Pinkerton gets top seed, Winnacunnet looks for third straight D1 field hockey title

The Pinkerton Academy field hockey team went 11-1-2 in the regular season to earn the No. 1 seed and will be looking to reach the finals for the fourth time in five years.

Meanwhile, second-seeded Winnacunnet will be going for its third-straight Division I title. The Warriors were one of four teams to receive a bye into the quarterfinals, joining Pinkerton, Timberlane and Merrimack.

The preliminary round begins on Thursday, with No. 5 Exeter (10-2-2) hosting No. 12 Keene (3-11) at 3:30 p.m. Exeter won the lone regular-season meeting, 2-0 on Aug. 29. The winner of that game will face No. 4 Merrimack (10-1-3) at 2 p.m. on Oct. 21 in the quarterfinals.

No. 6 Salem (8-4-2) will host No. 11 Dover (5-9), also at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday in the preliminary round. Salem defeated Dover 2-0 on Sept. 19 in the teams' only regular-season game. The winner will take on No. 3 Timberlane (11-2-1) in the quarterfinals at 2 p.m. on Oct. 21.

No. 7 Londonderry (9-5) hosts No. 10 Bedford (6-8) on Thursday at 3:3o p.m. Bedford defeated Londonderry during the regular season, 4-3 on Oct. 4. The winner moves to the quarterfinals, where it will face No. 2 Winnacunnet (12-2) at 2 p.m. on Oct. 21.

No. 8 Bishop Guertin (7-7) will host No. 9 Manchester Memorial (7-7) at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday. Bishop Guertin won the lone regular-season meeting, 3-2, on Sept. 13. The winner will take on No. 1 Pinkerton (11-1-2) in the quarterfinals at 2 p.m. on Oct. 21.

The semifinals are scheduled for Oct. 25 at Bill Ball Stadium in Exeter, and the final will be Oct. 28 at Bedford High School.