King Philip's Meg Rico returns to the No. 1 team and defending Div. 1 state champions. (Robert E. Klein / For the Boston Globe)

By Colleen Casey, Globe Correspondent

It's no surprise defending Div. 1 champs take the top spot in the Boston Globe Softball Top 20. King Philip welcomes back the power battery of George Washington commit Meg Rico and Olivia Godin. The Warriors haven't lost a league game since 2008. They're the team to beat.

Acton-Boxborough comes in at the second spot after winning the North title last season. With a deep tournament run under their belt, and only one new face to the lineup, the Colonials are contenders for the title.

With former Gatorade Player of the Year Shannon Smith leading Milford for her junior season, the Hawks are in the running for a championship.

Burlington, the defending Div. 2 North champs are back this year hungry for a deep tournament run after a losing in the state finals last season.

Norwood takes the eighth spot after a South Sectional final appearance. Will the Mustangs be able to reload after losing pitchers Ali Maloof and Lauren Duggan?

Case starts off in the final spot with their Div. 3 state final appearance last season. The Cardinals hope for a rematch against Turners Falls and this time claim the title.

See the Boston Globe softball Top 20.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

In a crossover matchup of Bay State League division leaders, the upstart Norwood (11-2-4, 8-0-4) boys' hockey team kept its unbeaten league mark intact and put a dent in eighth-ranked Needham's Super 8 resume, with a 4-3 win in Wellesley Wednesday night.

The Mustangs' relentless forecheck from the jump allowed them to frustrate the Rockets into numerous turnovers in the neutral zone.

That early pressure led to early goals as Peter Kelly and Mike Murray scored 35 seconds apart, giving Norwood a 2-0 lead before four minutes had run off the clock.

“To get off on a quick foot like that was good,” said Norwood coach Bill Clifford. “I told our kids to go to the net, get shots on the net, and we’ve been doing that the last few games and it’s paying off for us.”

The Rockets (12-3, 9-2) came out with more purpose in the second period, tightening the reins on defense and creating more plays in the offensive zone.

Chris Lambert put the Rockets on the board at the 7:53 mark, knocking home a bouncing puck on the left doorstep to make it 2-1.

Despite Needham’s continued efforts, the Mustangs were determined to head to the locker room with another two-goal lead when they scored with 1:18 left in the period on a beautiful feed by Tyler Gover (three assists) from behind the net to captain Brendan Cathcart out front, who snapped the puck glove side for a 3-1 lead.

As the period was winding down, Rockets captain Lucas Davis worked the play near the left side of the crease, and with Jordan Davis (21 saves) down to cover his shot, Lucas Davis slid the puck to his right finding James Fisher, who buried it with 12 seconds left in the period.

Once again Norwood got the jump on the Rockets to start the final period and just 2:23 into the frame, Mark Powers worked the puck behind the net, faked to his right, and wrapped the puck in on his left side, putting the Mustangs ahead, 4-2, deflating Needham.

With an extra attacker on the ice, Needham cocaptain Timmy Parlato scored with just 12.6 seconds remaining in the game.

“We did a good job along the boards, our forecheck was good, defense and zone coverage was good,” said Clifford. “They’ve been working hard all year and it’s starting to pay off for them.”

High school football players of the week, as chosen by the Globe staff:

Division 1

R.J. Noel, Lowell -- Noel threw for over 500 yards and five touchdowns, while rushing for 140 and a rushing touchdown, but his monstrous efforts were not enough as Lowell fell to Nashua South (N.H.) 44-41 Saturday.

Myles Medeiros, New Bedford -- Medeiros threw for three touchdowns Friday as New Bedford beat Silver Lake 41-20 Saturday. The senior quarterback has eight total touchdowns, the second-best in Eastern Mass. behind Weymouth's Cam McLevedge.

Division 1A

Jonathan DiBiaso, Everett -- The senior gunslinger threw for 216 yards and four touchdowns on 12 completions as Everett cruised past Springfield Central 42-13 Friday.

Nat Gaye, Peabody -- The senior running back ran for 205 rushing yards and three touchdowns as Peabody beat Danvers 21-7 Friday.

Division 2

Chance Brady, Haverhill -- The Hillies running back rushed for 301 yards and four touchdowns against Triton on Friday night…enough said.

Matt O'Keefe and Don Webber, Duxbury -- Quarterback Matt O’Keefe and receiver Don Webber connected on two touchdowns for the second-ranked Dragons in a 35-21 victory over Plymouth North. O’Keefe threw for 234 yards and three touchdowns total. Webber hauled in seven passes for 133 yards.

