The Tri-Valley gets a No. 1 in Bellingham (D4), alongside serious contenders No. 4 Hopkinton and No. 5 Westwood in D2, No. 2 Medfield in D3, and No. 3 Millis in D5 .

The Middlesex League is less fortunate, creating dark horse clashes in the top three divisions. No. 13 Winchester, No. 19 Lexington and No. 25 Belmont in Division 1, No. 10 Melrose and No. 15 Burlington in Division 2 and 2023 semifinalist No. 17 Wakefield in Division 3 .

Here’s a closer look at each medium:

SECTION 1

Favorite: No. 1 Newton North.

Sleepers: No. 4 Attleboro, No. 7 Barnstable.

Players to watch: Emilie Ferdinand (junior outside, Brookline), Chloe Heitman (senior outside, Acton-Boxborough), Julia Leonardo (senior outside, Attleboro), Joyce Li (senior setter, Lincoln-Sudbury), Sasha Selivan (second setter/outside, Newton North), Charlotte Skulte (senior midfielder, Bishop Feehan).

Longest road trip in the first round: No. 26 Concord-Carlisle to No. 7 Barnstable — 91 miles.

Preview: The best teams in this division have certainly shown that on any given day, opponents can produce a very different result. Newton North is equipped to defend its title with a powerful passing/hitting duo of Selivan and Devon Burke.

Of note, the two best performances against Newton North were the second time the teams faced the Tigers (Needham, with a five-set loss and Brookline a four-set victory). Watch out for these two, as well as the Lincoln-Sudbury #3, which headed north in early October.

No. 7 Barnstable had a wild season, beating No. 5 Needham, No. 9 Franklin and No. 12 Newton South, forcing a fifth set against Westborough and No. 4 Attleboro, but losing consecutive sets at #1. 13 Winchester and No. 8 Bishop Feehan. It would be far from surprising to see a Tom Turco-led Red Hawks team peak at the right time.

SECTION 2

Favorite: No. 1 Westborough.

Sleepers: No. 6 Canton, No. 10 Melrose.

Players to watch: Adriana Aquino (senior outside, Hopkinton), Erin Bigham (junior setter, Canton), Leah Fowke (senior setter, Melrose), Ella Quin (senior midfielder, Billerica), Addyson Smock (senior midfielder, Oliver Ames), Georgia Tyrell ( senior away, Westborough).

Longest road trip in the first round: No. 36 Agawam to No. 29 Scituate — 123 miles.

Preview: Although Westborough is without star Quinn Anderson (a freshman at Stony Brook) in its quest for three straight games, the Rangers have a stellar senior trio of Tyrell, setter Sam Norman and libero Montana Weaver . The Rangers have lost a set to teams outside of Division 1 this season and have only lost to Newton North.

Canton, the other 2023 finalist, has a tougher path to the finals, entering as a No. 6 seed without top hitter Jess Wright, who graduated. They have Bigham and sophomore libero Soley Rodriguez Martinez, forming one of the best passing duos in the state. No. 4 Hopkinton has a senior group that has become more and more formidable as the season has gone on, and No. 3 Billerica has beaten everyone in its path so far.

SECTION 3

Favorite: No. 1 Weston.

Sleepers: n°6 Nipmuc, n°10 Dennis-Yarmouth.

Players to watch: Vivian Castano (senior setter, Dennis-Yarmouth), Jasmyn Dybantsa (sophomore middle, Cardinal Spellman), Kendall Larkin (junior outside, Medfield), Aubrie Letourneau (senior setter, Old Rochester), Fielding Mayhugh (senior outside, Weston ), Lauren Tabakin (senior outside, Nipmuc).

Longest road trip in the first round: No. 41 Taconic to No. 24 Danvers — 158 miles.

Overview: For anyone to topple Weston, the game plan would start with containing Mayhugh. A power hitter who is now more comfortable winning the championship, the centerpiece of the program Because the Wildcats are one of the few in D3 to be able to resume matches.

No. 2 Medfield hasn’t beaten Weston this season, but took the Wildcats to five sets and then four, showing their potential. No. 4 Old Rochester and No. 10 Dennis-Yarmouth have seniors who break records quarterback their offenses. Shawsheen has a deep and versatile team without any loss so far.

SECTION 4

Favorite: No. 1 Bellingham.

Sleeper: No. 5 Hudson.

Players to watch: Maddie Blette (senior setter, East Bridgewater), Madilyn Botelho (junior outside, Case), Graydin Frankel (senior setter, Millbury), Mia Milani (sophomore outside, Bellingham), Addison Pillis (senior midfielder, Ipswich), Carly Tarantola (junior outside, Ursuline).

Longest road trip in the first round: No. 23 Latin Academy to No. 10 Wahconah — 143 miles.

Preview: With (undefeated) Ipswich winning the last three D4 titles and Case among the state’s winningest programs when it comes to championships, these are no ordinary No. 2 and No. 3 seeds, respectively. Ipswich have a senior hitting duo in Pillis and outside Claire Buletza looking to win another title on the road.

Bellingham is the top seed with its rigorous Tri-Valley regular season, and the core that made history with the Blackhawks’ first appearance in the 2023 Finals, he’s looking to come back and finish this time. The MIAA’s proposed alignments allow Bellingham and Case to move up to a tougher D3 next season, which could therefore be their best chance to win it all.

SECTION 5

Favorite: No. 1 Bourne.

Sleeper: No. 7 Lenox.

Players to watch: Meredith Gatz (senior midfielder/opposition, Millis), Sofia Halunen (junior setter/opposition, Bourne), Shaneidy Hernandez (senior midfielder, Baystate Academy), Kelsey Kirchner (senior midfielder, Lenox), Maria Ramos (junior hitter, Whitinsville Christian ), Kylie Sweren (senior setter, Mt. Greylock).

Longest road trip in the first round: No. 39 English High to No. 26 Renaissance — 95 miles.

Preview: After Bourne’s second-place finish last year, coach David Moore was proud of his young team, saying “We’ll be there, we’ll have our day.” The Canalmen have the No. 1 seed this time around, with a deep junior class.

Defending champion Mt. Greylock got its standout outside hitter Celina Savage, but Kylie Sweren still contributes all over the court. MG won fourth place. Millis was just 10-8 in the regular season, but he enters the bracket as the No. 3 seed.

end text

AJ Traub can be contacted at [email protected].