Hollis Brookline's Elisabeth Stapelfeld (23) will be a huge key as she enters her senior season for the Cavaliers. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

It was a different feeling nine months ago for the Bishop Guertin High School girls basketball team.

It came from losing a state championship game.

The Cardinals fell to Bedford in the finals, and coach Brad Kreick told his players to remember that feeling.

With almost all of that team returning, they’ll take that memory into this year’s season, which was slated to open Friday against the Bulldogs.

“We return all but one from last year,” Kreick said, but there’s a catch. Last year’s Telegraph Player of the Year, junior Meghan Stack, tore her ACL just three weeks after that title game, late last March, and the Cards will likely be without her until late in the season.

It could be a repeat of last year, but others hope to knock on the door.

“Obviously BG and Bedford are the favorites,” Merrimack coach Bryan Duggan said. “But I think the league will be closer than others might predict this year.”

Hollis Brookline looks to be a solid Division II team, while Milford will be seeking to win its first varsity game since 2018. In Division III, Campbell lost a lot to graduation and have former player Hannah Neild as its new coach. Wilton-Lyndeborough continues to build up its numbers with a JV team only and won’t compete in Division IV for the second straight year.

And remember the new, condensed schedule in which the the regular season ends by the first week in February. It will be a challenge for everyone: three-game weeks, back-to-back nights, some Saturday games and, as Milford coach Mike Davidson said, “little practice time in between games. … It’s like coaching an NBA team.”

Here’s a look:

DIVISION I

Guertin’s key players, while 6-footer Stack is on the mend, include 5-8 junior point guard Brooke Paquette, 5-8 junior shooting guard Liv Murray, senior captain 5-9 forward Maddy Brown, plus 5-10 junior forward Catelyn Wheeler. Also watch for 5-9 junior forward Molly Smith and 5-7 junior guard Kate Daley.

It’s a small team, and the Cards have returned after a short, all-local pandemic slate a year ago to a more traditional schedule augmented with as many as six tough out-of-state teams.

“We’ll rely heavily on our defense and press game,” Kreick said.

Keep an eye on Nashua North, which took a step forward with a first-round tourney win last year but fell to the Cards in the quarters. The Titans will be led by four seniors: 5-8 Olivia Mazerolle, 5-9 Natalie Burgess (both forwards), 5-10 Brooke Lane and 5-6 Moutita Rana. Add 5-4 junior guard Grace Cardin to that and there’s the nucleus that third-year coach Curt Dutilley likes for its quickness.

“The key for us this year is capitalize on our team speed,” Dutilley said. “We feel the entire varsity roster brings exceptional quickness and speed to the floor.”

Nashua South lost a big senior nucleus, but the Panthers under head coach John Bourgeois still have talent to start anew, beginning with junior point guard Mazie Barker, who transferred from BG, and sophomore guard Morgan Gillis, who started as a freshman last year. Plus they’re boosted by the return of junior forward Ella Karavanic, who didn’t play last year due to injury.

Other key returners are junior guards Liz DeRusha and Alex Kapapoulous (back after sitting out last year), plus senior forward Vanessa Reeder.

“We have almost an entirely new group, some still recovering from surgeries this off-season, and a lot of work to do in a short amount of time,” Bourgeois said. “But we’re looking forward to the challenge and excited about the group we have.”

Alvirne has a lot of returning players from a 6-7 team that lost to Nashua South in the first round, but the Broncos will be small – no one is over 5-8.

“We know we have to play a certain way to be successful,” Broncos coach Frank Girginis said.

Keys for Alvirne include juniors Lyla Davis (5-7), Paige McKinley (5-5), Jaime O’Connor (5-5), Ally Scharn (5-8) and sophomore Rachael Allard (5-5). Keep an eye on newcomers Ella Hartson (5-8 freshman) and 5-7 soph Sadie Rogers.

Merrimack will play an up-tempo, pressure style as well, as it matches the fast, athletic players on the roster, starting with 5-7 senior point guard Emma Valluzzi.

“In high school basketball you need a good point guard to survive, and we have a great one in Valluzzi,” Duggan said.

Other key seniors are 5-9 forward Kaylee Bormuth, 5-2 guard Shannon Sadhwani and 5-9 guard Kaely Smith. Freshman Madison McCaffery (5-6) may make an impact as well.

DIVISION II

Hollis Brookline has been a champion and a constant contender the last several years, and the Cavs should be in the hunt again this year with lots of depth.

“Many of the returning kids played with top AAU programs in the off-season and they’ve all improved,” longtime HB coach Bob Murphy said, feeling he has eight or nine starters on his roster, a nice problem to have. “We lost in the quarterfinals last year (to Pelham) in double overtime but I feel we could finish higher with this group of kids.”

That starts with 5-6 senior guard Elisabeth Stapelfeld, the team’s leading scorer and rebounder a year ago. Add 5-11 junior forward Cheyenne Colbert and 5-8 senior forward Maggie Crooks, and you have a solid trio to start with. Then there’s 5-7 junior Eva Kelley, 5-7 senior point guard Amanda Robbins, and 5-7 junior guard Daniella Allanach, plus the return of 5-10 junior forward McKenna Dunn, back from an ACL tear. Freshmen Camryn Dunn (5-10 forward) and 5-5 guard Sabrina Hill could contribute.

At Milford, Davidson may get that first win this year, as his numbers look good enough to sustain a JV team for the first time in awhile. On the varsity, leading scorer (11.5 points per game) 5-8 junior forward Bailey Johnson is back, as are fellow captains Kate Hansen (5-6 junior forward) and 5-7 junior guard Addie Hopkins.

Other returnees include 5-5 soph guard Keely Giordano, 5-4 soph Addyson Pare, and 5-7 senior forward Alyssa Godlewski. Newcomer Julianna DaLuz (5-7 sophomore forward) may also contribute.

Davidson says the preseason enthusiasm and energy of his team “has been off the charts. It’s a big question mark if this will translate to wins on the scoreboard.”

Souhegan coach Michael Vetack is counting on the athleticism of key players 5-7 senior guard-forward Caitlin Cooper, 5-7 junior guard-forward Kate Canavan, 5-5 senior guard Abby Rose and 5-6 senior forward Sabra Biddle. Biddle could be a scorer for the Sabers, while Rose will be a top defender. Canavan can play all five positions while Cooper is the team’s most athletic player and shot blocker.

“Our team will struggle to compete against teams middle of the road and higher,” Vetack said. “They are ready to make a huge jump once that light switch is flipped on.”

The competition statewide will likely come from Bishop Brady, Bow, Kennett and Hanover – as usual.

DIVISION III

Neild the coach could actually use Neild the player as the Cougars, who made the semis a year ago, will be rebuilding.

Five key seniors graduated, but some familiar junior athletes, such as Bailey Bourque, Hailey Anderson and Brooke Stoncius were eligible to return. Sophomore Kristina Castellano is another familiar name.