Telegraph photo by TOM KING Nashua South's Pat Hyde tries to get to the ball despite the defense of Nashua North's Joe Morse duirng their regular season meeting. The Panthers and Titans meet in the first round of the tourney Wednesday at 6 at Stellos Stadium..

Fasten your seatbelts, we’ve hit the local high school tourney trail in full swing, and one game this week certainly stands out.

Ready for Nashua High School North vs. South boys soccer, part II?

The two teams will meet Wednesday in the Division I prelminary round at Stellos Stadium, the Panthers enjoying an 11-4-1 season to grab the No. 5 seed, while North finished No. 12 at 7-8-1.

Tourney action in soccer begins today with a Division III girls preliminary round game, as No. 3 Campbell (13-3) hosts No. 14 Somersworth (6-9-1).

Also tonight, the Division I field hockey semifinals take place at Exeter’s Bill Ball Stadium, with locals Bishop Guertin (No. 6, 10-5) takes on No. 2 Windham (14-1) at 6 p.m. and No. 8 Merrimack (9-6) battles No. 5 Concord (11-4) at 7:30 p.m.

The other top local tourney stories are the fact defending Division III champion Campbell enters the tourney as No. 1 seed (14-0-2) and hosts No. 16 White Mountains (6-9-1) Wednessday.

In girls volleyball, both Nashua South and four-time defending champion Hollis Brookline finished 18-0, one-two in Division I, and the Panthers get a first round bye by virtue of tiebreakers.

Other local boys soccer games Wednesday include No. 10 Merrimack (8-7-1) at No. 7 Timberlane (9-4-3) in another Division I prelim.

In Division II, No. 4 Milford gets a bye (8-4-3) while No. 7 Hollis Brookline (10-5-1) hosts No. 10 Plymouth (7-8-1).

In Division IV, Wilton-Lyndeborough, at No. 5 (11-5) hosts No. 12 Lin-Wood (7-7-2).

Thursday, other girls soccer tourneys and volleyball get under way. In Division I girls soccer, there’s a likely Stellos Stadium doubleheader involving three local teams. At 3:30 p.m, No. 7 Nashua South (11-5) hosts No. 10 Goffstown (7-8-1) while No. 3 Bishop Guertin (14-2) will host No. 14 Alvirne (6-10) at 6 p.m.

Meanwhile,No. 11 Merrimack (7-9) is at No. 6 Manchester Central (11-3-2).

In the Division II, No. 2 Hollis Brookline (13-1-2) has a first round bye while last year’s runnerup, No. 4 Milford (12-3-1) hosts No. 13 Plymouth (5-10-1) on Thursday. Also, the runnerup two years ago, No. 7 Souhegan (9-6-1) will host No. 10 Merrimack Valley (8-7-1). Also on Thursday, in Division IV, No. 10 Wilton-Lyndeborough (10-6) at No. 7 Concord Christian (10-5).

The girls volleyball tournaments also get underway with several local teams competing while the Panthers sit out that first round. On Thursday, the Cavaliers will host No. 15 Windham (7-11), while three other local Division I teams are on the road: No. 11 Nashua North (9-9) is at No. 6 Dover (13-5), No. 13 Bishop Guertin (9-9) is at No. 4 Winnacunnet (13-5) and No. 14 Alvirne visits No. 3 Pinkerton (16-2).

In Division II, No. 2 Milford (14-2) gets a first round bye, while Thursday No. 9 Souhegan (7-9) is at No. 8 Laconia (7-9).

And, in Division III girls volleyball, No. 7 Campbell (11-5) hosts No. 10 Sunapee (8-8) at 6 p.m., but this will be on Wednesday.

Volleyball quarterfinals are Saturday, as are the boys soccer. Girls soccer quarters are Sunday, with the exception of Division III, which are Friday.

Here’s a look, beginning with soccer:

BOYS SOCCER

DIVISION I

When Nashua High School North boys soccer coach Josh Downing gathered his team after a win over Bishop Guertin, he declared “We are not going one and done” in the upcoming tourney. It’s a tough draw in South, which beat the Titans 4-1 thanks to three goals by Ethan Emata. Drawing a rival like North probably isn’t the best scenario for the Panthers, but they fully expect to get past the first round after last year’s stunning loss in the prelims to Salem.

