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Several Massachusetts-based lacrosse players, along with host New England talent, were named to the Under Armour All-American game's boys' and girls' rosters on Thursday.

Duxbury defender Max Randall and Beverly's Will Ryan, goaltender at Avon Old Farms (Conn.), will represent the Bay State on the North boys' roster. They will be joined by a talented trio from Darien (Conn.) representing New England, as Blue Wave defender Tony Britton, attack Case Matheis and midfielder Henry West all made the squad.

Also, Deerfield Academy goaltender Luke Aaron, a native of Great Falls, Va., will play with the South squad.

On the girls' side, Massachusetts is well represented with six players. Lincoln-Sudbury's Madison Acton, Thayer Academy's Bryn Boucher (Hningham) and Westwood's Laura McHoul will all patrol the midfield on the North roster while Andover's Anne Farnham and Needham's Tory Waldstein will bolster the defensive corps in front of Governor's Academy goaltender Kelsey Duryea (Beverly).

The Under Armour All-American game will be played at Johnny Unitas Stadium at Towson University in Towson, Md., on June 30. The girls’ All-American game will begin at 5 p.m. followed by the boys’ game at 8 p.m. The boys' game will be broadcast live on ESPNU at 8 p.m.

The complete game rosters can be found here.

We updated our statewide MIAA Top 25 poll this afternoon, and for the third consecutive week we have a new team holding down the No. 1 spot.

Westwood reclaimed their preseason ranking as No. 1 in last week's poll, but that lasted just 24 hours before the Wolverines fell victim to another loss, this time the Needham Rockets. With the win, Needham jumps up one spot to No. 1, marking the program's first appearance at the top in the two-year history of the poll.

Lincoln-Sudbury moves into the No. 2 spot, while Westwood falls two spots to No. 3. Andover (4) and Notre Dame of Hingham (5) round out the top five.

Making its return to the polls this week is Agawam, which backs into No. 25 despite dropping two straight to Western Mass. powerhouses Minnechaug and Longmeadow.

For the complete poll, CLICK HERE.

Every win streak, no matter its length, has an expiration date.

Learning the life span of record runs for Portsmouth High baseball (89 games) and Londonderry High girls' lacrosse (59 games) ended in the same week, however, was certainly unexpected.

The Clippers run of consecutive NHIAA wins on the diamond, currently a national record, was snapped April 30 by Seacoast rival St. Thomas Aquinas High. The Dover club celebrated a comeback 5-4 home win.

“This year's group, 2012, is the most different of all the five teams (that contributed to the streak),” Portsmouth head coach Tim Hopley said. “Ten of the 18 guys had never been in a varsity game before the season started, and they weren't necessarily invested in what had happened in the past.

“Yet our best players, our leaders, pointed us in the right direction and they went out and were able to get the record back,” added Hopley, referring to Martensdale-St. Mary's (Iowa) High, which briefly broke the Clippers' record last season. “Whether it be for a few weeks or longer is irrelevant. It really is."

The Lancers' state-record streak of NHIAA wins was stopped by visiting Concord High. The date was May 5. The score was 14-12.

“I told the girls, 'Now it's done. You've set the bar for the state. You've done something that's going to be awfully hard to do again. Now you can focus on the next game. As long as we don't lose the last one, that's what matters,'” said Londonderry coach Bob Slater, whose program owned one of the nation's longest overall win streaks, a 51-gamer, until last season's 12-9 loss at Andover (Mass.) High.

Portsmouth, the four-time defending Division II champion, last lost an NHIAA contest in the 2007 quarterfinals. Hollis/Brookline High eliminated the Clippers, 4-3.

Londonderry, the three-time defending Division I champ, hadn't lost to an in-state foe since the 2008 title game. Amherst's Souhegan High scored a 15-7 win.

Both streaks were snapped by teams that nearly won a state title last spring. STA and Concord closed their 2011 campaigns in heartbreaking fashion.

