> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.nh-highschoolsports.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Portsmouth girls, Manchester boys lacrosse moving up as new NHIAA cycle begins next season - URL: https://www.nh-highschoolsports.com/portsmouth-girls-manchester-boys-lacrosse-moving-up-as-new-nhiaa-cycle-begins-next-season/ - Published: 2022-06-28T12:00:11.000Z - Updated: 2022-06-28T12:00:11.000Z - Description: The end of the 2022 school year also saw the end of the New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association's latest two-year cycle, meaning it was time to reevaluate enrollments and divisions for all sanctioned sports. - Author: Joe Marchilena - Tags: Spring Sports, boys lacrosse, Division I, Division II, Division III, girls lacrosse, NHIAA, slider, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-08-18 04:44 The end of the 2022 school year also saw the end of the New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association's latest two-year cycle, meaning it was time to reevaluate enrollments and divisions for all sanctioned sports. In lacrosse, there isn't a lot of movement, but some of it will make for potentially increased competition. The biggest move has the Portsmouth girls lacrosse team moving up to Division I, after winning the previous five consecutive Division II titles and seven of the last 11. There will be one new varsity program, as Concord Christian adds a varsity girls team, but it coincides with what appears to be the loss of Belmont's girls team. On the boys side, the biggest change sees Souhegan, a long-time occupant in D1, ending its petition to play up. The Sabers will be in D2 for the first time since the 2011-12 cycle, the only other time they haven't been in D1. One other big change for the new cycle is [By-Law Article IV, Section 4, Part C](https://www.nh-highschoolsports.com/content/files/www-nhiaa-org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/6hb-21-22-iv-classification-updated-10%5F20%5F21.pdf) of the NHIAA handbook, which covers all sports with the exception of ice hockey. The rule states that any team petitioning down a division becomes ineligible for the playoffs in the first year of the cycle, and if they make the postseason in the second year, cannot petition down again for the following cycle. Here’s what the divisions will look like, with most-recent enrollment numbers in parentheses. ### Girls: Division I (1150+) - Pinkerton (3,117) - Nashua South (1,875) - Nashua North (1,690) - Dover (1,548) - Concord (1,515) - Exeter (1,513) - Bedford (1,454) - Londonderry (1,363) - Merrimack (1,158) - Salem (1,158) - Portsmouth (1,040)\* - Bishop Guertin (803)\* - Souhegan (709)\* Portsmouth moves up and should be a contender right away, while two teams that were in the division previously petitioned down to D2 - Keene-Monadnock and Manchester Central. Eight teams have traditionally made the playoffs in all girls lacrosse divisions, but with 13 teams, if the NHIAA used its 70-percent rule, nine would make the playoffs next year. ### Girls: Division II (700-1149) - Man. Memorial-West (2,260)\* - Keene-Monadnock (1,802)\* - Manchester Central (1,342)\* - Spaulding (1,331)\* - Winnacunnet (1,139) - Oyster River-Newmarket (1,135) - Alvirne (1,069) - Windham (1,062) - Timberlane (1,048) - Goffstown (1,006) - Hollis Brookline (833) - Merrimack Valley (794) - Pembroke (752) - Kingswood (735) - Kennett (730) - ConVal (711) - Hanover (690)\* - John Stark (587)\* Man. Memorial-West and Spaudling continued to petition down to stay in D2, while Central and Keene-Monadnock come down from D1 as well. All four would be ineligible for the postseason in 2023. Hanover had its enrollment drop enough that it had to petition up to stay in D2, while John Stark continued to do the same. With 18 teams in the division, if the 70-percent rule is used, there would be 12 teams making the playoffs, instead of the usual eight. ### Girls: Division III (1-699) - Milford (780)\* - Coe-Brown (697) - Bow (630) - Plymouth (626) - Lebanon (614) - Laconia (589) - Pelham (580) - Kearsarge (515) - Gilford (494) - Inter-Lakes/Moultonborough (436) - Campbell (432) - St. Thomas (416) - Hillsboro-Deering (373) - Trinity (331) - Hopkinton (322) - Derryfield (281) - Bishop Brady (242) - Concord Christian (106) Milford also continued to petition down, meaning the Spartans won't be able to participate in the playoffs in 2023\. Coe-Brown, which had petitioned up to D2 the last two cycles, will stay in D3 for the next cycle. With the addition of Concord Christian and the expected return of Hillsboro-Deering, the division is also at 18 teams. Again, if the 70-percent rule is used, there would be 12 playoff teams; otherwise, it would be traditional eight teams making the playoffs. ### Boys: Division I (1150+) - Pinkerton (3,117) - Man. Memorial-Central (2,825) - Nashua South (1,875) - Nashua North (1,690) - Dover (1,548) - Concord (1,515) - Exeter (1,513) - Bedford (1,454) - Londonderry (1,363) - Merrimack (1,158) - Salem (1,158) - Bishop Guertin (803) The division will be the smallest its been since there were only 12 teams in D1 in 2014\. It's also the first time a Manchester team will be in the division since Central moved down to D2 before the 2019 season. With just a dozen teams in the division, that means that eight will make the playoffs, based on the 70-percent rule. ### Boys: Division II (700-1149) - Keene-Monadnock (1,802)\* - Spaulding (1,331)\* - Winnacunnet (1,139) - Oyster River-Newmarket (1,135) - Alvirne (1,069) - Windham (1,062) - Timberlane (1,048) - Portsmouth (1,040) - Goffstown (1,006) - Hollis Brookline (833) - Merrimack Valley (794) - Pembroke (752) - Kingswood (735) - Kennett (730) - ConVal (711) - Souhegan (709) - Hanover (690)\* - John Stark (587)\* - St. Thomas (416)\* - Derryfield (281)\* Keene-Monadnock returns to the division after playing in D1 last year while Spaulding continues to petition down. Both teams will be ineligible for the playoffs in 2023. Like the girls team, Hanover boys had to petition up to stay in D2, while John Stark is hoping to return to varsity status after not having a team the last two years. St. Thomas and Derryfield continue to petition up. With 20 teams in the division, there should once again be 14 teams making the playoffs, per the 70-percent rule. ### Boys: Division III (1-699) - Milford (780)\* - Coe-Brown (697) - Bow (630) - Plymouth (626) - Lebanon (614) - Laconia (589) - Pelham (580) - Stevens (546) - Kearsarge (515) - Gilford (494) - Inter-Lakes/Moultonborough (436) - Campbell (432) - Hillsboro-Deering (373) - Trinity (331) - Hopkinton (322) - Bishop Brady (242) Milford continues to petition down to D3 and will be unable to make the postseason in 2023\. Coe-Brown and Bow opted not to petition up to stay in D2 for the next cycle. That makes for 16 teams in the division, which would mean 11 teams advance to the postseason, according to the 70-percent rule. While petitioning is finalized, changes are still possible, depending on programs being able to field a team or two programs possibly forming a co-op before the start of the season. The 2023 lacrosse preseason is scheduled to begin on March 20 with the first day to play games April 10 and the last day of the regular season May 28.