ESPN

Longmeadow makes quite a splash, entering this week's MIAA boys' lacrosse Top 25 poll at No. 11 while making its season debut.

The Lancers crack the rankings this week after notching a Top 25 victory over Central Mass Power Algonquin. However, they weren't the only Western Mass. squad entering the poll this week, as South Hadley -- only a half-game behind Longmeadow in the Wheel standings at 5-0 -- also makes its season debut at No. 22.

(Editors note: Rankings do not reflect Tuesday's results or the adjustment in records made in accordance with Foxborough's forfeited win over No. 12 Reading.)

A BIG WIN
Aside from Longmeadow, the team covering the most ground this week is Dover-Sherborn. The Raiders hop up 10 spots to No. 15 after a huge 6-3 win over Tri-Valley League rival Medfield -- showing why they're to team to beat (again) in Division 3. Now, we could have been more harsh on the Warriors, but we still believe Medfield is the team to beat in Division 2, so we're keeping them in the Top 10 at No. 7 -- for now. Also drawing a significant boost from a conference win last week is Andover, which moves up seven spots to No. 16 after a thrilling overtime victory over Merrimack Valley rival Billerica.

WORCESTER, Mass. -- ESPN Boston High Schools editor Brendan Hall is joined by MassLive.com producer Jay King and videographer Greg Story to break down Saturday's MIAA boys and girls basketball State Championships. Champions were crowned in six divisions, three each for boys and girls.

(Video by Greg Story)

WORCESTER, Mass. -– After a season that at many points could have been compared to a roller coaster ride, Brighton left nothing for question in their most important game of the year.

Behind 16 points from point guard Malik James, Brighton (21-6) captured the Division 2 state championship, knocking off Western Mass. champion South Hadley (17-8), 59-41.

James saved some of his best performances for the biggest stages -- take, for instance, his storming comeback in the state semifinal game against Scituate, Tuesday night at TD Garden. Today, he was unstoppable in the second and third quarters thanks to his ability to get to the rim and hit mid-range jumpers.

Brighton got out to a quick lead in the first half, something that hasn’t often been said this year about the Bengals. Known for their slow starts and ability to turn it on in the fourth quarter, Brighton jumped out to a 19-10 first quarter lead, and never looked back. South Hadley made their runs in the second half, but the Bengals were always there to slam the door shut.

A year after the heavily-favored Bengals came up short in the state title game, and months after many question Brighton’s toughness and hunger to want to get back to the state finals, they did just that -- sending James, who scored his 1000th point in today’s game, off in style to finish his career at prep school.

“It feels awesome to leave on a good note...and to just leave with a state championship and a ring,” James said. "It was more about being more mature...[last year] we were young-minded, we really didn’t know what to do on the court. We just listened to our coach, and everything was good.”

James’ progression: Bengals coach Hugh Coleman said James’ leadership is a big reason why the Bengals were able to make a run to the state title game. Teammate Jason Jones said after the Boston City League championship game, a game Brighton won, that James’ business-trip type attitude was infectious to the rest of the team -— giving them motivation and helping them focus on beating New Mission for the Boston City League title.

It was a comment that had Coleman glowing, and a factor that made the coach reflect on James’ progression as a leader.

“A lot of times I’ve been wondering how much he’s listened to me, how much he’s growing off the court," Coleman said. "What I’ve realized from this season and these playoffs is that he takes it in, but it shows a lot more on the court. That’s meant everything for us.

"His maturity has come so much more on the court. I’m proud of him for that—he’s a special, special young man.”

Coleman still expresses his appreciation for getting the Brighton job four years ago. James enrolled at Brighton by chance, the same year that Coleman began his duties as the head-man of the Bengals.

“I lucked up and got the job at Brighton four years ago, I probably wasn’t supposed to get it, but I did," he said. "A lot of people recruited him out of middle school to go to different schools, but he ended up at Brighton with me.

"I’m glad I’ve been able to be a part of his life, and him a part of my life -- he’s made me a stronger person, and I hope I was able to rub off on him.”