The Saints were four outs from hoisting hardware. Pitching ace and star slugger Jordan Bean -– less than a calendar year before scoring the streak-snapping run -– was tagged for a two-out, two-strike bases-clearing double in the home sixth. It was the critical blow in a four-run inning for the Clippers, 9-6 winners.

The Crimson Tide erased a five-goal halftime deficit and had the chance to tie the championship at 10-apiece with 21 seconds to play. But goaltender Sarah Ford clinched the 10-9 win for the Lancers by stopping Jenna Tewksbury's free-position shot.

Here's how the win streaks came to a halt:

STA rallied for four runs in its last at-bat. Chris White ripped the game-winning single back through the box. White's winner scored Bean, who belted a two-run, game-tying double in addition to scattering eight hits and allowing two earned runs over six frames.

“We have a tremendous amount of respect for the entire Portsmouth program and all that they have accomplished over the past five years. I think this year's victory went a long way to dispel the myth in the minds of our players that we simply cannot beat them,” said STA coach Marc Schoff, whose program entered the showdown 49-15 since 2009, with eight of those losses to the Clippers.

“One of our players said after the St. Thomas game that most people never have the opportunity to set a significant national record once in their lifetime," Hopley said. "But we were fortunate enough to be able to accomplish it twice.”

Concord quickly surrendered four goals, but rebounded to take a 7-5 halftime lead. Late in regulation, Jane Symmes ensured the game's seventh tie didn't materialize. Winning the draw with her team protecting a 12-11 lead, she scored Concord's critical 13th goal.

“They got down, 4-0, at the beginning and that was a wake-up call. After that, they got back into the game and took charge,” Concord coach Terry Anderson told the New Hampshire Sunday News. “This was an intense and competitive game, and the difference was ball control, just getting the draw and making good decisions.”

MORE WITH HOPLEY
What else did Portsmouth's baseball coach say about the national record-setting streak?

On the post-game message after losing: “First, standing in short right field 3 minutes after the game, we told them that it was bound to happen at some point, and that we really did do everything that day to win.

“The next day was the second step, more reflectionary. We told them how proud we were of them for what they had accomplished and for how they handled themselves through everything. It had to be said, and it will be said to every player who's been a part of this crazy ride. But we also reminded them that the seventh game of the season wasn't going to, couldn't, and shouldn't define who we were as a group.”

On winning while in the national spotlight: “The fact that the last two groups had to deal with the circus of media attention was probably fun at the time. But in hindsight, for 15-, 16-, 17-year-old high school kids who have to worry about a Calc test, their girlfriends, and cleaning up their room so mom and dad stop yelling, dealing with something like that is pretty heady stuff.

“And I'm sure we'd all do it again in a minute if we had the chance.”

NOTEWORTHY
– Holly Kathios, a freshman pitcher for the softball team at Nashua's Bishop Guertin High, threw a complete-game no-hitter on May 10. She notched nine strikeouts, worked around three walks, and contributed a fourth-inning RBI single. The Cardinals beat Hampton's Winnacunnet High, 2-0.

– Jake Kennedy, a soon-to-be senior at Amherst's Souhegan High, was nominated for the U.S. Army All-American Bowl on Jan. 5, 2013. Offered a scholarship by the University of Massachusetts, the offensive and defensive lineman is one of 400 football players nationwide, and the only one from New Hampshire, to receive a nomination. Ninety players will be selected later this year for the East vs. West matchup televised on NBC.

Marc Thaler is a reporter for the New Hampshire Union Leader & Sunday News. He co-hosts the “N.H. Sports Show” on Manchester's WGIR-AM 610 and the Seacoast's 96.7 FM every Saturday morning. Read his “New Hampshire GameDay” blog and follow him on Twitter: @marc_thaler.

We updated our statewide MIAA Top 25 Girls Lacrosse Poll earlier this afternoon, before Wednesday's slate of games, and a familiar face has taken over the top spot.

