By Roger Brown
MaxPreps.com
Girls lacrosse underwent several changes in the offseason, but, for the most part, the teams to beat this season appear to be the same.
Concord has won five Division I titles in the sport's nine-year history, including back-to-back championships in 2005 and 2006, and returned 17 players from last year's team. The Crimson Tide added senior attack Eileen Carew, a transfer from Bishop Brady, and senior midfielder Amanda Bacher, who started as a sophomore but missed all of last year after suffering a torn ACL during basketball season.
"It's a situation where we're reloading and rebuilding," Concord coach Terry Anderson told the Concord Monitor. "I think it's a combination. No matter how many you have back, it's always a rebuilding - a new season, a new team."
Concord opened its season with a 14-7 victory at Nashua North.
The list of Division I contenders includes Nashua South, last year's runner-up, Pinkerton Academy and Souhegan.
Winnacunnet, last year's Division II champion, has a new coach, but a familiar name in goal.
Fred Trofater has replaced Don Kerley as the team's head coach. Trofater guided Winnacunnet's junior varsity team last season.
The Warriors will build around Nikki Hume, a two-time All-State selection who is back for her senior season in goal. Winnacunnet (2-0) began the week alone atop the Division II standings.
Winnacunnet's stiffest challenge may come from Con-Val, a program that moved up a division after winning the Division III championship last season. Con-Val beat Dover 14-2 in its first Division II contest.
Con-Val's departure may have opened the door for Portsmouth in Division III. The Clippers lost to Con-Val in last year's Division III championship game, but have a roster loaded with experience.
"The goal is to get back to the championship game and win it this time," Portsmouth coach Cindy Fitzgerald said. "Last year we had eight freshmen who weren't sure what it would be like on varsity. This year we have only three freshmen and the team knows what it needs to do."
Much of Portsmouth's success will be determined by midfielder/defender Britt Conway, who will be a scholarship player at the University of New Hampshire next season.
St. Thomas, which reached the Division II quarterfinals last year, has dropped to Division III, which now has 13 teams.
Eight teams from each division will qualify for postseason play.
Baseball: No Knock on Wood
Winnacunnet's Mike Daboul hasn't seen much baseball this spring, but apparently he's seen enough to recognize New Hampshire's top pitcher.
Daboul placed that label on Bishop Guertin's Taylor Wood after Wood held Winnacunnet to one hit when BG beat Winnacunnet, 4-0, Friday in the Class L opener for each team.
"I saw him a lot last year and I would say he's the best pitcher in the state," Daboul said. "If he's getting his curve over he's going to be real tough to hit."
Wood, a 6-foot-2 senior, was BG's No. 2 pitcher last season. His older brother, Jim, was BG's ace and was named the Class L Player of the Year.
Wood, who will attend Cornell, struck out seven in his complete-game victory over Winnacunnet.
"I don't think there's better than him," Daboul said.
Softball: Exeter Has an Ace
Unplayable fields postponed the start of the softball season in many places throughout the state, but the damp and cool conditions didn't seem to bother Exeter's Ashley Clark, who struck out 21 during her team's 6-5 13-inning victory over arch-rival Winnacunnet.
Clark, a junior, was the winning pitcher when Exeter upset second-seeded Londonderry in the preliminary round of last year's Class L tournament.
"Being in a lot of close games (last year) really helped her," Exeter coach Kristin Hodsdon-Morissette said. "She held Londonderry scoreless and this year she's more confident in her pitches."