Division 2A

Marcus Odiah, Burlington -- The junior took advantage of every opportunity Friday night—and there were plenty in a 48-6 dismantling of Arlington—rushing for 179 yards and three touchdowns.

Tommy Munro, Norwood -- The Norwood quarterback looked more like a running back during Norwood’s win over Natick on Saturday. He finished with 122 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries. He only threw the ball three times, including a 22-yard touchdown pass to T.J. George. It was the Mustangs’ first victory over the Red and Blue since 2005.

Division 3

Mike Decina, Hopkinton -- The senior quarterback completed four passes for 142 yards and a score while also carrying 11 times for 93 yards and a score in his team's 32-6 win over visiting Nipmuc on Friday.

Dexter Green, Canton -- The 5-foot-10, 185-pound fullback torched the Quincy defense on Friday night, totaling 262 yards rushing and two scores on 19 carries while grabbing two passes for 43 yards and another touchdown.

Division 3A

Anthony Abbott, Wareham -- In only his second game as a quarterback the 6-foot junior went 8-of-12 passing for 87 yards and two touchdowns and scored a rushing touchdown of his own to end his school's 10-game losing streak.

Adam Benvie, Dighton-Rehoboth -- The 6-foot-3, 210-pound senior fullback tore through the Apponequet defense for 164 yards on nine carries and three scores in the Falcons' 21-7 victory on Saturday.

Division 4

Pat Hinkley, Cardinal Spellman -- The senior carried the ball 21 times for 217 yards and three touchdowns to help the Cardinals get off to a 2-0 start.

Division 4A

Malcolm Brown, Pope John (Everett) -- Brown was electric in helping the Tigers pick up their first win and league win of the season. The senior receiver hauled in four TD passes, ran back an interception, and punched in a 82-yard kick return in the teams 62-38 win over Pope John of Hyannis. The six touchdowns in a single game is a new Pope John record according to coach Brian Vaughan.

Vincent Burton, Blue Hills -- Burton is off and running at the prospect of breaking Blue Hills all-time touchdown mark for a season. The junior tied a career-high with five touchdowns in the win over case. He also set a career-high in attempts with 48 carries to go along with 276 yards rushing. Burton now has eight touchdowns and 428 yards rushing in just two games.

Division 5

Andrew Maestre, Brighton -- Maestre’s three touchdown rushes helped the defending Boston South champs open their season with a win.

Ernest Kellough, Latin Academy -- The Dragons picked up their first win of the season, stumping Boston North champion Madison Park, 12-0, with much help from Kellough. The junior rushed for 109 yards and a touchdown in the win.

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Update: This has been updated to reflect a change with R.J. Noel's touchdown count. He threw five touchdowns against Nashua South.

By Seth Lakso, Globe Correspondent

Eighth-ranked Norwood exacted its revenge on the road against Wellesley Wednesday night, defeating the No. 6 Raiders, 4-3, and in the process atoning for the only blemish in its 13-1 record, a 2-0 defeat to the Raiders earlier this season.

The Mustangs survived 50 seconds of six-on-four play to end the game. Christina Frasca made a sprawling save on a shot from Raider winger, Ellie DeCaprio that was destined for the back of the net. The Mustang defense gathered the rebound and cleared the puck.

“Wellesley is a well coached and formidable opponent,” said Norwood coach Bill O’Donnell. “They beat us at home and we returned the favor.”

Norwood led, 2-1, at the end of the first period, behind goals from Taylor Donners (assisted byEmily Kelly) and Kelly (assisted by Donners). But Shanna Hickman scored the next two goals of the game for the Raiders, who entered the third period with the Mustangs all square at 2-2.

The Mustangs jumped ahead early in the frame when Hayley O’Rourke’s wrister was tipped home by captain Lisa Coskren. A few minutes later, the Mustangs' scoring leader, Ally Maloof,broke free and beat the Raiders goaltender glove side for the two-goal edge.

“[The goal] gave us a lot of confidence,” said O’Donnell. “But I told them that a two-goal lead isn’t [enough] against a team like Wellesley.”

And sure enough Hickman tallied her third goal of the night and brought the Raiders within one strike.

A Norwood penalty with 50 seconds remaining then made things even tighter, but Frasca held strong, finishing with 20 saves. The Raiders fell to 10-6-1.