FRANKLIN - As far as coach Bob Piotti and the King Philip Regional High ice hockey team are concerned, the postseason has already started.

Granted there are still four regular-season games left to be played, but they're all must-wins if the Warriors want to qualify for the MIAA Tournament. And so far they're 1-0 in must-wins after knocking off Hockomock League foe Mansfield Saturday afternoon, 3-2, at Franklin's Veterans Arena.

"I like the way we're playing, even the last few games where we lost to Franklin and Canton we played well. We played with some desperation in this one," said Piotti, whose team improved to 6-9-1 overall with little wiggle-room for error with respect to making the tournament. "If we played like this early in the season we wouldn't have dug ourselves such a hole here."

King Philip led this one 2-0 after two periods but needed a late goal by Jake Kelleher to put this one in the win column.

Kelleher picked up a loose puck in neutral ice, skated down the right side and scored on a wrist shot with just 3:02 to play, that after Mansfield had netted a pair of third-period goals to tie things. "Jake played a great game for us, not only with the goal and the assist, but defensively. We've been waiting for him to have a game like this, he just skated really well," said Piotti.

After a scoreless first period, Kelleher and Jake Murphy assisted on David Bradford's second-period tally to put KP on top. With only 57 seconds left in the second, Scott Haley scored an unassisted goal to make it 2-0.

But the Hornets, who beat KP 4-1 in the first meeting between the two teams, would roll over and took advantage of two power plays in the third period to pull even. Mike Blackman scored from Donny Washburn and Greg O'Brien just 29 seconds into the third to make it a one-goal game. With less than five minutes to play O'Brien scored from Brendan Murphy, another power-play goal making it 2-all.

"We needed this win," said Piotti, whose team killed off a 5-on-3 power play midway through the third period. "Both teams played really well and could have skated out of here with the win."

King Philip's Tanner Jensen and Mansfield's Ryan Murphy both had solid games in their respective nets.

The Warriors skate Thursday night (6:30) against Oliver Ames while Mansfield (11-4-2, 6-4-2) looks to bounce back against non-league Brockton this afternoon.

Dartmouth 6, Attleboro 2

TAUNTON - The Big Green pumped in a power-play goal with 25 seconds left in the first period to take the lead, then scored a trio of second period goals to take command of the Old Colony League game.

But there was good news, Tori Bearuegard, the lone female member of the Bombardier squad, a senior wing, set up her brother John Beauregard for AHS' second goal with five minutes left in the third period, her first varsity point of the season.

Pat DeMontigny got AHS on the scoreboard with 2:43 left in the second period, Chris Dragun and Chad Cauldwell assisting. Derek Goulet totaled 25 saves in goal for the Bombardiers, who lost first line center Tyler Dias (ankle) and No. 2 defenseman Dan Smith (concussion) with injuries over the first two periods. The Bombardiers, now 9-7 overall, need one win from their final four games of the regular season in order to qualify for the MIAA Tournament. AHS has a 4 p.m. game Wednesday in Bridgewater against Bridgewater-Raynham.

Diman Voke 5, D-R/Seekonk 0

FALL RIVER - Jake Lyman finished with 30 saves and kept Dighton-Rehobtoh/Seekonk in the game through two periods, but a four-goal third period by Diman broke things open.

Things were scoreless after one period and Diman held a 1-0 lead through two but opened the floodgates with four goals in the game's final seven minutes. Dighton-Rehoboth/Seekonk (2-14) finishes the season next Saturday against Southeastern.