The high school sports seasons have finally arrived. There’s lots of action this opening weekend, so optimism abounds around the state. For the only time this year, every team in the preview has the same record, 0-0.
Girls
Field hockey
Friday
Padua at Middletown, 3:45 p.m. Middletown finished last season 8-5-2, including a 2-0 loss to Padua. The Pandas went deep into the playoffs.
Concord at Archmere, 3:45 p.m. Archmere lost to Concord last year, 3-2. The Raiders were 9-5-1 and made the state tournament.
Ursuline at St. Georges, 3:45 p.m. The Raiders opened 2014 with a 5-1 win over the Hawks, who earned a playoff berth with a 10-3-2 record.
St. Thomas More at Ss. Peter and Paul (Md.), 4 p.m.
Saturday
St. Mark’s at Caesar Rodney, 11 a.m. St. Mark’s had a strong second half in 2014; the Spartans had a 2-1 win over the Riders, who finished 5-8-2.
Volleyball
Friday
Ursuline at Delmar, 4 p.m. Delmar reached the second round of the state tournament last year. The Raiders are ready to reassert themselves.
St. Georges Tech at St. Mark’s, 5:15 p.m. The Hawks went 8-6 in 2014. St. Mark’s has a return to the postseason in mind.
Archmere at Appoquinimink, 5:45 p.m. The defending state champion Auks open the campaign with a tough road trip. The Jaguars went 12-3 and reached the second round of the playoffs last year.
Concord at Padua, 6:45 p.m. This is a rematch of a first-round playoff meeting from last season, when the Pandas knocked Concord out of the tourney.
Saturday
Caesar Rodney at St. Elizabeth, 1:30 p.m. St. Elizabeth aims for a strong start against the Riders, who made the state tournament last year.
Boys
Soccer
Friday
Glasgow at St. Elizabeth, 3:45 p.m. The Vikings and Glasgow met in last season’s lid-lifter, a 2-1 St. E’s win. The Dragons were 6-9 last year.
Saturday
Newark Charter vs. St. Thomas More at Dover High School, 8 a.m. St. Thomas More and the Patriots kick things off at the upstate-downstate challenge. The teams split two meetings last year.
Caravel at Archmere, 11 a.m. The Auks host the defending Division II champions and preseason top seed.
St. Mark’s at Wilmington Christian, 2:30 p.m. The Spartans face a stiff challenge in their opener.
Salesianum vs. Sussex Tech at Dover High School, 5:30 p.m. The teams battled to a scoreless tie in last year’s opener, also at Dover. This is also part of the upstate-downstate challenge.
Football
Friday
Newark at St. Mark’s, 7 p.m. A win over the Yellow Jackets would give St. Mark’s nice bonus points toward the Division II playoff run.
St. Elizabeth at McKean, 7 p.m. A road win would be a great confidence booster for the young Vikings.
Archmere vs. Howard at Baynard Stadium, 7 p.m. The Auks begin a challenging schedule with a Howard team that pulled an upset of eventual Division II champion Hodgson last year.
Saturday
Cardinal O’Hara (Pa.) at Salesianum, 7:30 p.m. The Sals were just 1-3 at home last year. O’Hara presents a great opening-day challenge.