The Panthers have a ton of skill, and just want to break through against the contenders and erase last year’s memory. And guess what first-year coach Tom Bellen told them? “The first day I had these guys, I told them, ‘I don’t care what happens all year, we make playoffs, we don’t lose the first round game.”

Something will have to give. The winner is in the tough bracket with No. 4 Windham and top seed, unbeaten Bedford.

Meanwhile, the Tomahawks were a very determined team going into the season to make the playoffs, and won seven of their last ten to get there. One of those was over, yes, Timberlane, 3-2. Should they advance, it’s a tough bracke with No. 2 Manchester Central.

The Pick: Bedford over Hanover

DIVISION II

Would anyone have picked Milford, which has struggled in past years, to be the local team with a first round bye? The Spartans have had a great fall under new coach Olf Omouyaka. His Spartans won nine games and are off until Saturday when they face the winner of Thursday’s No. 5 Bow vs. No. 12 Stevens prelim – neither of whom they faced.

Meanwhile, the No. 7 Cavaliers might have been that bye guess. They started the season with a tough slate but ended it with a five-game winning streak, led by goalie Ryan Coutu and striker J.J. Kennedy, with players like Max Burns and Andy Basque in between. Should they keep their streak going, the Cavs then would have a long trip Saturday in the quarters at No. 2 Lebanon (14-2), whom they lost to 3-2 during that tough start. Could be an interesting rematch and as Cavs coach Steve Martus said, “Now I feel we have a chance for the championship.”

The Pick: Oyster River over ConVal

DIVISION III

Can anyone stop the Cougars? They tied Sanborn and Derryfield, neither one a power. They have some veterans from last year’s title team and some great young players. They could get another shot at Sanborn in the quarters and Belmont may be lurking for a semifinal rematch.

“We have eight freshman or sophomore starters, and we have some significant injuries,” Cougars coach Bill Miller said.

But sophomore goalie Jack Noury and freshman 20 goal scorer Sam Gomes have come through. The Cougars are fast, and remember – they practice penalty kicks every single day, which may give them the same advantage they had last year in winning the semis and finals that way. But will the youth be served?

The Pick: Campbell over Trinity

DIVISION IV

Wilton-Lyndeborough had a good season in winning 11 games, but ended it with a three-game losing streak against the division’s iron. If they win their opener as expected, they would likely face one of those teams that beat them (4-1 just a couple of weeks ago) in No. 4 Littleton.

THE PICK: Sunapee over Littleton.

GIRLS SOCCER

DIVISION I

Bishop Guertin joined the elite this season, with a couple of great freshman, one of and the return of injured forward Caitlyn Toom, who Alvirne really doesn’t want to see after Toom scored two goals with an assist in a 3-0 win back on Sept. 24.

If the Cards get past the Broncos – not a given – they might have to tangle in the quarters with No. 6 Manchester Central, whom they did beat 3-1 a month ago. But Merrimack has the Little Green in the first round, and the Tomahawks made the tourney with a team that was rebuilding.

No one has touched Exeter and Guertin’s two losses were to Bedford and No. 3 Londonderry, the latter in a tight 3-2 game. Could be a great semi. But oh, look – Nashua South and 18-goal scorer Mailee McDermott could face the Lancers in a rematch of last year’s quarters. The teams did not play this year but the Panthers beat their prelim opponent Goffstown 2-0. The plot thickens.

“The top of the table,” Cards coach Pat Mulcahy said, “is very strong. … Against Londonderry, we started off spectacularly and just died. With those top teams, there’s very little margin for error.”

The Pick: Exeter over Bishop Guertin

DIVISON II

This is the most loaded, it seems, of any of the boys or girls divisions. Talent galore, including Hollis Brookline, which survived an early season injury to key forward Tasha White, saw her return, and have taken off, not having lost since Sept. 16.

