Winter 2025 State Championship Lookahead: Girls Basketball

The MIAA Basketball State Championships are back for the fourth year in a row at Tsongas Center in Lowell. The 2025 girls championship slate features one game on Friday, March 14, followed by a pair of back-to-back games on Saturday, March 15 and Sunday, March 16.

Not only are there four state champions from 2024 back to defend their titles, but three will try to do it in rematches from last season. In all, eight of this year’s 10 championship participants also concluded their 2024 seasons on the Tsongas hardwood.

Here is a look at what is ahead:

Division 3

Friday (March 14), 6:15 p.m.
St. Mary’s High School vs. Norwell High School

The first game of the weekend is also the only one that is guaranteed to end with a new champion.

No. 1 seed St. Mary’s is going for its third title in the four years of the statewide tournament, having edged Rockland in 2022 (46-44) and Bishop Fenwick in 2023 (45-41). The Spartans are 5-1 all-time in state finals, and also were declared Division 3 co-champions (with Hoosac Valley) when the 2020 finals were canceled because of COVID.

Norwell was here a year ago, when it dropped a 66-43 decision to Foxborough. The No. 3 seed Clippers avenged that loss in this year’s state semifinals, and now try for the program’s first state title in three appearances (also lost to Lee in 1989).

ROAD TO TSONGAS: St. Mary’s – beat Belchertown (68-16), Newburyport (73-39), East Bridgewater (59-37), Pittsfield (59-43) … Norwell – beat Groton-Dunstable (57-39), Bellingham (57-40), Fontbonne (54-41), Foxborough (55-47).

Division 2

Saturday (March 15), 4 p.m.
Medfield High School vs. South High Community

This is the first of the three championship rematches on the weekend, following up on Medfield’s 48-42 victory a year ago.

No. 1 seed Medfield has torn through the bracket again as it aims for not only a repeat, but the program’s fourth state title in five tries. The Warriors have previous titles in 2013 and 2017, sandwiched around a loss in 2015.

No. 6 seed South not only will try to reverse last year’s outcome, but the Worcester school is looking to make history. The Colonels had never played in the state final before last season.

ROAD TO TSONGAS: Medfield – beat Holliston (75-29), Bishop Fenwick (55-37), Northampton (82-43), North Quincy (69-47) … South High – beat Burlington (61-43), Pembroke (47-28), Walpole (49-35), Whitman-Hanson (42-39).

Division 1

Saturday (March 15), 6 p.m.
Wachusett Regional High School vs. Bishop Feehan High School

Did someone say championship game rematches? Here is another one in the marquee matchup of Saturday’s four-game overall slate.

No. 1 seed Wachusett will be looking to avenge its 48-40 loss in last year’s final, which was the Mountaineers’ only previous trip to the state final.

No. 2 Bishop Feehan’s win a year ago avenged a 55-43 loss to Andover in the 2023 final. The Shamrocks also beat Natick for the championship in 2016.

Last year the teams also met in the final week of the regular season (a Wachusett victory), but there was no such appetizer this time.

ROAD TO TSONGAS: Wachusett – beat Arlington (61-29), Lincoln-Sudbury (78-45), Central Catholic (54-51), Braintree (44-35) … Bishop Feehan – beat Concord-Carlisle (81-43), Newton North (84-48), King Philip (64-38), Springfield Central (72-42).

Division 5

Sunday (March 16), 12 p.m.
Hoosac Valley Regional High School vs. Renaissance School

The first game of Sunday’s girls doubleheader – and a lineup of four games in all – features a familiar face vs. a newcomer to the stage.

Hoosac Valley cruised to a 71-53 victory over West Boylston last season, and has been three times in the four years of the statewide (a 55-45 loss to Hopedale in 2022). The No. 2 seed Hurricanes also won a state title in 2019 after falling in four consecutive attempts from 2014-17. Hoosac shared the 2020 D3 crown with St. Mary’s.

For No. 5 seed Renaissance, the program’s first appearance in a state final is the capper of what has been a perfect season so far. Last year the Phoenix reached the state semifinals before their unbeaten season ended – against Hoosac Valley. Including Hoosac, the Phoenix will have played all five tournament games this season against fellow Western Mass. schools.

ROAD TO TSONGAS: Hoosac Valley – beat Palmer (76-32), Westport (61-32), Douglas (52-40), Maynard (55-39) … Renaissance – beat Pathfinder (72-20), Monson (69-45), Lenox (65-49), Lee (54-41).

Division 4

Sunday (March 16), 2 p.m.
Cathedral High School vs. South Hadley High School

The final girls game of the week also is the last of the three championship rematches.

No. 1 seed Cathedral will be looking for its third state title in a row, having taken down South Hadley a year ago (69-49) as well as Wahconah in 2023 (75-53). The Panthers have won five state finals since 2016 with the program’s only loss coming to Lenox in 1984. Cathedral also has a co-championship with Maynard from 2020.

No. 3 seed South Hadley not only will be looking to avenge last year’s final loss, but pick up the program’s first state championship. The Tigers had never been on the state final stage before 2024.

ROAD TO TSONGAS: Cathedral – beat Blackstone-Millville (55-17), Uxbridge (67-43), Millbury (69-30), Bourne (71-31) … South Hadley – beat Southwick (65-37), Littleton (58-47), Carver (55-34), Millis (45-42).