Learning from O’Brien: Coleman announced after the game that he would be dedicating the victory to his good friend and mentor Jack O’Brien, the famed former Charlestown coach who won five Division 2 state championships over a period of six seasons from 2000 to 2005. Coleman’s squad this year was the first team since O’Brien’s 2003 Townies team to win both the Boston City League title and the state title. Coleman was an assistant on O’Brien’s staff for that unprecedented run, while his younger brother Derek was a captain on that 2003 squad.

“He should be coaching," Coleman. "In my opinion he’s the best coach in the state of Massachusetts. Not just because he won games, he changed the lives of so many of us young men at Charlestown."

Coleman and his coaching staff constantly express their pride in having the opportunity to shape young men. Forward Nick Simpson (11 points), who failed off the team last year, is now the Bengals’ best student -— making the honor roll in each of the first two quarters of this year. James, a player with tons of talent whose motor has sometimes been questioned, played better in the state tournament than almost any other player in the state.

“My coaching staff...the Bengal five: those guys, we strategize after every game, we talk about not just basketball, we talk about what’s going on with these guys in their lives off the court," Coleman said. "It was really special to accomplish those things, but it never would have happened without the hard work of those guys."

O’Brien was long known for being a father-figure in the lives of his players—whether it was making sure they were fed, getting on them about their grades, teaching them about integrity, or introducing his players to goal-setting, his example is one that Coleman energetically replicates at Brighton.

“What I learned from Jack O’Brien at Charlestown was winning was a compliment to the young men [becoming] better people," Coleman said. "That’s my passion, helping these young men become better people—and through that process, we were able to be successful today. I’m very, very proud.”

BOYS

Division 1
Springfield Putnam 50, Mansfield 48 (OT)

Division 2
Brighton 59, South Hadley 41

Division 3
Danvers 66, Smith Academy 50

GIRLS

Division 1
Central Catholic 53, Holy Name 48

Division 2
Medfield 54, Nashoba 36

Division 3
Archbishop Williams 60, Lee 33

MassLive.com online sports producer Jay King and I break down each of the three MIAA boys basketball State Championships taking place Saturday at the DCU Center in Worcester. I'll be providing Eastern Mass. perspective, while Jay handles Western Mass.


***

DIVISION 2: BRIGHTON VS. SOUTH HADLEY

School: Brighton
Record: 20-6
Region: North

Boy, do the Bengals have a flair for the dramatic. In Tuesday night’s Eastern Mass. Final with Scituate, at TD Garden, Brighton trailed by 11 with four minutes to go, then took the lead with 1.8 seconds left after Malik James scooped up a Nate Hogan deflection and converted a three-point play. James’ fourth-quarter effort – 14 of his 21 points, all with four fouls – is something they’ll be talking about for years. And yet, it was just the latest episode of one of the most dramatic playoff runs in years, scoring last-second victories in wins over Burlington, Melrose and North Andover en route to that Scituate win.

The Bengals were a heavy favorite over Mahar in last year’s state final, but fell behind 17-3 in the first quarter before losing by four. Yet here they are again, supercharged behind James and getting added boost from wing Nick Simpson, who was ruled academically ineligible shortly before last year’s playoff run.

Should Brighton win on Saturday, the Bengals would be the first team from Boston Public Schools to win both a Boston City Championship and MIAA State Championship in the same season since 2003. That, of course, was one of Jack O’Brien’s five state title squads at Charlestown. The legendary O’Brien is a lifelong mentor to Brighton head coach Hugh Coleman, who was also an assistant on those nationally-ranked Townies squads.

-- Brendan Hall

Key Players:
Malik James, 6-2 Jr. G (21 points, eight assists) – When in his element, simply the best point guard in the MIAA. His 14-point fourth quarter with four fouls at the Garden, punctuated with his steal and game-winning layup, was something of beauty.
Nick Simpson, 6-4 Jr. G (16 points, seven rebounds) – Ruled ineligible shortly before the 2011-12 postseason, some wonder if he could have been the difference in the Mahar game last year.
Prince Unaegbu, 6-6 Jr. C (12 rebounds, seven blocks) – Also a menace as a two-way edge player in football, Unaegbu is the muscle down below. Also the cousin of future UMass defensive end Peter Ngobidi.
Daivon Edwards, 6-0 Sr. G (13 points) – One of the state’s best long-distance shooters, has hit 92 three-pointers so far this season. Give him an inch, it will feel like a mile.