Westwood, our preseason No. 1, has elevated back to the No. 1 spot for the first time since dropping their season-opener to Lincoln-Sudbury. The Wolverines' vault comes as the expense of previous No. 1 Notre Dame of Hingham, which lost to Andover last week. But for the second straight week, a team coached by a member of the Frank family is in the top spot; the Cougars are coached by Meredith Frank, daughter of legendary Westwood head coach Leslie Frank.

Needham moves into the No. 2 spot, while Lincoln-Sudbury (4) and Andover (5) round out the top five.

The other big mover of the week is Algonquin, which jumps up seven spots to No. 7 following its win over archrival Westborough, its first over the familiar foe since May 2008. It's the first time the Tomahawks have entered the Top 10 of the poll in the two-year history of ESPN Boston's high school section.

Also of note, Archbishop Williams (22) and Ashland (25) make their season debuts this week.

See if your team made the cut this week by CLICKING HERE.

Brewster Academy post-graduate guard Joe Bramanti put an end to his recruitment on Friday with a pledge to Wright State, according to the Dayton Daily News.

The 6-foot-2 Bramanti chose the Raiders over The Citadel, Jacksonville, Wofford and Rider.

"I pretty much liked everything about Wright State," he told the paper. "The situation was perfect for me. It being far away from home was the only drawback I saw. Athletically, it's a great spot. The facilities are amazing. All the coaches I love, and all the players I love, so it was a perfect spot for me."

Playing along side six future Division I players, Bramanti helped Brewster to a 33-1 record and a National Prep Championship this past season. Following his senior season at Andover High in 2010-11, he was named to ESPN Boston's inaugural MIAA All-State Team.

ESPNHS has updated its national girls lacrosse "FAB 50" poll this morning, which you can view by clicking here.

Lincoln-Sudbury, the No. 1 team in ESPN Boston's statewide MIAA poll, moves up one spot in the national poll, to No. 37. Meanwhile, Westwood returns to the national poll at No. 48, after a two-week absence.

Dropping out of the poll locally were Andover (46) and Needham (50), as well as Connecticut power Darien (26). The other Connecticut team on the poll, Wilton, also moved up one spot to No. 46.

NEEDHAM, Mass. -- Heading into this afternoon's much-anticipated showdown with Andover, Needham head coach Beth O'Brien stressed to her team the importance of getting on the scoreboard first.

But when you play for a coach as fiercely passionate as O'Brien, it turned out, one goal is never enough. Because the Rockets didn't just get on the board first -- they lit up the board in the first half, jetting out to a commanding halftime lead and making it hold up after staving off a late rally from the Golden Warriors, prevailing 13-9 in a matchup between two of the state's top five programs loaded with Division 1-caliber talent.

"That's something we've struggled on, coming out and scoring those first few goals, and then having the ability to maintain that throughout the game," O'Brien said. "That was a big step for us."

The Rockets (7-1) reeled off an 8-1 run in the first half to take a 10-4 lead over Andover (7-2) at the break, with junior Maddie Stenberg and sophomore Catherine Conley combining for seven of those scores. The duo got opportunities for points off free position shots, but also moved the ball around the attacking zone with efficiency, slipping through some of the state's most talented defenders with split-dodges, and using the space behind the net to create net-front presence.

Three straight scores from Conley with less than five minutes to go in the first half gave Needham all the cushion it would need in the end. First, Conley cut down the middle towards the net and put a one-timer from behind the net top shelf, with 4:04 to go. Two and a half minutes later, she scored on a free position shot; that was followed with 52 seconds remaining in the half with a wrap-around, for a 10-3 advantage.

Conley finished with four goals and an assist, while Stenberg led all scorers on the day with five goals and two assists.

"Cat had a great game today," O'Brien said. "She was one of our leading scorers last year as a freshman, and was suffering a little bit of an injury at the beginning of the season, so this is what we like to call a 'Coming Out Day'. She's been having some great games, but this is really the Catherine Conley that we know is there. She's a phenomenal player who is only going to continue to get better."

