MIAA gridiron playoffs set
FRANKLIN — Football seeding day has become a second Christmas for Xaverian coach Charlie Stevenson.
He made the trek to the MIAA headquarters early yesterday morning to see the pairings meeting. While he’s a veteran, Stevenson still loves seeing the entire process unfold.
“I think there is a lot of excitement for all the teams who make the tournament,” said Stevenson, whose Hawks earned the top seed in Division 1 South and will host Franklin. “Everyone is 0-0 and have the opportunity to continue their season, and that’s a great thing.”
While the road to Div. 1 South glory runs through the three-time sectional champion Hawks, the Div. 1 North field is torture. Two of the top five teams in the latest Herald Sweet 16, Haverhill and Everett, meet in a first-round contest, with the winner likely taking on another power in Central Catholic.
“Don’t forget maybe even St. John’s Prep,” Everett coach John DiBiaso said. “It’s a tough bracket for us, but we tell the kids that we can only worry about Haverhill right now.”
Div. 1A South has a pair of interesting first-round tilts in Bridgewater-Raynham at Natick and Marshfield at Mansfield.
A sneaky good section is Div. 3 South, where top-seed Hanover and No. 2 Holliston are on opposite sides of the bracket. The Panthers could be looking at a secondround contest against undefeated Old Rochester.
East Bridgewater and Norwell, who just played (the Vikings won), are the top two seeds in Div. 3A South. St. Mary’s tops in Div. 3A North and will face a dangerous No. 8 seed in Winthrop. Stoneham is a legitimate sleeper in the section as a seven-seed.
If seeds hold true in Div. 4 North, it could be a highpowered offensive battle in the final as No. 1 Brighton and No. 2 Cathedral are both undefeated.
The rest of the top seeds: Lincoln-Sudbury (Div. 1A North), Tewksbury (Div. 2 North), Duxbury (Div. 2 South), Marblehead (Div. 2A North), Falmouth (Div. 2A South), Watertown (Div. 3 North), Nantucket (Div. 4 South), Latin Academy (Div. 4A North), Millis (Div. 4A South).