Road through the playoffs
North First Round: beat Burlington, 62-60
North Quarterfinal: beat Salem, 82-61
North Semifinal: beat Melrose, 65-62
North Final: beat North Andover, 64-59
Eastern Mass. Final: beat Scituate, 55-52

***

School: South Hadley
Record: 17-7
Region: West

When South Hadley dropped to 7-5 with a 26-point loss to Sabis at the Hoophall Classic in mid-January, coach Jeff Guiel kept the team in the locker room for about a half an hour. He told his players they needed to be mentally tougher. He implored them to use their assistant coaches, former South Hadley players, as examples. He didn’t really know what else to do. He felt his team could play much better, but he saw an underachieving bunch sitting in front of him.

South Hadley lost its next two games after that speech (maybe drawing similar ones), but hasn’t lost since. The Tigers won their last six regular season contests, captured a Western Mass. title with three more victories, and then beat St. Bernard’s by 15 points in the Division II state semifinals.

Underachieving no more. Not even close.

-- Jay King

Key players:
Evan Marcus, 5-11 Sr. G (16 points) – Depending when you pay attention during a game, Marcus will either be: shooting a 3-pointer, posting up, doggedly chasing an opponent, quarterbacking the South Hadley offense or slashing to the paint for two. So yes, he provides quite a bit. And yes, at least during the latter stages of the Western Mass. tournament, South Hadley’s Mr. Everything wore his hair in a mullet.
T.J. Fitzell, 5-10 Jr. G (11.3 points) – Fitzell’s like that bad movie about an underground fight club starring Sean Faris –- he’ll Never Back Down. Capable of extended hot streaks, he hit five 3-pointers in the first quarter against St. Bernard’s and leads South Hadley with 46 triples on the season.
Avon White, 5-10 Jr. G (10.7 points) – South Hadley’s quickest player and best ball-handler, White is adept at breaking down defenses with the dribble.
Anthony Bullough, 6-2 Sr. F (8.2 points) – Though he scored 14 points in the Western Mass. final, Bullough isn’t one to post impressive numbers. What he does provide for South Hadley, though: toughness and a bit of length for a team mostly devoid of the latter.

Road through the playoffs
West Round 1: beat Belchertown, 73-51
West Semifinals: beat Sabis, 52-40
West Final: beat Greenfield, 55-49
State Semifinals: beat St. Bernard’s, 63-48

EASTERN MASS. FINALS

Boys

D1: Mansfield (24-2) vs. Central Catholic (21-5)
Brendan Hall: Whatever the fourth-quarter lead is, you might as well double it. Both squads are terrific finishing teams. Still, it’s hard for me to go against The Illuminati. Pick: Mansfield
Chris Bradley: The way Central Catholic is playing defensively, they can’t be beaten by anybody in the state. Tyler Nelson is on another level from pretty much any guard in the state in terms of playmaking, while his backcourt mate Lucas Hammel is great on-ball defender. Pick: Central Catholic

D2: Brighton (19-6) vs. Scituate (21-3)
Hall: Last month I said that whoever came out of the D2 North tournament would be battle-tested enough to run the table. Brighton came back stronger than ever after last season’s disappointment, and they are playing as well as any right now. Malik James has been playing his way into Super Team consideration at this current clip. Pick: Brighton
Bradley: Brighton’s toughest tests of the Division 2 tournament have passed—the Bengals beat Melrose and North Andover, two of the best teams in the state. A great season by Scituate, but I can’t see any of the teams left in the Division 2 field hanging with Brighton. Pick: Brighton

D3: Danvers (22-2) vs. Martha’s Vineyard (18-5)
Hall: Save a bad weekend at the Comcast Tournament, Falcons have survived every test given to them this season. With the Vineyard, there is always the element of the great unknown. We know the Vineyarders can run, but so can the Falcons. Pick: Danvers
Bradley: What a run by the Vineyard, beating Wareham in the D3 South final. That being said, Danvers has proven that they are hands-down the best team in the state. Expect a few treys each from Nick McKenna, Nick Bates, and Vinny Clifford. Pick: Danvers