O'Connor Shines in Net: Sophomore goalie Annee O'Connor came up with eight saves in net, all of them seemingly brilliant with a large degree of difficulty. That included three saves on free position shots as well.

"Let's face it, she's only a sophomore...[But] those saves, she's capable of making those," O'Brien said. "She's been mentally able to get herself to that next level, as far as, 'You know what, two or three are going to go in, but I've got to make that next stop. She's just been working incredibly hard."

Lockdown D: Speaking to O'Connor's performance, O'Brien heaved plenty of praise unto the defense in front of her, calling it their best performance of the year and giving the sophomore goalie plenty of confidence. Considering the Rockets are already allowing just over six goals per game, and boast Division 1-bound midfielders in Shelby Aubin (Georgetown) and Tory Waldstein (Harvard), that praise is especially impressive.

"They were composed, they were aggressive," O'Brien said. "The referees were great. They [Needham] figured out they were being allowed to play the game, so they took some chances. They communicated well, their slides were good, their switches were good, it was just a very well-rounded game for them."

Dink and Dunk: One area the Rockets excelled at in the offensive end was with flashing towards the net, and in turn drawing defenders outward to open up diagonal lanes underneath in front of the net. That created some entry passes that were dumped off at close range from the net.

Between UConn-bound attack Ally Fazio, UMass-bound twins Anne and Kate Farnham, along with a supporting cast of scorers like juniors Jaclyn Torres and Meagan Keefe, Andover is not exactly a team where one can afford to mark a specific player. Asked if there was anything specific the Rockets were looking to exploit, O'Brien noted the Warriors' quick adjustments, pointing to Torres, who scored the team's first four goals.

"We were really more just trying to draw anybody out," O'Brien said. "Because we were just trying to create space for those lanes, to either dodge or free up that open person because they were starting to double us, so we needed to free up that person and find that open person in the middle."

Read and React: Needham won 11 of the game's first 15 draw controls, which yielded a sizeable advantage in time of possession.

"That's something that we've been working on," O'Brien said. "We've been doing reaction drills for the last week and a half, because we knew that was what would cost us as we face this tough schedule ahead. It's something that we've been working intensely on, in regards to just, getting those draw controls, working on just really that reaction time, getting off that line first, because we knew it was going to be won on the circle or on the restraining line."

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- Concord-Carlisle got a spectacular defensive effort and timely and effective offensive possessions to defeat fellow Division 2 power Wellesley 8-4 on Saturday in the finals of the 2012 Coaches Challenge Cup.

Concord-Carlisle (6-0) got out to a 6-1 halftime lead and never looked back as they moved the ball efficiently on offense, received strong net play from senior goalie Doug Gouchoe and added great rotational team defense in the second half to seal the victory.

“It has been a great week,” Concord-Carlisle head coach Tom Dalicandro said.” The defense was awesome. “I knew Doug [Gouchoe] would be Doug but I am very impressed with the defense led by Henry [Bumpus]. Henry is the only one back and the other guys played JV last year. Evan Boynton was a short stick d-middie and Sam Barrett transferred back in.”

Wellesley (5-2) got on the board first to open the game as senior midfielder Oliver Saffery scored the first of his two goals on the day to give Wellesley a 1-0 lead. Concord-Carlisle would answer back with six unanswered tallies, including two man-up goals in the second quarter, to take a five goal lead into the half.

“This week we have come out so strong in the first two quarters,” Gouchoe said. “It is up to the defense to preserve that lead. Our offense has proved they can come out and score 8-9 goals now and that is big for our defense.”

Saffery would strike again out of the break for the Red Raiders on a man-up rip to cut the C-C lead to 6-2. Wellesley senior goalie Connor Darcey made 12 saves on the day with four coming in Wellesley’s third quarter shutout.

