Pairings for the CIAC girls basketball state tournament were released on Wednesday morning with all seven teams in our area qualifying.
E.O. Smith, which was ousted by Conard on Tuesday night in the Central Connecticut Conference tournament semifinals, is the No.3 seed in Class L.
The Panthers (19-4) will host No. 30 seed Farmington on Monday at 6 p.m.
Last year E.O. Smith nearly punched its ticket to Mohegan Sun Arena falling one point short as Newington - with a free throw in the final seconds - came away with a 35-34 victory.
Also on Monday, RHAM (13-8) is the No. 11 seed in Class MM and will host No. 22 Weston (9-11) from the South-West Conference.
The Raptors with a win would advance to face Eastern Connecticut Conference Division I tournament champion and No.6 seed New London in the second round.
Five locals begin their tournament quests on Tuesday.
Windham (14-8) faces off against a very familiar opponent as the 15th seed meets No. 18 Plainfield (12-9) at Callaghan Gymnasium.
It will be the fourth time the two teams have met with the latest coming last Saturday in the ECC Division II tournament semifinals as the Whips held on for a 38-37 victory.
“It’s going to be a battle for sure,” Windham coach Robert Mangual said on Tuesday night after the Whips dropped a 40-31 decision to Stonington in the Division II tournament championship game at Mohegan Sun Arena. “We both know each other very well. I’m sure they’re going to be really fired up. It’s just tough going up against them for a fourth time.”
The winner will make the long trip across the state to Danbury for a second-round game against Immaculate.
In Class S, Windham Tech (16-5), which played its Connecticut Technical Conference tournament semifinal against Wilcox Tech on Thursday (after press time), is the No.4 seed and hosts No. 29 seed Shepaug Valley (8-12) from the Berkshire League.
If the Lady Tigers advance they would host the first-round winner between No.13 Old Saybrook and No. 20 Innovation Academy in the second round on Friday, Mar. 3.
Lyman Memorial (15-7) is the No.6 seed and hosts 27th seed Putnam in the first round.
The Bulldogs, who won both meetings during the regular season in ECC Division IV, would host either No. 11 Stafford or No. 22 North Branford in the second round with a victory.
Last year’s Class S runner-up Coventry (14-8) is seeded 8th and will host No. 25 Wright Tech of Stamford (8-12) at Matthew J. Hurlock Gymnasium in the first round.
Looking down the road, Coventry - with a win - would host the first-round survivor between No. 24 East Windsor and No. 9 Ellis Tech.
Parish Hill (11-10) is seeded 14th and hosts fellow Capital Region Athletic League member No. 19 Achievement First of Hartford in the first round.
The Pirates won the regular season meeting 66-38 on Jan. 20. The winner will travel to No. 3 Somers in the second round.
Hamden (Class LL), Pomperaug (L), Northwestern (MM), East Hampton (M) and Bolton (S) are the top seeds.
Class S had the most schools win 30 percent of their games with 31 teams.
Thirty teams qualified in Class L, 28 in Class M, 27 in Class LL and 26 in Class MM.
Each of the five state championship games along with the five boys finals will be held at Mohegan Sun Arena on Saturday, Mar. 18 or Sunday, Mar. 19.
Follow Rich Zalusky on Twitter - @rmzaluskytc.