Lynnfield (16-7) vs. Bishop Connolly (18-6)
Hall: Pulling for Scott Barboza’s alma mater to get some hardware here. Pick: Connolly
Bradley: Connolly has a slew of quick, athletic guards who can score and put a lot of pressure on opposing teams defensively. I foresee Lynnfield struggling with that pressure. Pick: Bishop Connolly

Girls

D1: Braintree (24-2) vs. Central Catholic (20-5)
Hall: Defense wins championships, and the Wamps have one of the best defensive players around in Bay State Conference MVP Bridget Herlihy. Four of the Wamps’ five starters are sophomores or younger, including Herlihy, yet this is one of the tallest lineups in the state. Gonna be fun to watch this crew the next few years. Pick: Braintree.
Bradley: Make it another sweep for Central Catholic boys and girls in the state semifinals. I’m calling upset here, expect a huge game from Casey McLaughlin. Pick: Central Catholic

D2: Reading (23-0) vs. Medfield (24-2)
Hall: Would be cool to see one of the state’s finest athletes Jen Narlee bring home a state title in two sports this calendar year, but you don’t get to 48 straight wins without some role players stepping up. Rockets’ workhorse Olivia Healy will get hers, but the hero will once again be someone else. Pick: Reading
Bradley: Well, I don’t have the guts to pick against an Olivia Healy-led team. Anybody who does--feel free to raise your hand. Pick: Reading

D3: Archbishop Williams (21-5) vs. Pentucket (24-1)
Hall: Does this qualify as an upset if I go with Pentucket? Sachems have been quietly waiting in the grass all season long. Monday night, they will strike with a first-round haymaker. Pick: Pentucket
Bradley: A great run by Archbishop Williams here in the final stretch of the season. I know this has been a highly-anticipated matchup all year, but I’m going to pick what some may call the “upset” and go with Pentucket, but expect an absolute thriller Pick: Pentucket

D4: Fenway (14-7) vs. Greater New Bedford (20-4)
Hall: Tajanay Veiga-Lee was the hero last year against this same GNB squad, but I like the Bears getting their revenge Monday night. Pick: Greater New Bedford
Bradley: Fenway's girls are battle-tested and on quite a roll right now, as they've won seven games in a row. Pick: Fenway

***

CENTRAL/WEST FINALS

Boys

D1: Springfield Putnam (22-1) vs. Milford (20-3)
Hall: I love the way Putnam plays so inspired, and their whipping of Springfield Central in Saturday's D1 West Final might be the Beavers' high water mark of the season. Look for big games out of KayJuan Bynum and David Murrell. Pick: Putnam
Bradley: Putnam has more talent and more speed than Milford, but during their tournament run the Hawks have displayed the type of toughness and poise that it takes to go to the state finals. Milford doesn’t have a go-to guy, but they have a team full of kids who aren’t afraid to take the big shot-which is why they’ll beat Putnam and give Central a run for their money in the state finals. Pick: Milford

D2: St. Bernard's (19-4) vs. South Hadley (16-7)
Hall: Bernardians made it this far last year, only to meet a disappointing end. They're back again, and more determined. Pick: St. Bernard's
Bradley: The Bernardians will have a significant size advantage, as well as one of the better scorers in Division 2 in John Crawley. Count on St. Bernard’s to punch their ticket into the D2 state finals. Pick: St. Bernard's

D3: Smith Academy (21-3) vs. Littleton (24-1)
Hall: Here's a team we missed the boat on. Smith took the D3 field by storm, and from what I understand they're a loaded bunch. I like their chances in this one. Pick: Smith Academy
Bradley: Littleton hasn't lost a game since December, thanks mainly to a high-scoring attack and exceptional play from senior guard Chris Murray. They certainly weren't the favorite in a tough D3 Central field, but they made it out alive. Pick: Littleton