Trailing 6-2 heading into the fourth quarter Wellesley buckled down on defense and cut the lead to 6-3 as they held C-C scoreless for a 20-minute period before C-C senior attack Mike O’Brien beat the Wellesley defense on a great individual effort to ensure the win for the Patriots.
“We have to play smart,” said O’Brien. “We are not the flashiest players but we have a lot of kids who work hard and are smart with the ball. When we play well we are a really hard team beat.”

Wellesley also received strong play from senior long stick midfielder Ryan Cassidy, who excelled all tournament long for the Red Raiders. The senior followed up a huge semi-final effort in a win over Winchester with another strong performance on Saturday.

“It was great team win,” said C-C’s Bumpus. “We are playing smart and that has been what is getting us ahead in these teams. We do not make mistakes and that is what led to the Coaches Cup win.”

C-C freshman attack Will Blumenberg and junior attack Tim Badgley each scored twice for Concord-Carlisle in the win.

“Our offense starts with our defense,” senior attack Jackson Finigan said. “Without our defense we would not get as many opportunities for our offense. Our defense transitions the ball so well and gives us so many chances. We know that even if we do not get it the first time we are going to get the ball back.”

D-MIDDIES IN FOCUS
As good as Gouchoe and C-C’s close defense was on the day the most unheralded work was done by the d-midfield unit of seniors Tyler Koning (1 G), Anthony West, junior Brendan Finigan and sophomore Nick McCormack.

“Those guys played JV last year,” Dalicandro said. “Brendan, Tyler, Westy, and Nick was even on the freshman team. They all did a great job today.”

CUP REMATCH
The 2012 finals was a rematch of the 2011 Coaches Challenge Cup finals that was held in Winchester. Wellesley defeated C-C 5-2 on a rain soaked Saturday afternoon to win the Cup for Wellesley.

Darcey was the star of last year’s game as the Penn-State bound net minder had 15 saves in the win.

After Saturday’s game Wellesley head coach Rocky Batty graciously handed the trophy over to Concord-Carlisle.

“Concord-Carlisle deserves this trophy,” said Batty after the game as he presented the Cup to C-C. “You won with class and if we are lucky we will get to play you again in June.”

HINGHAM TAKES CONSOLATION
In the third place game Hingham defeated Winchester 9-5 behind four goals from senior attack Noah Ellis and two goals from senior attack Kevin Blair.

Hingham led 7-2 at the half but Winchester stormed back in the third quarter to cut the deficit to 8-5. Hingham midfielder Caleb Brodie would score the lone fourth quarter goal as the Harbormen take home third place in the Coaches Cup.

Lincoln-Sudbury defeated Andover 9-6 and Dover-Sherborn defeated North Andover 6-4 in the first two Coaches Cup consolation games of the day.

We updated our statewide MIAA Top 25 girls lacrosse poll this afternoon, following this week's slew of April Vacation games, and for the second week in a row Lincoln-Sudbury holds down the top spot.

The top three remain unchanged, with Westwood staying at No. 2 and Andover No. 3, while Needham and Notre Dame of Hingham each moved up a spot following Longmeadow's loss to rival Minnechaug. The Lancers dropped four spots to No. 8 with the loss, its third to the Falcons in the last four meetings.

Elsewhere, Medfield makes a quantum leap into the poll, debuting at No. 12, while Masconomet (21) and Wayland (25) also make their season premieres.

See where your team lands this week by clicking here. As always, let us know how we're doing in the comments section below, or by emailing Brendan Hall at bhall@espnboston.com

DOVER, Mass. -- Both Andover and Lincoln-Sudbury rebounded after their opening round matches on Tuesday with wins against Dover-Sherborn and North Andover.

Andover and L-S will meet on Saturday in Wellesley at 12:00pm, while D-S and North Andover will kick-off the final day of the Coaches Cup at 10:00AM.

