The MIAA released its state tournament brackets for boys and girls hockey over the weekend, and there are a number of high-quality local teams who will be battling their way to a potential state title.
One of the most intriguing brackets to look at is the Division 1 tournament on the girls side, which is packed from top to bottom with talented teams.
It all starts up top with undefeated Austin Prep in the No. 1 spot, but the local teams aren’t far behind as St. Mary’s picked up the No. 4 seed and will have a home game to start things off in the Round of 32. The Spartans are set to host No. 29 Wayland at a time and date to be determined at Connery Rink.
Falling outside the top 10 but inside the top 20, a trio of local squads — Bishop Fenwick, Peabody/Lynnfield and Winthrop — are all in prime position to make some noise.
Fenwick, who earned the No. 13 seed, will play at home Thursday night (7:50) when it hosts No. 20 Plymouth South at Essex Sports Center.
Peabody/Lynnfield came in two spots back at the No. 15 seed and also earned a home game, which the Tanners will play Wednesday evening (5:15) against No. 18 Whitman-Hanson at McVann-O’Keefe Memorial Rink.
One spot behind the Tanners at the No. 16 seed was Winthrop, which finished the season undefeated at 17-0-1 and will play at home against No. 17 Longmeadow Thursday evening (6) at Larsen Rink.
Bringing up the rear is Marblehead, which picked up the No. 31 seed and will have to travel on the road to take on No. 2 Arlington Friday evening (6) at Ed Burns Arena.
Over on the boys’ side, St. John’s Prep leads the pack in Division 1 with the No. 1 overall seed. The Eagles will enjoy a first-round bye before hosting either No. 33 King Phillip or No. 32 Weymouth sometime this weekend.
Also in Division 1, Catholic Central League rivals St. Mary’s and Bishop Fenwick both earned first-round byes and will play their Round of 32 games this weekend. Fenwick, the No. 27 seed, will play on the road at No. 6 Arlington Saturday evening (6) at Ed Burns Arena, while No. 15 St. Mary’s will host No. 18 Chelmsford at a date, time and place to be determined.
In Division 3, the lone local team with a tournament bid is Lynnfield, and the Pioneers grabbed a spot in the top 10. Lynnfield, the No. 4 seed, earned a first-round bye and will host No. 29 Northbridge in the Round of 32 Saturday afternoon (12) at McVann-O’Keefe Memorial Rink.
The Division 4 bracket has two local teams in the top 25, with Winthrop leading the way as the No. 5 seed. The Vikings will have a bye in the first round before hosting No. 28 Rockport Saturday evening (6:30) at Larsen Rink.
Saugus comes in with the No. 24 seed, and after a first-round bye the Sachems will go on the road to face No. 9 Assabet Valley Thursday afternoon (4) at Navin Rink.
Rounding out the local teams in the state tournament on the boys side is Marblehead, who picked up the No. 15 seed in the Division 2 bracket and will play at home against No. 18 Whitman-Hanson at a date, time and place to be determined.