Girls

D1: Holy Name (22-2) vs. Chicopee (16-7)
Hall: Junior center and Providence commit Brianna Frias is a monster on the boards, and my pick for Defensive Player of the Year. Long-time Naps coach Barry Finneron has his best shot at a state title in a while. Pick: Holy Name
Bradley: Holy Name is on quite the run and couldn’t be any higher emotionally after absolutely blowing out Wachusett in the D1 Central final. Sophomore Gigi Gunther is a future star. Pick: Holy Name

D2: Nashoba (21-2) vs. Hoosac Valley (19-5)
Hall: Going with strength of schedule in this one, and the Chieftains delivered powerhouse Tyngsborough its first-ever loss within Central Mass. to get to this stage. Pick: Nashoba
Bradley: All five of Nashoba’s starters could be considered go-to scorers, they’ve had such an even scoring attack all year. Their balance offensively is going to give Hoosac plenty of problems. Pick: Nashoba

D3: Lee (18-5) vs. University Park (23-1)
Hall: Death, taxes, and the Lee Wildcats on the DCU Center floor competing for a state title. Pick: Lee
Bradley: Lee is clicking at the right time, beating favored power Sabis in the Western Mass. Division 3 finals. Not only that, Stephanie Young has shown several times this year that she can break 20 or 25 on any given night. Pick: Lee

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -– Wahconah Regional didn't win many games this season in lopsided fashion.

It turned out to be a good omen for the Warriors, who applied their win-close-contests formula to celebrate the Western Mass. Division 2 Super Bowl championship Saturday night at Gillette Stadium.

“We haven't really blown out anybody. But we've been pretty methodical and done our thing. Maybe tonight that just helped us keep our composure,” Wahconah head coach Gary Campbell Jr. said after a 24-21 win over South Hadley.

Wahconah (9-3) clinched its fourth Super Bowl crown without scoring a point in the second half. But South Hadley (9-3) was also kept off the scoreboard after halftime, a product of the Warriors' strong rushing attack.

Senior quarterback Lane Grogan and junior Ethan Wells earned every carry for the Warriors. The duo combined for 37 rushes, 164 yards and two touchdowns.

“They did a great job of controlling the ball and controlling the clock,” said South Hadley head coach Eric Scammons, whose program sought its second title in three years. “They just take so much time off the clock with each of their drives that, even though we were getting stops, we didn't have a lot of time left to do anything. And they were able to stop us defensively.”

Wells (21 carries, 87 yards) scored the game-winning TD as time expired in the first half. His 1-yard plunge and subsequent conversion run were possible thanks to Jordan Fiske.

Wahconah's senior split end made arguably the toughest catch of Super Saturday, snaring a 41-yard toss that sailed directly overhead. Fiske beat defensive backs Bryan Shippee and Anthony Bullough to make the catch, then tumbled to the turf.

One second remained on the game clock, giving the Warriors one more snap.

“That is, hands down, my favorite catch of my entire career,” Fiske said. “There is no way to describe how happy I was after I caught that.”

Scammons had a different take: “Scoring at the end of the half and then getting the ball coming out, that's big. The Patriots are notorious for doing that … I think that did take the wind out of our sails, psychologically, a little bit, even though we had a half left.”

The Tigers had every reason to believe they'd reclaim the lead. The 45-point first half featured five lead changes.

Sophomore Riley Villeneuve (10 carries, 82 yards, 2 TDs) staked South Hadley to its first and second leads. He dug Wahconah a quick hole with a 30-yard run just 66 seconds into the game. His 3-yard run late in the quarter erased Grogan's TD and conversion runs.

Midway through the second, Darrow Brown (4 receptions, 87 yards) made a leaping 15-yard TD grab. Grogan fired the strike that his receiver pulled down while battling Thomas Fitzell. The six-point play was followed by Joseph DiMassimo's conversion catch.

South Hadley had the answer. Shippee's 6-yard scamper and Liam Murphy's third extra point gave the Tigers a 21-16 lead with 1:19 left in the half.

Wahconah's five-point deficit didn't last long, however.

“We made a goal to get here. As soon as we got here, we said, 'Hey, why not just win?'” Grogan said. “It's probably the best game we've played all season.”

