at higher seed; Semifinals, June 3, at Bill Ball Stadium in Exeter; Final, June 7, at Southern New Hampshire University.