Bishop Guertin heavyweight Bishop Kearns, a junior, wll be one of the area's top wrestlers to watch this season. (Telegraph file photo by TOM KING)

If the blanket of snow we have and the bitter cold temps aren’t enough to tell you winter has fully arrived, here’s another sign:

High school wrestling dual meets begin tonight.

The regular season lasts just over two months, with the Division championship meets set for Feb. 21. Don’t get complacent, that day will be here before you know it.

Meanwhile, here’s a look at the locals; remember, only Nashua North and South are in Division I, Campbell is in III, and the majority of the locals are in wrestling’s version of Division II:

DIVISION I

Nashua South has had a very helpful influx of new wrestlers, great for any program.

“We’re looking forward to building them up and getting them some experience,” South coach Tony Spero said. “Definitely a building year for us.”

Returning MOC champ senior Benny Byrne tops the lineup at 157, while junior Ian McCubrey (215) and senior Alex Rochette (150) are others to watch.

At North, the Titans had a good, competitive year last year, but finished 12th in the division meet and will try to improve on that led by Craig Burge at 120 and Tavyon Moore at 144. They both finished first in their respective weight classes at a tourney in Kingswood this past weekend, with the Titans finishing fifth overall. A good start.

DIVISION II

Hollis Brookline has been the top local in this division for awhile, and look loaded again to try to improve on their second place finish and are going to have competition from locals Bishop Guertin, Souhegan, Milford and two-time defending champ Goffstown.

“We enter the season with many returners and new faces alike,” Cavs coach Brian Bumpus said. “We’ll be looking to build off last year’s runner-up finish.”

They’re strong throughout, led by sophomore Victor Lomme at 120, senior Gavin Turcotte at 120/126 senior Scout Crea (126/132), junior Hunter Knight (132/138), sophomore Will Crawford at 150, seniors Jake Critchfield (157), Jaegar Mann (157/165), Dylan Manley (165/175), Jake Velez (190), Harrison Holmes (215/285) and Phil Berke (215/285).

Bishop Guertin should have a strong season, bouncing back from a seventh place finish last winter. The Cards have ushered in a new era as local coach Dan Warshafsky (Boys & Girls Club) has taken over for longtime mentor Paul Rousseau, now retired from coaching.

The season will revolve around four key wrestlers/co-captains: seniors Austin Steinruck (132) and Jack Foster (175), plus juniors James Algeo (138) and Bishop Kearns (285). Foster and Kearns were Division champs last year.

“We’re looking to score big in tournaments this year,” Warshafsky said. “All four captains are chasing state titles.”

Souhegan looks very formidable with eight returning regulars, the top five being senior Jack Kaler, the defending Division II champ at 132 and he just took third in a recent New England showcase event; senior Landon Carson, 138 (fourth in D2 last year), senior Chase Knuckles at 144 (second last year); senior Alex Sarfde (fifth) and junior Gabe Holt (second at 215). They’d be even better had not Gabe Holt, second last year at 215, moved away.

The Sabers also have Ava Burbee, who placed third in the Girls MOC last year.

Souhegan’s Jack Kaler hopes to defend his Division II title he won last season. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

Milford under coach Joe Faucher has a group of seniors that should be making news: Cam Stickney, Tanner Herbert, Eli Wales, Phil Wright and Jack Clancy.

“We’re looking to have an exciting year,” assistant Robbie Millward said. “It’s a hard-working group of wrestlers”

New coach Colin Jones takes over at Merrimack. The numbers were good (about 34), but the strength according to Jones is in the freshman and junior classes.

The ‘Hawks’ top five include freshman Cash Torres at 165, as he’s been impressive vs. upperclassmen in the preseason; sophomore Owen Sayball at 138 (Wardogs champ in October), senior Landon Shultz at 144 (third in Wardogs), junior Joey Elnar at 215 and first-year senior Nicolin Stevens at 190. Stevens won competiton within the team to get the starting nod.

“Overall I think Merrimack has a ton of potential in the next few years, our numbers are up,” Jones said. “We didn’t have a great run last season and are looking to put the Tomahawks back on the map.”

Alvirne has a new coach, former Bronco wrestling and football standout Kyle Gora.

The Broncos return a core of proven senior leaders in Quintin Tetreault, Joey Lydon, and Jillian Boncore, each bringing veteran experience and a competitive edge to an overall young roster.

Two standout sophomores are also back after impressive freshman campaigns – Kylar Cox won the 106 division title last year– and both are moving into new weight classes and are expected to make significant strides as they adjust and continue their development.

“With seasoned leadership guiding a talented young group, we appear poised for another strong showing as we look to elevate the program to new heights this season,”Gora said.

It should be an interesting year locally in Division II, right?

DIVISION III

There’s only Campbell, and longtime coach James Marron retired with David Baker taking over. Key wrestlers will be Sam Baker (runner-up last year) at 126, Sabe Anctil at 157 and Jaydon Uccello at 175.

“We expect a high level of competition from our athletes this season,” David Baker said. “A lot of work was done during the off-season at various programs around the state and in Massachusetts.”

TONIGHT

Here’s the dual meet Opening Night schedule, with three all-local matchups all at 6 p.m.:

BG at Nashua South, Alvirne at Hollis Brookline, Souhegan at Merrimack, North at Bedford, Milford at Kingswood, and Campbell at Franklin.