Boys lacrosse playoffs have arrived and here’s who’s winning titles

The playoffs are here, which means it’s time to try and figure out who is going to win titles.

While there can only be one state champion, three other teams will leave Brown University with division championship trophies. In most years, there’s plenty of drama throughout the postseason, but this year’s brackets seem fairly routine.

Here’s a quick look at who we’re taking to win each game this postseason.

RIIL Boys Lacrosse Playoff Picks

🥍State Championship Predictions

Expect chalk to rule. No. 4 Hendricken has played terrific of late and while No. 5 North Kingstown is talented, let’s push the Hawks into the semifinals. No. 6 Pilgrim plays with an edge and is the most fun team in the state, but No. 3 Barrington is too disciplined to lose this game.

We know how the semifinals are going to go – and we know how the championship game will end.

STATE CHAMPION PREDICTION: La Salle over Moses Brown.

🥍Division II Predictions

The D-II playoffs will only be moderately more dramatic than D-I just because of the semifinal and championship matchup. No. 4 Smithfield is hot coming into the playoffs, with wins in five of its final six games – including a victory over No. 5 Prout. With this game being at home, we’ll give the Sentinels the nod. In the other quarterfinal, it’s No. 3 Portsmouth over No. 6 Middletown.

Top-seeded Westerly should handle business against Smithfield, but the other semifinal might end up being the best game of the playoffs. Portsmouth is a tougher, more physical team than the Avengers and if Jack Colna has a day, the Patriots will be in business. No. 2 East Greenwich has a pretty good goalie of its own in Brendan Darcey and is the most skilled team in D-II. While a Westerly-Portsmouth final would be fun to watch, EG is the pick.

The Bulldogs beat the Avengers in EG. The Avengers beat the Bulldogs in Westerly. What happens at Brown? East Greenwich should win this game, especially after what happened last year. Westerly is the underdog, regardless of seeds, but the Avengers get their win and then get to spend the next four years in D-I.

D-II CHAMPIONSHIP PREDICTION: East Greenwich over Westerly

🥍Division III Predictions

No. 5 North Smithfield travels to play No. 4 Providence Country Day – which also has St. Raphael and East Providence in a co-op that needs a name – in a fun matchup only because the teams didn’t meet in the regular season. The Northmen struggled late, so we’ll give the edge to the Knights in this one. The other quarterfinal sees No. 3 Lincoln hosting No. 6 Burrillville and while the Lions will win, this game is screaming for an upset with how the Broncos finished the season. If Lincoln is too focused on revenge in the semifinals, it might not get there.

Mt. Hope has been the best team in the division and won’t slip up in the semifinals. No. 2 Narragansett knows Lincoln is gunning for it, but the Mariners defense has been too good to not earn a return trip to Brown.

Will the Huskies go back-to-back? Or can Narragansett perform another championship game upset? Either way, this will be the best boys championship game of the weekend.

D-III CHAMPIONSHIP PREDICTION: Mt. Hope over Narragansett

🥍Division IV Predictions

The RIIL owes every team in this division – including Tiverton, Classical, Cranston East and Johnston – an apology for completely botching the season. Bad decision after bad decision leads to a four-team playoff where we all know who’s going to win. If this result is wrong, I’ll resign immediately.

D-IV CHAMPIONSHIP PREDICTION: Scituate over Rogers