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Local sports teams seeded for playoffs

ADDISON COUNTY — This morning’s release of Vermont Principals’ Association high school playoff pairings confirmed that the Mount Abraham field hockey team is the No. 1 seed in Division II, that both Eagle and Vergennes boys and girls’ soccer teams will host first-round games, and the Middlebury boys’ soccer and Otter Valley field hockey squads will also open the postseason on their home fields.
Potential matchups between local teams also loom, especially in D-II field hockey. If that tournament follows the chalk the Eagles will face both the No. 8 Tigers and No. 4 Otters.
If the No. 15 OV boys’ soccer team can upset rival No. 2 Woodstock (and both their losses in the regular season were by one goal), the Otters could also visit No. 7 Mount Abe in a D-II quarterfinal.
A series of upsets could even pit the No. 13 OV girls’ soccer team vs. the No. 6 Commodores in the D-III final.
FIELD HOCKEY
The Eagles earned their top seed in D-II field hockey with an 8-3-3 record compiled against mostly D-I competition. They will open on Friday at home at 3:30 p.m. against the winner of a Wednesday first-round game at MUHS that pits the No. 8 Tigers (1-11) vs. No. 9 Springfield (2-11 against a softer schedule. The Eagles twice blanked MUHS, 2-0 and 4-0, but did not meet Springfield.
The No. 4 Otters (9-5) on Friday at 3:30 p.m. will entertain No. 5 Brattleboro (6-7-1). The Otters and Colonels did not meet this fall. Nor did OV face the Eagles, whom they could meet in an Oct. 29 semifinal at South Burlington.
BOYS’ SOCCER
MUHS (10-3-1) earned the top seed among the four boys’ soccer teams, the No. 5 nod in D-I. They will open on Tuesday at 3 p.m. vs. No. 12 Mount Anthony (7-7), a team the Tigers did not face this spring. Next up would be a Friday game at 3 p.m. against either No. 4 South Burlington (9-4-1) on the road, or No. 13 Burlington (5-6-2) at home.  
VUHS (8-6) received the No. 6 nod in D-III and will host No. 11 Randolph (3-10-1) on Tuesday at 3 p.m. A win then would propel the Commodores into a Friday quarterfinal either at No. 3 Winooski (13-1) or at home vs. No. 14 Oxbow (3-11).  
In D-II the Eagles (5-7-2) closed with two wins to earn the No. 7 seed in D-II. They will host No. 10 Stratton (6-4-1) on Tuesday. With a victory, the Eagles would face either No. 2 Woodstock (9-3-1) or the No. 15 Otters on Friday at 3 p.m. Mount Abe has not played any of those teams this fall, while OV has lost to the Wasps, 1-0 and 3-2.
GIRLS’ SOCCER
The Mount Abe girls (7-5-2) closed the regular season with a four-game winning streak to earn the No. 6 seed in D-II. The Eagles will host No. 11 Mill River (4-9-1) on Wednesday at 3 p.m.
If they defeat the Minutemen the Eagles then will almost certainly visit apparently annual playoff rival Harwood (at 11-2-1 the No. 2 seed) on Saturday at 1 p.m. The Eagles have not met Harwood this fall, but have played the top teams in D-II tough, including potential semifinal foe Rice — No. 2 seed Rice and Mount Abe have twice tied at 1-1.
In D-III VUHS (6-5-2) earned the No. 6 seed and will host No. 11 Windsor (7-7) on Wednesday. If the Commodores prevail on Wednesday they would play again at Saturday at 1 p.m., either at No. 3 Green Mountain Union (13-1) or at home vs. No. 14 Enosburg (6-8).   
Also in D-III OV won six of its final eight games to finish 7-7 and earn the No. 13 seed. The Otters will travel to No. 4 Peoples (10-3-1) on Wednesday at 3 p.m. An upset there would mean a Saturday game at either No. 5 Rivendell (11-3) or No. 12 White River Valley (6-5-1).   
In D-I MUHS received the No. 13 seed with a 3-11 mark and will face no. 5 Burr & Burton (8-4-1) on Wednesday at 3 p.m. If the Tigers upset the Bulldogs they will play on Saturday at 1 p.m. against either No. 5 South Burlington (9-5) or No. 12 St. Johnsbury (4-10).
FOOTBALL
Football pairings were announced over the weekend. Only MUHS (5-3) qualified for the playoffs, having earned the No. 5 seed in D-I. The Tigers will travel to No. 4 Rice, also 5-3, for a 1 p.m. game on Saturday.
If the Tigers prevail, they will next weekend either travel to meet No. 1 Mt. Mansfield (6-2) or host No. 8 Colchester (5-3).
OV (1-7) will play a D-II wild-card game this Friday at Mount Anthony (2-6).

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