Exeter High School was the lone Seacoast team to win a baseball state championship last season with its 3-1 win over rival Winnacunnet.
One year later, all Seacoast NHIAA Division I teams — Dover, Exeter, Portsmouth, Spaulding and Winnacunnet — qualified for the 15-team tournament. Both Oyster River and St. Thomas Aquinas qualified in Division II, Somersworth qualified in Division III, and Portsmouth Christian Academy and Newmarket qualified in Division IV.
In Maine, both Marshwood in Class A South, and York in Class B South end their respective regular seasons this week. Both should qualify for their respective tournaments, while Traip Academy will not qualify in Class C South.Here are three Seacoast high school baseball teams identified as state championship contenders:
DIVISION I – DOVER HIGH SCHOOL (16-4)
Dover enters the Division I tournament as the No. 4 seed after putting together a dominant regular season. The Green Wave won nine straight games during the middle of the season. Dover closed the year winning five of its last seven games and has the makings of a deep playoff run — possibly all the way to a title.”I think we’ve got a collection of guys who feel confident that they can make a deep run,” Dubben said. “It’s all going to depend on getting good defense and pitching, and some timely hitting. At the end of the day, we’ve got a group of guys who love each other, are going to play hard for each other and give it all we’ve got.”
Dover’s pitching, led by Michael Gorman, Tyler Tiedge, Tyler Buchanan and Ben Cheek, has produced five shutouts this season — tied with Bishop Guertin for the second-most in Division I. Trinity and Exeter each recorded six.Offensively, Dover reached double-digits in runs eight times, including a 35-run outburst across three wins over Manchester Memorial, Merrimack and Manchester Central-West. The lineup is powered by Daniel Conrad, Logan Mosher, Connor Sprague and Sam MacGregor, among others.”We know there’s not going to be a single easy game,” Dubben said. “It doesn’t matter what we’ve done in the regular season. We’ve got to hit the reset button and start all over again because it’s a new season.”
DIVISION II – ST. THOMAS AQUINAS (14-5)
It’s been a breakout season for St. Thomas Aquinas and first-year head coach Eric Wells. The Saints’ 14 wins double their total from 2025.
St. Thomas is expected to enter the tournament as a top-four seed. The Saints opened the season with a five-game win streak and closed it the same way. During that final stretch, they outscored opponents 63-7.
The Saints are led by senior outfielders Kenny Avery and Ryan Gould, along with junior Gabe Carlisle. Sophomore Brandon Skowron has been a steady presence behind the plate.Infielder Finn Perry has also turned in a strong season, while the pitching staff — led by Hayden White, Conall Ciaschini and Beckett Farrand — has been outstanding.”We have been meshing and playing team baseball at the right time of the year,” Wells said. “The kids have worked extremely hard to overcome adversity and are ready to go make a run together.”
DIVISION IV – NEWMARKET (16-0)
Only one undefeated team remains across all divisions in New Hampshire — it’s Newmarket, which enters the Division IV tournament as the No. 1 seed.The Mules posted six shutouts, scored at least 11 runs in 13 games and recorded 10 wins by double-digits. They also erupted for 35 and 28 runs in separate wins over Wilton-Lyndeborough, and added 20 runs against Mount Royal/Holy Family.”I’m really proud of our guys,” head coach Stan Jurkoic said. “We played a lot of good teams, faced adversity in many games and worked through it. They just don’t give up and keep fighting.”Newmarket is led by Nate Fluet, Cason Donahue, Jackie Prompradit, Charlie Tudor and Matt Napoletano, among many contributors.”I think our pitching and defense has been solid this year,” Jurkoic said. “Offensively, we have a good lineup. I think we’re going to be in each game we play.”
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: 3 Seacoast high school baseball teams can win a state championship