Here's a quick breakdown of the four state tournament brackets, which were released today. Check back Monday for the Register's tournament preview.

Class LL

Top four seeds: No. 1 Westhill, No. 2 Southington, No. 3 Conard, No. 4 Bristol Central

Notes: Westhill is the defending champion. The Vikings went unbeaten in the regular season before losing to Fairfield Ludlowe in the quarterfinals of the Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference tournament. Westhill has the talent, led by junior pitcher Allison Macari, to repeat in this class. Four of the top five seeds represent the Central Connecticut Conference. The highest seeded area team is Cheshire at No. 6.

Intriguing first-round matchups: No. 17 Pomperaug (who plays for the South-West Conference title Friday) at No. 16 Norwich Free Academy; No. 21 Shelton at No. 12 Stamford; No. 19 Mercy at No. 14 West Haven (Southern Connecticut Conference Quinnipiac Division foes could play for the fourth time this season. Both are in SCC tourney semifinals and could meet in that league's final on Sunday).

Teams to keep an eye on...
No. 7 Fitch: Snapped Waterford's 55-game winning streak earlier this season. Plays Waterford Friday in the Eastern Connecticut Conference tournament final. Has arguably the state's best player in senior Brianna Turgeon on its roster.
No. 9 Amity: Has lost last two, including in SCC quarterfinals, but depth in pitching and an explosive offense could mean a lengthy run here.
No. 15 Fairfield Ludlowe: The Cinderella of the FCIAC tourney. Handed Westhill its first loss, and then got past Danbury to earn spot in league final. A team that seems to be peaking at the right time.

Champion...
No. 1 Westhill: Vikings would've liked to have been playing in FCIAC final, but rest might be a blessing. Several of Westhill's starters have experience with playing on a big stage, not to mention the talent, to win its second straight title.

Class L

Top four seeds: No. 1 Bacon Academy, No. 2 Darien, No. 3 Foran, No. 4 Masuk.

Notes: Darien and Foran are still playing in their respective league tournaments. Masuk has lost three of its last five games, all to No. 6 Brookfield. Defending champion Waterford moved down to Class M, which leaves this class fairly wide open.

Intriguing first-round matchups: No. 17 Bunnell at No. 16 North Haven, No. 24 Bristol Eastern at No. 9 Berlin; No. 28 Lyman Hall at No. 5 Maloney; No. 20 East Haven at No. 13 Sheehan.

Teams to keep an eye on...
No. 19 Guilford: Despite a 12-8 regular season record, the Indians feature one of the state's top pitchers in junior Leah Torre and an offense that has been lethal at times.
No. 24 Bristol Eastern: Enters with just an 11-9 record but defeated Bristol Central, Maloney and East Catholic during the regular season. Lost to Berlin, the Lancers' first-round opponent, twice during the regular season. Lost to Waterford in last year's championship game.
No. 28 Lyman Hall: Finished the regular season at 10-10 but has one of the state's top pitchers in senior Lauren Zambrano. If the Trojans could find some consistency offensively, they could be the surprise of this class.

Champion...
No. 3 Foran: Has won 16 straight entering Saturday's SCC semifinals. Momentum and talent are on the Lions' side.

Class M

Top four seeds: No. 1 Seymour, No. 2 Waterford, No. 3 Lauralton Hall, No. 4 Griswold.

Notes: Arguably the most talented and deep of the four classes. Waterford has won two straight state titles (in Class L) and has to be considered the favorite here. Seymour is fresh off winning the Naugatuck Valley League tournament title and is seeking the program's ninth state title. No. 14 St. Joseph is the defending champion, having defeated Lauralton Hall in last year's final.

Intriguing first-round matchups: No. 23 Sacred Heart Academy at No. 10 Woodland, No. 22 Wolcott at No. 11 Rocky Hill, No. 20 Lewis Mills at No. 13 Northwest Catholic; No. 18 Lyman Memorial at No. 15 Stonington.

Teams to keep an eye on...
No. 5 Holy Cross: Came up short against Seymour in NVL final but should contend for the title on the strength of the right arm of senior Tori Cheske, one of the state's top pitchers.
No. 7 Suffield: Lost the final in this class to Lauralton Hall in 2008 and has been of the state's most consistent programs in recent years.
No. 11 Rocky Hill: Junior Megan Ruonavaara is one of the state's most underrated pitchers, who can single-handily lead the Terriers deep in this class.

Champion...
No. 2 Waterford: Junior pitcher Kelli Connors has never lost in the state tournament. She and the Lancers will certainly be tested, but they're the favorites until proven otherwise.

Class S


Top four seeds: No. 1 Terryville, No. 2 Hale-Ray, No. 3 Cheney Tech, No. 4 Goodwich Tech.

Notes: Terryville is the defending champion and has quietly compiled an 18-2 record. This class is heavy on Tech schools, and teams from the Shoreline Conference (Hale-Ray, Coginchaug) who have traditionally been successful in this class.

Intriguing first-round matchups: No. 24 Oxford at No. 8 9 East Hampton (Oxford handed Seymour its only loss this year); No. 28 Old Lyme at No. 5 Somers; No. 30 Derby at No. 3 Cheney Tech; No. 20 Notre Dame-Fairfield at No. 13 St. Bernard.

Teams to keep an eye on...
No. 9 East Hampton: The Bellringers have been a streaky team, compiling winning streaks of seven and six games, this season.
No. 10 Coginchaug: Has won 10 state titles and will again be a factor in this class.
No. 13 St. Bernard: Last year's runner-up has a fairly favorable draw through the quarterfinals.

Champion...
No. 10 Coginchaug: Rebounded after losing four of its first six games. Won 11 straight games at one point. Arguably the most talented team in this class, led by senior catcher Mallorie Dorflinger and junior pitcher Mari Handley.