By Russ Waterman
MaxPreps.com
Okay, let's jump-start the Bay State baseball playoff engine and pinpoint squads with the best chances for advancing through their respective sectional rounds and regional contests and perhaps even on to state title championships in Division 1, 2 and 3.
Division 1
West
With this hyper-competitive section featuring five top 17 MaxPreps.com rankings members, fans statewide should pay attention to these squads.
The East Longmeadow Spartans, Suburban League champs and resting atop the MaxPreps rankings, are still dangerous but have lost twice in the past four games. One of those losses was to league runner-up and No. 16 Northampton, another legitimate threat.
Among other powerful representatives posing threats to unseat the defending West champion might be three Valley League powers: No. 7 conference champ Westfield (16-4); No. 12 Cathedral (16-4) and No. 17 Longmeadow (14-5).
North
Four MaxPreps' top 10 teams will compete here, not surprisingly led by 2007 state champion Lincoln-Sudbury (No. 2).
The talk of the state has been No. 3 Westford Academy (19-2), which recently defeated Lincoln-Sudbury (17-3), 7-5, to split its season series with the defending champs and then take the Dual County League title.
No. 9 Andover (15-6) and No. 10 Lawrence Central Catholic (16-4) are a pair of Merrimack Valley League rivals unlikely to go quietly into the night.
South
What happens in the South sectional doesn't always stay there and that's because of the influence of Catholic Conference teams. No. 6 Malden Catholic, the CC's regular-season champ, leads the charge this year amidst familiar company that includes No. 8 Boston College High (12-4), No. 15 Catholic Memorial (11-7), No. 22 St. John's Prep-Danvers (12-7) and No. 33 Xaverian Brothers (10-8). Perennial power Walpole, No. 11 at 16-5, has enough talent and experience to advance, too.
Central
Last year's state finalist, No. 20 Algonquin Regional (15-5), has gained momentum in recent weeks and recently upended Leominster (17-5), ranked No. 36, for the second time this season in another grueling Midland-Wachusett A contest. But Holy Name Central Catholic of Worcester (No. 42) is a prime-time name standing out in this section that should also be in the mix for the sectional title.
Division 2
North
What a muddled, but intriguing, competitive mess this might be. The pick of the litter is No. 13 Tewksbury Memorial, but it would be difficult to exclude any member of Cape Ann Large League. That includes No. 31 Masconomet Regional (14-3), No. 69 Pentucket Regional (9-4), No. 70 Wilmington (12-7) and even North Andover (9-5). How about No. 50 Peabody (15-6), No. 55 Winchester (17-3) or No. 67 Reading, with many of these teams having rich baseball pedigrees?
West
Greenfield (16-1), ranked No. 24, is on a white-hot, 17-game tear after its opening-game loss to Southwick-Tolland. The Green Wave recently shut out Turners Falls, 11-0, behind a two-hit, 18-strikeout performance by Joe Hudson, who has had a superb all-around season.
And yet who's to say this section won't end up with a Berkshire County League team advancing? If not second-place and No. 18 Taconic (13-2), which recently recorded a huge upset in beating East Longmeadow (13-2), how about No. 26 St. Joseph Central (13-2), a league champ? And third-place Monument Mountain, No. 49, in compiling a 12-3 record, only allowed 49 runs, the least of any squad in the league.
South
Can anyone rock No. 5 Plymouth North, still unbeaten at 19-0? Let's see, first there is No. 12 Milton, the Bay State League Herget champ. Some might point to No. 20 Hopkinton, the Tri-Valley League champ (15-2). Few teams have been hotter than No. 25 Dighton-Rehoboth (18-2), which has excelled for many reasons. A major factor is left-handed pitcher Nate Koneski, who is 7-0 with an ERA of 0.15.
Central
Most observers will look for one of two teams to prevail here. St. Bernard's Central Catholic, the Central Massachusetts League titlist and ranked No. 41, has had an excellent season at 14-4. No. 74 Worcester Vo-Tech, the Colonial Athletic League champs and a 2007 state semifinalist, casts a long shadow of excellence again with its traditional return appearance. Perhaps No. 89 Northbridge, South County Worcester League East champion, will be a spoiler.
Division 3
West
One team has set a blistering pace all year region and statewide: No. 21 Smith Academy of Hatfield (19-1). It will be a huge task for any postseason opponent to stop the Falcon juggernaut, which has amassed 237 runs to merely 55 for their rivals. Jeff Donnis and Chris Shulda are two of the best and most versatile players in Division 3. Don't forget No. 56 St. Mary of Westfield, Tri-County South champions with a record of 17-1. St. Mary handed the Falcons their only loss of the year.
South
No. 29 Abington (18-4) has wielded a potent offense all year, led by two hitters averaging .500 or above in Steve Perakslis and Kristian Lapointe. Westport (No. 43) made an impressive run in the Mayflower League and finished with a record of 17-3.
North
North Reading, No. 23 and another mighty Cape Ann team, ended the regular season at 14-1, is back and hungry. There will be plenty of competition, including Tyngsboro (No. 44) of the Commonwealth-Upper League, which finished with a rush on its way to an 11-6 record. And look out for No. 66 Weston (12-9), which was fourth in the Dual County League, home to Division 1 powers Lincoln-Sudbury and Westford Academy.
Central
There is only one other target bigger than Plymouth North for Bay State teams to go after and it is No. 58 West Boylston (15-0), the Midland Wachuset D champ. Plymouth North is the only other unbeaten squad left in the Bay State. The Lions have held teams to 37 runs overall, and since close games against Maynard (6-5) and Lunenburg (4-2), have won every game by four runs or more.
Prep Schools
And then there are these top 100 private and independent schools that fans can only wish would play some of their public school brethren to see how they would truly stack up.
These schools are: No. 9 Phillips Academy, NEPSAC (11-2); No. 9 35 Worcester Academy, NEPSAC (15-7); No. 62 Thayer Academy, ISL (16-3); No. 70 Cambridge Academy, NEPSAC (9-7); No. 79 St. Sebastian's Country Day, ISL (10-4); No. 82 Pingree, Eastern Independent (16-2) and finally No. 97 Belmont Hill, ISL (11-7).
Russ Waterman covers Massachusetts and Rhode Island for MaxPreps.com. He may be reached at rwathoop3@aol.com
