By Tyler Amaral
NEFJ Correspondent

The regular season is winding down across New England. There is still plenty to play for with league standings and playoff seeding still up for grabs. Catholic Memorial at St. John’s (Shrewsbury) is the headliner in Massachusetts. As always, we’ll take a look at the Top 15 MIAA matchups. The most intriguing matchups in the region this weekend are New Canaan at Greenwich in Connecticut and Bonny Eagle at Thornton Academy up in Maine.

Massachusetts

Catholic Memorial at St. John’s (Shrewsbury): Catholic Memorial breezed past Xaverian last week, avenging a 2025 loss to the Hawks. St. John’s is coming off its first loss of the season to top-ranked St. John’s Prep. Things don’t get much easier this week for the Pioneers.

Central Catholic at Andover: Both teams are coming off hard-fought battles with top New Hampshire teams. Central Catholic lost to Londonderry, while Andover knocked off Pinkerton. Caden Smith versus John Stadler is an elite quarterback matchup.

Franklin at Milton: There aren’t many non-conference games being played this week and this is the top one in the state. Milton aims to get back to track after a shutout loss at home to Walpole last week. Franklin has won five in a row after losing its first game to Wachusett.

Tewksbury at North Andover: Another week, another massive tilt in the Merrimack Valley Conference. This is another top-tier quarterback matchup between Will Harrison and Austin Allen.

King Philip at Foxborough: King Philip looks like King Philip again. Freshman running back Ethan O’Connell is already one of the Hockomock League’s best players. KP enters as the favorite, but you can throw records out the window when these teams square off.

Westford Academy at Chelmsford: Another intriguing non-league battle between two Division 2 contenders.

North Quincy at Scituate: North Quincy is off to its best start in more than three decades. Cole Doyle has been one of the breakout stars of the season. Scituate continues to roll. The Sailors are 6-0 and have not won a game by less than 21 points.

North Kingstown (RI) at Barnstable: North Kingstown’s only loss is to Rhode Island power La Salle. The Skippers are consistently among the top public school programs in Rhode Island. Barnstable’s difficult schedule continues. The Red Hawks have the defense to compete with most teams in the region.

Somerville at Everett: Somerville is on the fringe of the Division 3 playoff race. A win over Everett will boost the Highlanders resume.

St. Mary’s at Bishop Feehan: It’s good to see these programs continue to square off despite both moving from the Catholic Central to independent schedules. St. Mary’s is a contender in Division 5. Bishop Feehan still needs one more win to qualify for the Division 2 playoffs. The Shamrocks play La Salle next week, so this is probably the better of the two opportunities.

Nashoba Valley at KIPP: This could be the first of two meetings between two Division 8 contenders.

New Bedford at Brockton: One of the biggest games in years between these longtime rivals. New Bedford has had maybe the greatest improvement year-over-year of any team in the state. The Whalers were winless last season and scored a total of 41 points, but this season they are trending toward a playoff berth.

Hudson at West Boylston: Hudson is currently ranked atop the Division 6 power rankings. Logan Dome is one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the state. West Boylston isn’t quite the same level of team as they have been recently, but the Lions are still a physical bunch capable of making noise in Division 8.

Leicester at St. Bernard’s: St. Bernard’s has mostly dominated its schedule to this point. Leicester is looking to beef up its playoff resume heading into the Division 7 playoffs.

Cape Cod Tech at Hull: A battle of Division 8 unbeatens. Cape Cod Tech is currently ranked sixth in the Division 8 power rankings. Hull checks in at number four. Hull is coming off its biggest win of the season over previously undefeated Franklin County Tech.

Connecticut

New Canaan at Greenwich: The biggest game in Connecticut this fall. This one should be an instant classic.

Maine

Bonny Eagle at Thornton Academy: Like in Connecticut, this is the biggest game of the year in Maine. Both teams’ closest victory to this point was over South Portland.

New Hampshire

Westerly (RI) at Bishop Guertin: A fun interstate matchup between one of the Division 2 favorites in Rhode Island and arguably the top team from the Granite State.

Rhode Island

St. Ray’s at Cranston West: These two squads and North Kingstown appear to be the only Division 1 teams capable of spoiling yet another Bishop Hendricken versus La Salle final.

Vermont

St. Johnsbury at Lyndon Institute: St. Johnsbury is the team to beat in Vermont. The Hilltoppers have not played a close game yet this season. Lyndon is playing well after a midseason loss to Fair Haven.

NEPSAC

BB&N at Milton Academy: Owen DeSalvo and BB&N are 4-0, but this is arguably the toughest test yet for the Knights.