Playoff Preview: Souhegan gets top seed in D2 field hockey postseason

The Souhegan High School field hockey team looks like the class of Division II, with the Sabers only blemish coming against Windham, the defending champions. The Sabers will play the winner of Goffstown and Portsmouth in the quarterfinals, and have defeated them both.

Portsmouth, the ninth seed, looked solid near the end of the year with four wins in a row, but then the Clippers lost their last two against Kingswood and Hanover, not getting a single tally. It would be rough to advance and compete with Souhegan if they couldn’t play against the lower seeds.

Second-seeded Windham will match up against either No. 10 Sanborn or No. 7 Plymouth in the quarterfinals. Windham hasn’t lost since Sept. 1, when the Jaguars played Souhegan the first time around, but they did tie on the last day of the season, playing to a scoreless draw against Derryfield.

The Cougars, the third seed and last year's runner-up, dominated all season other than a surprising 5-0 loss against Hanover. A 3-3 midseason tie against Lebanon also indicates that Derryfield might be vulnerable. The Cougars will play sixth-seeded Kennett or No. 11 Hollis Brookline, who eked into the postseason by winning four of its final five games.

Kennett had some inconsistencies during the season, beating Hanover, Kingswood and Plymouth, but losing to Berlin, a Division III team, and getting knocked off by Derryfield twice. The Eagles might surprise some people, and facing Derryfield for a third time could be intriguing.

Kingswood and Hanover matchup in a heavyweight four-five match in the quarterfinals. Kingswood won seven in a row before a stunning 1-0 loss to Plymouth at the end of the year. The Knights have quietly been solid all season long.

Hanover’s success has gone even more under the radar. The Marauders only losses all year came against Plymouth and Kennett, and they’ve beaten Derryfield. It will be an interesting match with the winner potentially getting Souhegan in the semifinals.

Plymouth is the biggest wild card, facing Windham, if the Bocats can get past Sanborn. They have five losses, but have beaten the likes of Kennett, Hanover and Kingswood.

Souhegan and Windham look like the favorites, but D2 could also have a winner come from a much lower seed.

Preliminary Round

Tuesday, Oct. 17

• No. 9 Portsmouth (7-6-1) at No. 8 Goffstown (8-6), 3 p.m.
• No. 10 Sanborn (7-6-1) at No. 7 Plymouth (7-5-1), 3 p.m.
• No. 11 Hollis Brookline (6-8) at No. 6 Kennett (8-5-1), 3 p.m.

Quarterfinals

Friday, Oct. 20

• Portsmouth/Goffstown at No. 1 Souhegan (13-1), 3 p.m.
• No. 5 Kingswood (10-3-1) at No. 4 Hanover (10-2-2), 3 p.m.
• Sanborn/Plymouth at No. 2 Windham (12-1-1), 3 p.m.
• HB/Kennett at No. 3 Derryfield (10-1-3), 3 p.m.

Semifinals

Tuesday, Oct. 24

• at Bill Ball Stadium in Exeter, 5 and 7 p.m.

Final

Sunday, Oct. 29

• at Bedford High School, 5 p.m.