LINCOLN-SUDBURY 12, DOVER-SHERBORN 11: Entering the fourth quarter trailing D-S by three goals, L-S regrouped and tallied five unanswered strikes to defeat the Raiders, 12-11.

“We knew we were going to comeback,” L-S head coach Brian Vona said. “We’ve just been that team all year.”

L-S tied the game with 20 seconds remaining when junior Henry Guild, (5 G) rushed to the right side of the D-S zone before he whipped the ball past the Raiders junior netminder Ryan Goodall for the equalizer.

“I’m just looking at the clock thinking we’re down by one, and we needed one, and instincts just kind of kicked in. All the coaching that we had just kind of kicked in, and I think I got a little lucky to be honest,” Guild said. “I went low to low, and [my shot] just bounced off the grass, the grass had a really nice bounce and it just bounced right up and in.”

On the ensuing possession, junior Chris Giorgio scooped up a loose ground ball, which was initiated by the game’s final face-off before Vona called a timeout, and crafted a play that instructed his team to feed junior Dan Delaney, (5 G, 1 A) for the go-ahead goal.

And luckily for Vona, his play worked out, as Delaney dodged through the D-S zone, and rifled a shot past Goodall for the game-winner.

“We were aware of the clock, we knew we had 13 seconds [following a timeout], and I had a lot of room on [the right side], and I was going to the goal,” Delaney said of his game winning strike. “I was going to the goal.”

“Ironically, exactly what we did, which never happens in high school lacrosse, but exactly what we drew up,” Vona added. “We knew they’d shut off the two adjacent passes, and we just skipped a pass and went from there, so it was a good pass to make it, and a hell of an athletic play by Danny to make it happen.”

D-S jumped out to a quick 5-2 lead thanks to senior Jared Spence, (5 G), and extended it to 8-4 at the break. However, once the second half commenced, L-S appeared rejuvenated, and notched two back-to-back strikes by Guild and Delaney during the final 30 seconds of the third quarter, which provided the Warriors with all the momentum.

The Raiders only fourth quarter goal came at 8:59 when senior Ben Newbert centered a pass to junior Brandon Jaeger, who then deposited the ball past Warriors senior goaltender Dan Shaughnessy.

D-S never scored again, as their defense allowed L-S to net four goals in a span of five minutes, which secured their fifth victory of the season.

“I think all of our guys played a tough game, we did not quit, [and in the] fourth quarter came back and won it,” Delaney said. “I think that was an important win for our team.”

Andover 10, North Andover 7: Starring at their third consecutive loss, Andover’s offense rebounded following a lackluster third quarter, and tallied six unanswered strikes in the fourth, which lifted the Golden Warriors past North Andover, 10-7.

Andover’s senior Tom LoMedico, (2G, 1A) sparked the rally by connecting with sophomore Will Reardon, (3G, 2A) at 10:28 before he and senior Matt McIver recorded back-to-back tallies, which tied the game, 7-7.

“I think the whole team started really believing, and I think we knew we could comeback the whole time, so once we started putting a few in, it just really helped us comeback,” LoMedico said.

The Golden Warriors regained the lead for good two minutes after their game-tying strike when McIver found LoMedico before Andover increased their lead with two additional goals by junior Andrew Eriksen and senior Jeff Hanson.

“I felt like we were kind of making rash decisions, and throwing the ball a little bit more then we needed to, and kind of pushing it into spots where we were kind of forcing the ball, and what we said at the end of the third quarter was that we know that we can score, we have 12 minutes, and let’s make sure we’re not forcing [passes or goals],” Andover head coach Wayne Puglisi said. “That was the main message.”

Andover began the game with a 2-1 advantage, but North Andover responded with four consecutive strikes, which gave the Knights a 5-3 lead at halftime.

North Andover extended their lead to 7-4 in the third when junior Nathaniel Hitchcock tallied back-to-back strike before Andover rallied to beat their crosstown rival for the first time since 2010.

