By Meghan Foley
Hometown Weekly Staff
The Raiders began their playoffs last week with six qualifying teams.
The girls’ lacrosse team is the 7th seed with a 12–6 record. They defeated 26th-seeded Boston Latin School 17–4 on the 27th and then 10th-seeded Acton-Boxborough Regional 12–6 on the 31st. Their next game will be against the winner of Chelmsford (2nd) vs. Beverly (15th) at a date not yet determined at the time this article was written. If the Raiders win that game, they will advance to the semifinals. Last year the Raiders were the 2nd seed and made it to the semifinals, where they were knocked out by 6th-seeded Westford Academy, who would fall to 1st-seeded Concord-Carlisle in the finals. This year, Westford is the 4th seed and Concord-Carlisle is the 3rd seed. Wellesley would not see Westford Academy unless it was in the finals, but may face Concord-Carlisle in the semifinals.
Boys’ lacrosse took the 17th seed with an 8–10 record. They won their first game against 16th-seeded Chelmsford on the road on the 29th and will have faced 1st-seeded Lincoln-Sudbury Regional on Wednesday, with the winner moving on to the final 8. Last year the Raiders were the 18th seed and made it to the final 16, but were knocked out by 2nd-seeded St. John’s Prep, who went on to win the championship. St. John’s Prep is again the 2nd seed this year, but the Raiders would only be facing them in the finals.
The girls’ tennis team has earned the 8th seed after a 15–3 season. They won their first match at home against 25th-seeded Framingham 5–0 and will have played their second on the road at 9th-seeded Belmont on Tuesday, with the winner advancing to the final 8. Last year the Raiders were the 4th seed and won the championship after an impressive 14–0 undefeated regular season. The team they beat in the finals last year was 6th-seeded Lexington, who this year is the 5th seed, and it is possible for the two to face each other this year in the semifinals.
Boys’ tennis is the 10th seed with a 13–5 record. They won their first match against 23rd-seeded North Andover 4–1 on the 28th. They will have played 7th-seeded Needham on Monday for a spot in the final 8. Last year the Raiders were knocked out by then 6th-seeded Lexington, who is the 1st seed with an undefeated 19–0 season this year following runner up placements for both the boys’ and girls’ teams last year. If the Raiders do face Lexington again it would be in the finals.
The softball team took the 25th seed with a 10–8 regular season record. They were knocked out by 8th-seeded Newton North on the 29th. Last year they were knocked out by Andover when they were the 21st seed and Andover was the 12th. This year Andover was the 9th seed but was eliminated by 24th-seeded Beverly, who will now face Newton North.
The baseball team earned the 13th seed with a 12–8 regular season record. They will have played their first game at home on Monday against 20th-seeded Waltham. The winner will have traveled to 4th-seeded St. John’s on Wednesday, June 3rd in the hopes of advancing to the final 8. Last year the Raiders were the 11th seed and made it to the final 8 before being knocked out by 14th-seeded Chelmsford. This year Chelmsford is 18th seed, but the Raiders would only face them in the finals.
The boys’ volleyball team did not qualify for the playoffs this year. They finished the season with a 4–14 record and took the 42nd seed.
Raiders’ schedules can be accessed online at: arbiterlive.com and power rankings and brackets can be found at miaa.net/game-day/tournament-central.
