All games 7 p.m.
DIVISION 1
No. 9 Amherst (11-9) at No. 8 Putnam (11-9)
Amherst has won seven of its last eight, including six on the road. Overall the Hurricanes had nine road wins, which is tied for first among D1 teams. Putnam meanwhile has won six of eight, including a win over Valley League champ Sci-Tech. Against common opponents Amherst is 6-3 while Putnam is 4-5. Putnam has one win vs. the field, against Sci-Tech. Amherst beat each of the top four seeds in the last two weeks.
Edge: Amherst

No. 10 Chicopee (10-10) at No. 7 Holyoke (11-9)
At 7-4 the Pacers were on the verge of making the playoffs with one month left in the season. Chicopee though lost five straight before righting itself with three straight wins. Don’t put a lot of stock into those losses, which were all by singles digits and by a total of 20 points. They lost to top seed Northampton by one, No. 3 West Side by six and D-2 No. 1 seed Sabis by five. Chicopee went 6-6 against tournament teams. Holyoke started the season 1-6 before closing the season 10-3. Holyoke went 4-9 against tourney teams. Chicopee won 59-56 on Dec. 28.
Edge: Chicopee

DIVISION 2
No. 9 Palmer (13-7) at No 8 Belchertown (15-5)
The Orioles have won 10 straight and are really rolling. They beat No. 4 seed Hampshire by 14 and beat Palmer by 16. The team is also 8-2 at home with one of those losses a four-point setback in overtime to Amherst. Palmer meanwhile started the season 3-4 but credit the slow start to the boys soccer team’s run to the state final as most of the team played soccer. The group regrouped and won six straight with wins over South Hadley, Belchertown and Holyoke Catholic, the No. 3 seed in D3. The team slipped down the stretch going 4-3.
Edge: Belchertown

No. 10 Wahconah (10-10) at No. 7 Easthampton (17-5)
Wahconah’s season has truly been up and down. The Warriors’ success line looks like this: W-L-W-L-W-L-W-L-L-W-L-W-L-L-L-W-L-W-W-W. The team’s first winning streak put them into the postseason. They lost to Taconic by two and Drury by eight in overtime so the team can play with the big boys. Easthampton lost its season opener then won 13 straight. The Eagles closed 4-4, however they played without leading scorer Brendan Rios for the final three games. Easthampton’s outlook depends on the health of Rios’ ankle.
Edge: Easthampton

DIVISION 3
No. 9 Monson (8-12) at No 8 Dean Tech (17-3)
The Mustangs qualified by finishing second in the Bi-County South. However realignment hurt the Bi-County. As the top five teams (based on four-year records) played in the North and the bottom five teams played in the South. Only Holyoke Catholic had a non-losing record vs. the North and it went 5-5. Monson went 0-10 vs. tournament teams. Dean Tech is a dangerous team with 1,000-point scorer Josue Figueroa. Dean beat Palmer, Southwick and Smith Academy.
Edge: Dean Tech

No. 10 Franklin Tech (13-7) at No. 7 Frontier (11-9)
Franklin finished fourth in the Tri-County League and has won 7-of-8. Common opponents are Greenfield and Turners Falls and Franklin lost both. Frontier swept Turners and split with Greenfield. The Red Hawks closed the season 3-4 but defeated Easthampton down the stretch. Matt Chamberlin is the lone healthy holdover from the Red Hawks’ state title run three years ago (Erik Abramson suffered a season-ending injury). Frontier can still play defense, it’s on offense where the team struggles.
Edge: Frontier

No. 11 Renaissance (12-8) at No. 6 Lee (11-9)
These two teams are familiar with other. Lee won 76-72 on Dec. 28 in Springfield. Renaissance might not have anybody to matchup with big man Trey Morin but it has speed. Renaissance has won 5-of-7. Lee has won 5-of-6.
Edge: Lee

No. 12 McCann Tech (11-9) at No. 5 Lenox (12-8)
These two met twice in December. Lenox won 70-38 in both teams’ opener, and again 58-46 on the 28th. McCann went 1-5 against Berkshire County teams and 1-8 vs. D-3 tournament teams. Lenox won nine straight to start the season but closed 3-8. Lenox went 4-2 against the Berkshire South and was 4-2 against D-3 tournament teams.
Edge: Lenox