“THE CATCH”
Fiske ran a simple seam route on his highlight-reel catch. It was one of a dozen pass plays the Warriors attempted to keep South Hadley from fully committing to the run.

“We spread them out. We went no backs,” Campbell said. “We thought we could move the safety out of there with a little motion. The safety went with it – bang.”

The senior's recollection of the catch, understandably, was a bit more emotional.

“I got open. I was just thinking, 'If I drop this, I'm going to get shot,'” Fiske said. “I let it land in my hands, wrapped it up tight, and wouldn't let go.”

FUTURE IS BRIGHT
Few outside Wahconah's program figured 2012 would end with a Super Bowl celebration like the 1983, 1998 and 2003 campaigns. This year's team included just six seniors.

The title-tested junior class is also six-strong.

“We have 20 sophomores. We're going to be OK,” Campbell said. “We always expect to do well, but we didn't expect to win it in July. But we're going to take it. We ain't giving it back.”


Western Mass. Division 2 Super Bowl

WAHCONAH 24, SOUTH HADLEY 21

Wahconah (9-3) 8-16-0-0 – 24
S. Hadley (9-3) 14-7-0-0 – 21

First quarter
S – Riley Villeneuve 30 run (Liam Murphy kick), 8:54
W – Lane Grogan 4 run (Grogan run) 4:55
S – Villeneuve 3 run (Murphy kick), 1:06

Second quarter
W – Darrow Brown 15 pass from Grogan (DiMassimo conversion from Grogan), 4:45
S – Bryan Shippee 6 run (Murphy kick), 1:19
W – Ethan Wells 1 run (Wells conversion run), :00

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- ESPN Boston High Schools editors Scott Barboza and Brendan Hall preview Saturday's slate of 19 MIAA Super Bowl Championships, from yesterday's Media Day at Gillette Stadium:

(Video by Greg Story)

We updated our statewide MIAA Top 25 football poll this morning following Thursday's Thanksgiving action. For the complete poll, CLICK HERE.

The poll will next be updated following Saturday's slate of Super Bowl championships, which will serve as the final poll of the 2012 season.

A few notes about this week's poll:

South Hadley, Dighton-Rehoboth debut: For the first time in poll history, South Hadley is making its debut, at No. 24. The Tigers are 8-2, and are the No. 1 overall seed in Western Mass. Division 2. Meanwhile Dighton-Rehoboth grabs the final spot, No. 25, following its Thanksgiving win over Seekonk. The Falcons have reeled off nine straight wins since their opening-weekend loss to Somerset, and face Bishop Feehan on Tuesday night in a Division 3A playoff.

Jumps for Andover, Doherty: Two teams jumped up four spots in the poll, the most movement by any team this week. Andover comes in at No. 18 following its thrilling victory over Central Catholic on Thanksgiving, to clinch the Merrimack Valley Large title and a Division 1 playoff berth. Doherty moves up to No. 20, following its Thanksgiving rout of intra-city archrival Burncoat. The Highlanders are quietly 9-2, with some impressive talents led by Luke Brennan, Noah Robinson and Isaac Yiadom. And, as our Central Mass. followers love to remind, the Highlanders nearly upset Nashoba earlier this season. Could the two teams square off in a rematch at Gillette Stadium on Saturday?

Red Raiders on a roll: Barnstable closes out the regular season as the No. 1 team in Massachusetts for an historic seven weeks straight now, dating back to the Red Raiders' upset of Everett on Sept. 28. Many are eagerly anticipating the possibility of a rematch with Everett in the Division 1A Super Bowl at Gillette Stadium. If the Red Raiders can get through No. 15 Lincoln-Sudbury, and the Crimson Tide take care of Masconomet, then that would be the most widely anticipated game of the day.

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

Hockomock - 3
AA - 2
Bay State - 2
Merrimack Valley - 2
Middlesex - 2
Atlantic Coast - 1
Big Three - 1
CAL/NEC - 1
Catholic Conference - 1
Dual County - 1
Greater Boston - 1
Inter-High - 1
Mid-Wach B - 1
Old Colony - 1
Patriot - 1
South Coast - 1
South Shore - 1
Southern Worcester County - 1
Suburban - 1

Our final podcast of the spring season is posted, which you can find by CLICKING HERE.

