The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association has released postseason brackets for all its spring sports, and six Brookline High School teams have qualified. Brookline.News has your playoff primer for every team, plus updates on track and field, girls golf and ultimate.
BOYS TENNIS
Playoff opener: No. 1 Brookline (19-0) will host No. 32 Central Catholic (10-6) or No. 33 Bridgewater-Raynham (8-6) in the Round of 32 today at Waldstein Playground at 4 p.m.
Recent playoff history: The Warriors have been one of the top Division 1 teams for the last several years. Their loss to Acton-Boxboro in the 2022 state championship snapped an 82-game winning streak dating back to 2018, during which time Brookline won three consecutive state titles.
Head coach: Mike Mowatt
Key players: Co-captains and second-doubles team Owen Eskey and Jacob Kapusta are the only seniors among the starting seven. Sophomores Deven Devaiah (first singles), Peter Khudyakov (third singles) and Ravin and Kiran Bhatia (first doubles) and junior Dhevin Nahata (second singles) complete the group.
Coach’s quote: “Although we are relatively young, I think my starters are experienced because they worked hard in the off-season to get ready. Our depth will really help us in the tournament, and as the top seed we are looking forward to hosting a few matches.”
GIRLS TENNIS
Playoff opener: No. 13 Brookline (12-6) will host No. 20 Natick (8-8) today at Waldstein Playground at 4 p.m.
Recent playoff history: The Warriors have been a playoff mainstay for more than a decade. Brookline advanced all the way to the state semifinals before losing to Lexington in 2022.
Head coach: Keith Carson
BOYS LACROSSE
Playoff opener: No. 27 Brookline (9-9) will be at No. 6 Lincoln-Sudbury (11-5) in the Round of 32 at date and time still to be determined.
Recent playoff history: The Warriors return to the playoffs for the first time since 2017, when they lost to Duxbury in the first round.
Head coach: Dan Gardner
GIRLS LACROSSE
Playoff opener: No. 20 Brookline (12-6) will be at No. 13 Natick (11-7) in the Round of 32 at 6 p.m. today.
Recent playoff history: Brookline lost to Westwood in the Round of 32 in 2022.
Head coach: Julianna Molloy
Key players: A pair of senior co-captains anchor the midfield, as Charlotte Smith has tallied a team-high 39 goals with 25 assists, and Faith Rothstein has 31 goals and 20 assists. Sophomore attack Birdie Hawkins has scored 34 goals plus a team-high 30 assists, and junior goalie Kaylyn Kirrane has over 700 career saves.
Coach’s quote: “Setting the tempo from the start of the game is going to be big for us. We have only continued to improve this year, and the girls have really come together as a team.”
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Playoff opener: No. 11 Brookline (12-6) will host No. 22 Revere (16-4) in the Round of 32 today at 6 p.m.
Recent playoff history: Brookline lost to Needham in the Round of 16 in 2022. Brookline has made the playoffs every season since 2018.
Head coach: Dana Jones
Key players: Freshman setter Alec Smagula anchors the Warriors’ offense. When it comes to kills, look for senior co-captains Charlie Perdue and Cam Jilek to have big games.
GIRLS RUGBY
Playoff opener: No. 3 Brookline (3-4) will be at No. 2 Lincoln-Sudbury (4-3) in the semifinals Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.
Recent playoff history: Brookline lost to Lincoln-Sudbury in the 2022 semifinals.
Head coach: Erik Person
BOYS ULTIMATE
Ultimate, sometimes called ultimate disc or ultimate Frisbee, is a varsity sport at Brookline. Tournaments are organized by USA Ultimate, not the MIAA. Brookline is seeded fourth in its pool for the Division II Massachusetts State Championship, and will open pool play against No. 6 Lexington Junior Varsity on Saturday at 9 a.m. at Oxbow Marina in Northampton. Following five round-robin games, Brookline will have a sixth placement game at 4:30 p.m.
Recent playoff history: Brookline went 2-2 in pool play in the 2022 state tournament, then beat Four Rivers Junior Varsity and Boston College High School in placement games to finish ninth.
Head coach: Michael Downing
Key players: Junior cutter Nathan Ives, sophomore handler Julian Ricco and senior handler Matthew Dankworth are Brookline’s three captains this season.
Captain’s quote: “We have really good team chemistry this year. We can be successful if we communicate a lot.” – Ives
TRACK AND FIELD
The Warriors will send 36 athletes and relay teams to the Meet of Champions, which kicks off today at Fitchburg State College. Brookline’s girls team is coming off a third-place finish at the Division 1 state meet, led by a win from 4×800 meter relay team Camille Jordan, Jordan Liss-Riordan, Dasha LeFaivre, Audrey Seeger, Anna Leschly, Zara Chaudry (9 minutes, 23.38 seconds). Leschly, Jordan, LeFaivre and Seeger were also part of the second-place 4×400 relay team (4:01.8), along with Thalia Goessling.
Among the individuals, Jordan placed second in the 800 meters (2:12.36) and 1 mile (4:58.48), Liss Riordan placed third in the 2 mile (10:46.31) and fourth in the 1 mile (5:03.75), and LeFaivre took fifth in the 800 (2:16.38). Brooklyn Huggins took fourth in the 100 meter hurdles (15.55), and also scored 2,904 points in the Division 1 pentathlon to finish second. Leading the way for the boys is the 4×800 meter relay team of Altamo Aschkenasy, Hunter Bailey, Declan Mulligan, Cam Walter, Kailas Ciatto and Pablo Tejedor Meyers, which placed third at the Division 1 meet in 7:55.85.
Head coaches: Lee Eddy (girls) and Mike Glennon (boys).
GIRLS GOLF
Julia Imai shot a four-over-par 75 at the North/Central/West Sectional Tournament, tying for eighth overall Tuesday at Cold Springs Country Club in Belchertown. Imai qualified as an individual for the state tournament Monday at Longmeadow Country Club. Brookline as a team finished seventh at Sectionals.
Head coach: Nicole Bent