BASEBALLDivision II first roundNo. 16 Merrimack Valley at No. 1 Portsmouth (15-1), 4 p.m.

Head to head: Portsmouth beat the Pride, 12-0, on May 9.

Notes: MV went 2-2 in its last four games to earn the final spot in the tournament. The Pride’s reward is a trip to Portsmouth to visit the Clippers, who are giving up just 1.6 runs per game.

No. 12 Lebanon (6-10) at No. 5 John Stark (12-4), 4 p.m.

Head to head: The Generals beat Lebanon twice – 3-0 in Weare in the season opener and 9-7 at Lebanon on May 18.

Notes: The second meeting between these two was one of the best wins of the year for Stark. The Generals were down 7-4 with two outs in the seventh when Wes Lamphere delivered a three-run home run to force extra innings. Adam Tower then had a two-run, game-winning single in the eighth and ace Egan Nickerson worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the eighth for the save.

No. 11 Milford (6-10) at No. 6 Coe-Brown (11-5), 4 p.m.

Head to head: The two teams did not meet in the regular season.

Notes: The Bears enter the tournament with enough firepower to make a deep run. The first step will come at home against a Milford team that lost five of its last six.

Division III first roundNo. 13 Franklin (10-7) at No. 4 Laconia (12-4), 4 p.m.

Head to head: The Golden Tornadoes beat Laconia, 10-5, on May 24.

Previous tournament games: Franklin beat No. 20 Gilford, 5-1.

Notes: The Tornadoes feel good heading into this matchup and with good reason. They have their entire pitching staff available after piecing together the seven innings against Gilford, and they just beat the Sachems eight days ago. Franklin Coach Dave Joyce said, “I don’t want to sound overconfident, they’re a good ball club and we know they’re coming for us and it’s win or go home at this point, but I like our chances.”

No. 14 Stevens (9-7) at No. 3 Belmont (13-3), 4 p.m.

Head to head: The two teams did not meet in the regular season.

Previous tournament games: Stevens beat No. 19 Fall Mountain, 2-0

Notes: Belmont may have lost two of their last four after starting the season 11-1, but this a team that no one should want to face in the postseason. The Raiders have one of the deepest lineups in D-III, a solid selection of arms and they know how to win.

No. 11 Winnisquam (9-7) atNo. 6 Bow (11-5), 4 p.m.

Head to head: The two teams did not meet in the regular season

Notes: Both of these teams entered the season hoping their inexperienced roster would improve as the year progressed. Bow found its stride sooner and beat two-time defending champion Campbell (snapping the Cougars’ 41-game win streak) in the process. The Bears took longer to get a groove, starting 1-4, but they went 7-2 down the stretch. This should be a close game between two well-coached teams.

No. 10 Kearsarge (9-7) at No. 7 Bishop Brady (10-6), 4 p.m.

Head to head: Kearsarge beat the Green Giants, 5-1, on May 24

Notes: When these two met eight days ago, Brady was coming off an emotional win that saw it lose two starters to injury. Still, Kearsarge’s Jake Vierzen spun a beauty, giving up just six hits and one earned run over seven innings. Vierzen also went 2-for-3 at the plate with two RBI.

No. 18 Hopkinton (9-9) at No. 2 Conant (14-2), 4 p.m.

Head to head: Conant beat the Hawks, 7-2, on May 9.

Previous tournament games: Hopkinton beat No. 15 Berlin, 3-1.

Notes: The Hawks loss to Conant started a four-game skid that left them at 4-8 on May 16. But in the last two weeks, Hopkinton has found its bats and went 4-1 to finish the season, scoring 9.6 runs per game in that span. It will still be an uphill battle against the Orioles, who lost their season opener, won 14 straight and then lost their regular-season finale at Bow, 1-0.

Division IV first roundNo. 11 Pittsfield (7-9) at No. 6 Groveton (10-6), 4 p.m.

Head to head: The two teams did not meet in the regular season.

Notes: The Panthers have won back-to-back games only once all season, and that was a doubleheader against Hinsdale (0-16) on April 16, so it might be hard to see them making a tournament run. But you can only win one game at a time, Pittsfield has been hitting (7.3 runs per game in the second half of the season) and Groveton has been up-and-down itself, going 3-3 to close the season by alternating wins and losses for six straight games.

GIRLS’ LACROSSEDivision III first roundNo. 5 Bow (11-3) atNo. 4 Derryfield (12-3), 5 p.m.

Head to head: Derryfield beat the Falcons, 16-13, on May 17.

Notes: The Cougars came out on top in the regular-season meeting, but it was the closest win Derryfield had all year. The Cougars also lost two of their last three, including a 10-8 loss at the hands of 6-8 ConVal. That loss to Derryfield was the only deafeat for the Falcons in their final 10 games.

No. 6 Pelham (10-4) at No. 3 Kearsarge (12-3), 6 p.m.

Head to head: The two teams did not meet in the regular season.

Notes: The Cougars reached the D-III semifinals last year and they have appeared to be on track to make a return trip all season. In their way are the Pythons, who have been blown out in their games against the other top teams in D-III –19-3 at No. 4 Derryfield, 20-9 at No. 2 St. Thomas, 18-6 vs. No. 1 Laconia and 15-5 at No. 5 Bow.

SOFTBALLDivision III first roundNo. 11 Bishop Brady (10-6)at No. 6 Berlin (12-4)

Head to head: The two teams did not meet in the regular season.

Notes: The Green Giants started 2-2 and went on a 7-1 tear in the middle of the season, but they have lost three of their last four games, giving up an average of eight runs in those losses. But the Giants are also capable of putting up big numbers, as they’ve shown in the second half of the season when they averaged 9.8 runs per game.

No. 12 Winnisquam (9-7) atNo. 5 Campbell (13-3), 4 p.m.

Head to head: Campbell beat the Bears, 7-5, on April 18.

Notes: The loss at Campbell was the only blemish for Winnisquam in its first six games. After that 5-1 start, however, the Bears went on a 2-5 skid. But they have played better recently, claiming a pair of close wins agaisnt Inter-Lakes and Brady before falling by just one run, 5-4, to No. 2 Franklin in the regular-season finale.

No. 9 Newport (11-5) at No. 8 Belmont (12-4), 4 p.m.

Head to head:The teams did not meet during the regular season.

Notes: The Raiders are hot, coming into the tournament with an eight-game winning streak, while Newport has a six-game winning streak of its own. Both teams are playing well at the right time, so this No. 8 vs. No. 9 matchup should prove to be a tight battle of hot teams.