“We’ve had an interesting year,” Cavs coach Peter Clarke said, “with so many key players missing multiple games with injuries. But, it’s made us better with the performance of players who have steppedin or assumed new roles. … It’s a division where most of the tourney teams can stand strong on a given day.”

If the Cavs win, they could face local rival Souhegan, which has won six of eight but lost to the Cavs twice, 2-0 and 1-0. You know the old saying how tough it is to beat a team three times.

The Spartans, last year’s runnerup, has a lot of the young nucleus its nurtured for the last couple of years come of age. The challenge may come if the Spartans can get to the semis, where No. 1 Hanover could be waiting. Yes, the Hanover team that beat them in penalty kicks in last year’s finals.

The Pick: Hanover over Hollis Brookline.

DIVISON III

The Cougars are good again, no surprise, and have two potential home games to punch yet another ticket to Laconia. Junior Karleigh Schultz is again a force, and two other freshmen, Morgan Wagner and Gabrielle Kim-Levesque have been their top scorers, but nine players at least have put the ball in the net.

“Our biggest challenge is consistently controlling games start to finish,” Cougars coach Kevin Brassard said. “It’s been a very successful regular season for us, I am excited to see what the girls can do in the tournament.”

They may need to beat Hopkinton in the quarters, but they beat them 2-0 during the regular season. A semis rematch with Stevens?

The Pick:Belmont over Campbell

DIVISION IV

The Warriors started out the season blowing away the opposition, then the tougher schedule caught up with them and they’re on the road for the first round. But they beat their prelim opponent, Concord Christian, twice, 4-2 and 6-4. Ah, the old three times question. But it’s a tough draw, because waiting in the quarters would be Newmarket, who beat WLC twice – but by a 14-2 combined margin.

The Pick: Sunapee over Moultonborough

GIRLS VOLLEYBAL

DIVISION I

Is this the year? We missed out on a Nashua South-Hollis Brookline battle of unbeatens in the finals thanks to Bedford upsetting South in last year’s semis. Panthers coach Wayne Siejkowski is thrilled he won’t have to play on Halloween – the team has lost two years in a row on that date to end seasons.

They could draw nemisis Bedford in the quarters, and Siejkowski is nervous because, despite the great regualr season, “all it takes is one bad night to end the season.” Siejkowski knows he has “a special player” in top senior scorer Kara Kelliher, but says the real key is the team’s depth, and its ability to fight through some challenges (five set season opener vs. Windham).

The semis could be against No. 4 Winnacunnet or possibly No. 5 Spaulding. HB could have to tangle with Pinkerton on its home floor. The Astros are one of four teams to have won one set – just one – against the Cavs.

There’s always an upset – area teams on the road in the first round Alvirne, BG and Nashua North would love to be part of a few. But in the end, this year it really does look like a two-team race.

The Pick: Hollis Brookline over Nashua South.

DIVSON II

Can the Spartans get another shot at 16-0 Gilford, which beat them in the finals last year? It lines up that way, and Milford has a solid core of 9 players led by senior Gabby Monico.

“I think there’s nothing more this team wants,” first-year coach Mia Malafronte said, “but we have to stay focused and take this tournament one game at a time.” John Stark, whom the Spartans beat 3-0 in the regular season, looms as a semifinal hurdle.

The Pick: Gilford over Milford

DIVISION III

To say the Cougars have been streaky is too easy: five match win streak, five match losing streak, followed by five more straight wins. They beat Sunapee on the road 3-0, so looking ahead to the quarters, a tough team in Winnisquam (3-0 loss) awaits. But it’s the tournament, and anything’s possible.

The Pick: Winnisquam over Newfound.

XXXXXXX

In tonight’s field hockey semis, Guertin will try to avenge a 4-0 loss to the No. 2 Jaguars, and Merrimack needs to do what it did earlier in the season when it beat Concord 2-1. Cinderella stories? Don’t be surprised if at least one local makes the finals.

“Our girls are prepared and know they’re going to have to play a complete game if they want to pull off the upset,” Cards coach Steve Duprat said.

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