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. -- In one of this year's top boys' lacrosse leagues, Concord-Carlisle and Lincoln-Sudbury are once more playing the role of the Dual County Leagues' perennial powerhouses.

An early season matchup between the defending conference champs may have started a potential let down, but a late push from the No. 2 Warriors in the Coaches Challenge Cup quarterfinals yesterday afternoon showed why both squads remain top in the state.

With C-C jumping ahead by five goals early, L-S (4-2) battled back but never led as they fell by a slim 8-7 margin at Joe Walsh Stadium in North Andover.

“They are the class of the league and we measure ourselves against them,” C-C head coach Tom Dalicandro said. “We said 'value the ball, posses the ball, and take good shots'. I think we did a much better job today than we have done this year of valuing possession.”



The No. 8 Patriots (4-0) burst out of the gate with the first three goals and a 6-1 lead to open.

Ducking defenders from the top corners of their offense, leading scorer Kevin Delehey netted all three of his goals off isolation plays in the first quarter. Slipping under a pair of Warriors, the C-C senior found himself five-yard in front of the netminder in the final seconds of the initial quarter to send the Patriots into the break up 5-1 with his final tally.

A wide-open open breakaway by long-pole Henry Bumpus left the senior walking into one-on-one with the keeper as he put the DCL (Small) defending champs up 6-1 at 11:04 in the second.

“We were able to generate some good offense out of our dodges,” Delehey said. “I run through those dodges hundreds if not thousands of times. At this point so it is really just reaction.”

After two turnaround tallies put the Warriors down 6-3 at half, L-S junior Jordan Dow nailed a pair of open-net man-up opportunities to help cut the deficit early in the third. L-S junior Dan Delaney rolled around his defender and hit a rip ten yards out to bring the score to 7-6 with 4:42 left in the quarter.

Delaney and Dow led the Warriors with two goals, while C-C senior Mike O'Brien also netted a pair.

“We called an invert and saw some matchups we really liked,” L-S head coach Brian Vona said. “We eventually just tightened up defensively. They just out everything'd us.”

Trading goals between the final quarters, L-S entered the last ten minutes down 8-7, but was unable to finish a pair of man-up chances along the post. A steal by C-C senior keeper Doug Gouchoe from behind the net sealed the victory in the final seconds.

HINGHAM ROLLS AGAIN


In other Coaches Cup quarterfinals action, No. 3 Hingham (5-0) never trailed as it was lead to a 9-5 victory over No. 14 Dover-Sherborn (7-1) with six goals from senior Kevin Blair.

“I was really finding the seams on offense,” Blair said. “We are doing a lot of switches off ball, we are picking for each other and it really opens up the middle. We like to isolate and draw the men (out).”

The Raiders evened two score margin in the first, but gradually faded away as the Harbormen found open shots around the crease.

Three straight scores from Blair in the second helped Hingham run away with a 6-3 lead at 3:11. Scoring all three off motion aside the net, the senior caught a lob pass from fellow upperclassmen Reed McLeod (two goals) late in the quarter and side stepped around both the post and the goalie for his fourth tally on the afternoon.

“We have six guys on the field who are able to play well together,” Hingham head coach John Todd said. “We made them practice at a high tempo. [Blair] sees the field very well and is very fast.”

The Raiders managed to work the ball up top for a score from junior Matt Huemme to grab a 6-4 deficit in the final seconds of the half, but were out shot three goals to one in the final two quarters.

Hingham found Blair behind D-S's defense on a counter late in the third then buried a deep rip from senior Kevin Morris to put D-S away with a 8-4 lead at 7:24 in the fourth quarter.

“They pressured the ball real well and we did not have the ball a lot in the second half,” D-S head coach Brian McLaughlin said. “It is hard to score when you can not get the ball back.”

