Winter 2026 State Championship Lookahead: Girls Basketball

The MIAA Basketball State Championships are back for the fifth year in a row at Tsongas Center in Lowell. The 2026 girls championship slate features one game on Friday, March 13, followed by a pair of games each on Saturday, March 14 and Sunday, March 15.

At least one school will be crowned a champion for the first time, one game pits two defending champions from a year ago, and another will be looking to go back-to-back. Six of the 10 teams playing this weekend are new faces from a season ago.

Here is a look at what is ahead:

Division 2

Friday (March 13), 6:15 p.m.
Medfield High School vs. St. Mary’s High School

There has yet to be a postseason in the statewide tournament era in which one of these teams didn’t win a state title. In fact, both are back on the final stage at Tsongas after winning it all in 2025.

No. 1 seed Medfield is looking for its third consecutive championship after beating South High Community the past two years (62-20 in 2025, 48-42 in 2024). The Warriors have won four titles in all over five appearances, with the others coming in 2013 (vs. Nashoba) and 2017 (vs. Arlington Catholic).

No. 3 St. Mary’s moved up to Division 2 this season after capturing three of the last four crowns in Division 3, including a 46-38 win over Norwell last March. The Spartans are 6-1 overall in title games and also have a co-championship from 2020 (with Hoosac Valley).

ROAD TO TSONGAS: Medfield – beat Canton (72-20), Hingham (80-33), Norwood (66-46), Minnechaug Regional (53-32) … St. Mary’s – beat Burlington (68-36), Archbishop Williams (69-51), Walpole (75-43), Whitman-Hanson Regional (41-40).

Division 4

Saturday (March 14), 12 p.m.
Frontier Regional School vs. South Hadley High School

This is the only girls matchup of the weekend that is guaranteed to have a first-time winner.

It’s been a long wait for No. 1 seed Frontier, which made the only appearance as a program in 1988 (54-44 loss to Cohasset).

Meanwhile, No. 3 South Hadley is here for the third straight season, the Tigers having lost each of the previous two years against Cathedral.

The Pioneer Valley rivals are no strangers, splitting a pair of regular-season meetings. Frontier won the Jan. 27 matchup (67-62), but South Hadley got revenge on the Red Hawks on Feb. 13 (62-60) in the PVIAC tournament.

ROAD TO TSONGAS: Frontier Regional – beat Falmouth Academy (79-17), Tahanto Regional (81-40), Tyngsborough (59-46), Millbury (43-28) … South Hadley – beat Mount Greylock Regional (61-41), West Bridgewater (80-28), Southwick Regional (54-34), Millis (59-49).

Division 1

Saturday (March 14), 4 p.m.
Springfield Central High School vs. Wachusett Regional High School

Two teams that have combined to win two of the last four Division 1 state championships finally will square off head to head.

No. 1 seed Springfield Central last won in 2022 (43-40 over Andover), the Golden Eagles’ third championship in eight all-time title game appearances. Central also won titles in 2007 (vs. Central Catholic) and 2017 (vs. Braintree).

Meanwhile, No. 3 seed Wachusett is the defending state champion and making its third consecutive trip to the final. The Mountaineers avenged a 2024 loss to Bishop Feehan with a last-second 55-54 win in last year’s final game.

ROAD TO TSONGAS: Springfield Central – beat Marshfield (74-35), Bridgewater-Raynham Regional (77-45), Needham (57-36), Andover (69-29) … Wachusett Regional – beat Central Catholic (78-38), Acton-Boxborough Regional (67-29), Natick (63-26), Bishop Feehan (54-44).

Division 5

Sunday (March 15), 12 p.m.
Drury High School vs. Hopedale High School

Each of these program’s made the most of their lone previous appearances in a championship game.

No. 1 seed Drury has had the longest wait of an girls program playing at Tsongas this weekend. The Blue Devils’ only past state final was a tight 42-41 win over Westwood in 1978.

For No. 2 Hopedale, it hasn’t been nearly as long of a drought. The Raiders were last on this stage in 2022, when they were 55-45 winners over Hoosac Valley.

ROAD TO TSONGAS: Drury – beat Mohawk Trail Regional (63-32), Ware (61-21), Hoosac Valley (47-41), Saint John Paul II (45-27) … Hopedale – beat Cape Cod RVT (62-24), Prospect Hill Academy (53-43), Minuteman Regional (54-36), Douglas (45-41).

Division 3

Sunday (March 14), 4 p.m.
Bishop Fenwick High School vs. Pittsfield High School

Two teams from opposite ends of the state will collide in Lowell for all the marbles.

No. 1 seed Bishop Fenwick dropped a tough 45-41 decision to Catholic Central rival St. Mary’s in its last appearance in 2023. The Crusaders are in their fourth title game as a program, with the only win coming in 2016 (over Hoosac Valley).

Not only is No. 2 Pittsfield back in the final for the first time since 2002, but the Generals also are chasing their first championship. This is Pittsfield’s fifth appearance in a state final.

ROAD TO TSONGAS: Bishop Fenwick – beat Wilmington (58-27), Lynnfield (56-29), Pentucket Regional (39-23), Medway (55-36) … Pittsfield – beat Tantasqua Regional (67-31), Tewksbury Memorial (48-22), North Reading (76-46), Apponequet Regional (56-26).