When the Western Massachusetts Division 3 football playoffs kick off this evening at Mahar Regional in Orange, it's going to look a lot like an Intercounty League championship tournament.

The top four teams in the league beat out the other seven teams in Division 3 for the right to battle for a title.

The semifinals match No. 2 Frontier (9-1) against No. 3 Athol (9-2) at 5 p.m., followed by top-seeded Mahar (10-0) against No. 4 Greenfield (6-4) at 7:30.

The first time the Red Hawks and Red Raiders got together this season was on Oct. 23, when Frontier won 18-15 in South Deerfield. Athol actually held a 7-6 lead at halftime, but the Red Hawks outscored the Red Raiders 12-8 in the third quarter to earn the win.

The defense of Frontier is ranked first in the league, having given up only 55 points to Intercounty opponents this season. Athol is third, allowing 89 points. Red Raiders quarterback Eric LaFountain threw for one touchdown and 69 yards in the loss, and Matt Kuniholm rushed for 84 yards.

Red Hawks quarterback Erik Abramson was limited to just 14 yards rushing and 35 passing against Athol, while Austin Watroba ran for 73 yards. Abramson has been strong in recent games as Frontier has won six straight since losing to the Senators on Oct. 2.

Although Mahar has not lost, things have not been easy lately for the Senators as their last two games have been competitive.

On Thanksgiving, Mahar trailed at halftime for only the second time this season. Running back Brian Beauchemin scored with one minute, three seconds remaining to preserve the Senators' perfect regular season with a 21-19 victory over Athol, clinching the top seed in the tournament.

Mahar beat the Green Wave 20-8 in their first matchup on Nov. 13.

The Senators can be thrown on. LaFountain finished 13-of-20 against Mahar for 199 yards.

The winners of tonight's games will play in the Division 3 Super Bowl at 10 a.m. Saturday at Westfield State College.

Tickets for the semifinal games are $10 for adults, and $7 for seniors and students.