By Roger Brown
MaxPreps.com
Perhaps the most intriguing matchup on this week's New Hampshire high school sports schedule is Tuesday night's Class L boys basketball game between Manchester Central and Bishop Guertin.
Central (3-0) and BG (3-0) are two of the four unbeaten teams remaining in Class L, joining Salem (3-0) and Keene (2-0). Central, which will be at home Tuesday, has won the last two Class L championships and stretched the program's winning streak to 38 games when it beat Winnacunnet, 47-27, Friday night.
Central graduated all but two players who played significant minutes on last year's team. The new faces include Mike Stys, who was the leading scorer for Central's junior varsity team last season, and sophomore point guard Will Bayliss.
"We're a team right now that's about seven deep," Central coach Doc Wheeler said following the Winnacunnet game. "Different guys give us different things, but we've got seven guys who can really play. Most of the time it doesn't really matter who we have out there."
Central's other Class L victories came against city rivals Manchester West (83-47) and Manchester Memorial (58-33).
BG is among a handful of teams expected to challenge for the Class L championship this season. The Cardinals haven't won a Class L title since 1983.
Like Central, BG has beaten Winnacunnet (72-51) and two city rivals - Nashua South (62-60) and Nashua North (82-79).
The BG/Central contest won't be the only matchup between unbeaten boys basketball teams this week, however. Lisbon (6-0) and Wilton-Lyndeborough (6-0) will meet in a Class S game Friday night in Wilton. Nute is the only other Class S team that has yet to lose a game.
Lisbon beat Portsmouth Christian, 55-42, to win the 2005 Class S championship, and also won last year's Class S title with a 73-56 triumph over Colebrook.
Five of Wilton-Lyndeborough's six opponents have failed to score more than 38 points.
Girls Basketball: Maine Lands Top Talent
There's no shortage of Division I talent in the Granite State this season, as eight players have already committed to Division I programs.
The University of Maine appears to be doing the best job of recruiting within New Hampshire borders. Mascoma's Tonya Young and Timberlane's Magdala Johnson have each signed a National Letter of Intent to play at Maine. In addition, Timberlane's Sam Wheeler and Nashua North's Kelsey Hogan have verbally committed to the Maine program.
Londonderry's Stefanie Murphy (Boston College), Exeter's Kerry Cashman (Boston University), Manchester Central's Whitney Fremeau (Holy Cross) and Hopkinton's Kelley Flynn (Richmond) are others who have made Division I commitments.
Girls Track and Field: BG Remains Team to Beat
The BG girls are four-time defending champions in both winter and spring track, and the Cardinals may have enough talent to extend both streaks this year.
Two BG seniors - Ellen Powers and Emily Standish - recently announced that they would be continuing their track careers at Division I programs. Powers, who is nationally ranked in the triple jump, will attend Connecticut. Standish will compete in the high jump for Yale.
Powers is the defending New England champion in the triple jump. Standish was one of three BG teammates who finished among the top seven in the high jump at last weekend's Dartmouth Relays, an event that included teams from Canada and throughout New England. Sophomore Kylie Morris tied for second, junior Erin Linnehan finished sixth and Standish placed seventh.