Gerry Lambert, head coach of the Division 1 baseball state champion Xaverian Hawks, joins us to talk about his team's run to the program's second such championship in the last decade. We also discuss South Hadley's unprecedented run to a state title despite finishing with a losing record, as well as the softball and lacrosse championships.

Following last weekend's MIAA state championships, we have updated our MIAA Top 25 poll for the final time in 2012 this evening.

Division 1 state champion Xaverian finishes at No. 1, after winning 13 of its final 14 games. The Hawks came into the spring as the No. 4 team in our preseason poll, but fell out of the countdown at the halfway point of the season following a five-game losing streak.

For the complete poll, CLICK HERE. A few notes about the final poll:

-- Two teams finish in the poll with losing records. South Hadley (12-13) won its first Division 2 state title in school history, and was seeded No. 2 in the West sectional despite a 7-13 record. This is in part to the 16 regular-season games played against Division 1 competition. Springfield Central (10-12) comes in at No. 25 after knocking off state title contender Springfield Cathedral in the D1 West quarterfinals.

-- Of the eight teams that played for a state championship in Divisions 1 through 4, only one team -- Plymouth North -- was ranked in the final regular season poll released on May 28. The Eagles came into the Division 2 South tournament ranked No. 20, and finish No. 8 after making their fourth state final appearance in five years. Going one step further, of the 12 teams that made the state semifinals in Divisions 1 through 3 (In Division 4, the North-South final represents the state championship), only four were ranked in the May 28 poll -- Auburn, Lowell, Westfield, and the aforementioned North.

-- No team finished exactly where they started in the preseason. Only Lowell (No. 2, preseason No. 3), St. John's of Shrewsbury (No. 6, preseason No. 9), Plymouth North (No. 8, preseason No. 5), Lincoln-Sudbury (No. 17, preseason No. 15), and the aforementioned Xaverian come close to finishing near their first ranking of 2012.

-- There are 11 teams in the final poll that were unranked in the May 28 poll. That includes the three state champions (Xaverian, South Hadley, North Reading) in the final poll. Of the 11 teams, only three have previously been ranked this season -- Xaverian, Taunton and East Bridgewater.

Here is how the final poll breaks down by league affiliation:

Bay State Conference - 3
Catholic Conference - 3
Dual County - 2
Old Colony - 2
Southern Worcester County - 2
Suburban League - 2
Atlantic Coast - 1
Cape Ann - 1
Central Mass. Conference - 1
Hockomock - 1
Merrimack Valley - 1
Mid-Wach A - 1
Middlesex - 1
South Coast - 1
South Shore - 1
Valley League - 1
Valley Wheel - 1

As always, thanks for following along in 2012. Any questions or comments can be sent to bhall@espnboston.com

WORCESTER, Mass. -- ESPN Boston High Schools co-editor Brendan Hall, correspondent Andy Smith, and host Lynn Herman review the exciting action from this year's MIAA baseball tournament, and give their picks for our Mr. Baseball Award, following last night's state championships at Fitton Field.

WORCESTER, Mass. -- ESPN Boston High Schools co-editor Brendan Hall, correspondent Andy Smith and host Lynn Herman break down the action from Fitton Field, where baseball state champions were crowned in three divisions:

WORCESTER, Mass. -- South Hadley won its first state championship in school history this afternoon by downing Plymouth North, 5-0, for the MIAA Division 2 title at Fitton Field.

Winning pitcher Jordan Page talked with ESPN Boston High Schools Editor Brendan Hall about his effort on the mound, and winning the championship:



Head coach Matt Foley also spoke with Hall about his team's incredible playoff run:

WORCESTER, Mass. -- Some would say it wasn’t supposed to happen. They would say team that came into the game with a losing record wasn’t supposed to beat the team that was in its fourth state championship game in the last five years.

But that’s exactly what happened Saturday. The Tigers beat Plymouth North 5-0 in the Division 2 State Championship game at Fitton Field, for the first baseball state championship in the school's history.