Originally trailing 3-1 in the first, senior Ben Newbert evened the score for the final time on the afternoon by finishing a ground-ball pickup next to the crease then side-arming a 10-yarder to put the score at 3-3 to end the first. Newbert lead the Raiders with two tallies.

RAIDERS PLUNDER
In the first game of the day, No. 6 Wellesley rolled past North Andover, 14-1.

Midfielder Oliver Saffery led the Raiders with four goals, in addition to a team-high seven ground balls. Ryan Cassidy collected two goals to go along with five ground balls.

Connor Darcey made eight saves in the cage to make it stand up.

"North Andover's a good team, and I'm just glad we came ready to play," Raiders head coach Rocky Batty said. "It's always nice to get a win in the Coaches' Challenge Cup, and we're already excited to play again at 2 p.m. on Thursday at Dover-Sherborn."

GOLDEN WARRIORS GIVE SACHEMS A RUN
In perhaps the day's most riveting game, No. 11 Winchester held off No. 20 Andover in a 10-9 decision.

ESPNHS updated its national "FAB 50" girls lacrosse poll this morning, which you can find here, and for the first time this season Needham makes an appearance on the countdown.

The Rockets, off to a 4-1 start and so far unbeaten in-state, debut in the poll this week at No. 50. Needham's lone loss of the season came last Thursday to Long Island power Cold Spring Harbor.

Lincoln-Sudbury also jumps up 11 spots, to No. 38, while Andover drops four spots to No. 46. Also in the poll are Connecticut powers Darien (26) and Wilton (47). Teams receiving votes included Westwood, with eight points.

The third annual boys' lacrosse Coaches Challenge Cup will kick off on Tuesday at North Andover High School. The following rounds will be played on Thursday at Dover-Sherborn and Saturday at Wellesley.

This year's tournament field features seven teams which are currently ranked in the ESPN Boston Top 25 poll.

Here's the rundown of Tuesday's opening round action, per Wellesley head coach Rocky Batty:

Game 1:
No. 6 Wellesley vs. North Andover

Game 2:
No. 11 Winchester vs. No. 20 Andover

Game 3:
No. 3 Hingham vs. No. 14 Dover-Sherborn

Game 4:
No. 2 Lincoln-Sudbury vs. No. 8 Concord-Carlisle

Our MIAA boys' lacrosse Top 25 poll is updated for this week here.

Duxbury and Lincoln-Sudbury maintained the Nos. 1 and 2 position, despite out-of-state losses, while Hingham jumped into the third spot after taking down Needham in overtime.

We welcomed four new teams to the poll, including Reading, which makes a splash at No. 12 after upsetting Westford Academy.

Also new to the poll were Andover (No. 20), Xaverian (24) and Norwood (25).

The big mover of the week was Billerica, which catapulted up seven spots to No. 5.

(Note: Rankings do not reflect Thursday's results.)

Lincoln-Sudbury elevates to the top spot in the latest update of our statewide MIAA Top 25 Girls Lacrosse poll, this afternoon.

The Warriors are off to a 4-0 campaign to begin the 2012 season, kick-started by their season-opening win over defending Division 1 state champion (and preseason No. 1) Westwood. It marked the Wolverines' first such regular-season loss since 2009. The Warriors have since followed up with wins over Acton-Boxborough (19-4), Norwell (21-14), and Westford (21-8).

Westwood bumps down one spot to No. 2. Rounding out the top five are Andover (3), Longmeadow (4) and Needham (5). Westford (21), Walpole (23) and Marblehead (25) make their season debuts in the poll.

Here is how this week's poll breaks down by league affiliation:

Bay State - 4
Dual County - 4
Valley Wheel - 3
Hockomock - 2
Mid-Wach A - 2
Middlesex - 2
Tri-Valley - 2
Cape Ann - 1
Catholic Central - 1
Northeastern - 1
Patriot - 1
South Shore - 1
Independents - 1

As always, let us know how we're doing in the comments section below, or by emailing Brendan Hall at bhall@espnboston.com