“It feels great, I’m still in shock,” said South Hadley starting pitcher Jordan Page. “The defense definitely picked me up. They hit a lot of balls hard, but it was a team effort to get it done.”

Page went the distance, allowing only six hits without being particularly dominant. He only struck out one batter, but pitched to contact to get himself out of jams.

“My offspeed was working early, and then my fastball came late,” he said. “I was able to spot my fastball late in the game. When they were expecting offspeed, I was able to get the fastball by them.”

South Hadley (12-13) got on the board first with a Patrick Sears RBI single off the Plymouth North (18-8) starter Jake Stearns.

Stearns did not last on the mound very long. On top of the RBi single, he hit two batters in the inning and had to strike out two people to get out of a one-out, bases loaded jam.

After giving up a another run in the second inning, Plymouth North coach Dwayne Follette was forced to go to his bullpen earlier than he wanted. He brought in right-hander Alex Rozak, who pitched 6.2 innings of one-hit ball three days earlier.

Rozak’s last two starts had each been on three days rest, so he was not expected to be able to contribute a heavy workload Saturday. He ended up pitching the remainder of the game for North.

“I hated going to him early, but we had to hang on,” said Follette. “He’s our horse. He kept them close. We had two errors, but Rozak did a great job. If you don’t score a run, you can’t win. We had a few innings prolonged, had a couple hits, then we’d hit into a double play. If you don’t score, you can’t win.”

South Hadley stretched its lead to 5-0 with a three-run fifth. Thomas Spring and Joe Ciolek opened the inning with singles. Luis Agrait laid down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners over, but Pat Morgan overthrew the shortstop covering third and Spring scored.

Another fielding error on a Nathan Flachs grounder allowed the other runs to score.

“It’s not like we lost a 1-0 game in a heartbreaker,” said Follette. “We got beat today by a team that played much better than us.”

Poised Page: While North was scrambling to stop the bleeding with its pitching, Page just plugged along, inducing groundballs and allowing his defense to put in the work behind him. That efficiency kept his pitch count under 100 and gave him the ability to go the distance.

“I’ve been a ground ball pitcher, I’m not overpowering,” he said. “I get ground balls on a lot of my junk pitches. It was the D picking me up. I was just happy I was able to go the distance. We’ve got a tough D behind us.”

South Hadley coach Matt Foley never had a doubt about his starter.

“Jordan’s up on that mound, and he wants that ball,” he said. “He doesn’t want anyone to take the ball away from him. He pitched 8 innings in the first round of the playoffs, 7 innings in the Western Mass. Final, 7 innings in the state final. He’s a kid that doesn’t have a 95 m.p.h. fastball and he just goes out there and competes.”

Emotional Post-Game: Follette thought his team was going to do something special Saturday.

“This is hard, it’s tough, it’s very emotional,” he said, visibly holding back tears. “I honestly thought it was meant to be. But we got beat by a better baseball team. There’s more important things in life. We’ve got 13 kids going off to college. We’ve got a quality program, and I’m coaching quality kids, and that’s what it’s all about.”

Without Fear: South Hadley came into the sectional playoffs with a 7-13 record due to a schedule filled with a majority of Division 1 opponents.

Since the team seems to have constantly been in an underdog roll, it would make sense if they were playing with a sense of nothing to lose. That wasn’t the case, at all.

“We don’t play scared ever, we never play scared,” said Foley. “In 2010, when we went and played Northbridge (in the state semifinals) we had a nothing to lose mentality. We won Western Mass. for the first time in school history, and we had guys that, after that, that was it.”

“That was the first time in school history,” he added. “I don’t think half of them knew there was a game after that. With this team, a lot of these guys were called up on that team and they knew there was another game. So we weren’t afraid of any team, and I think that facing D-1 pitchers, those guys were as good as (Plymouth North) pitchers.

“To have these kids have the mentality, to have seven wins coming into the playoffs, and have the confidence and mentality to win this thing, it’s commendable to them. It really is. You could be a senior and school’s over and say, ‘Well that was a fun baseball season,’ and be done with it. But they aren’t like that.”