Early goals enough to get Bedford field hockey past Bishop Guertin (video)

BEDFORD - Anneke McStowe knows that when her Bedford High School field hockey team plays to its strengths, there aren't many opponents who can beat it.

The Bulldogs showed that in the first five minutes Monday, to the surprise of their coach.

Bedford scored off two penalty corners to open the game against Bishop Guertin and the Bulldogs never let up, holding the Cardinals without a shot on goal, in a 2-0 win in a Division I contest.

Eliana Enners gave the Bulldogs (10-1) the lead just 1:10 into the game, scoring off a feed from Isabella McStowe, and Regan O'Brien added the insurance goal with 10:38 remaining in the first quarter. Sydney Grogan picked up an assist on that goal.

"To get those two was, I wouldn’t say shock, because I’m confident in my team, but I was pleasantly surprised for sure," Anneke McStowe said. "They played their game. Doesn’t matter who we play, doesn’t matter how good the other team is, as long as we play our game, I think we’re going to continue to dominate."

Bedford did against Bishop Guertin, even after taking the two-goal lead. The Cardinals, who were down two starters, had just one penalty corner, which came with about six minutes left in the first half, and ended when Taylor Guibord's reverse hit went high and was ruled a dangerous play after hitting a teammate in the head.

The Bulldogs kept the ball out of their circle for the rest of the game and didn't allow the Cardinals (7-2-1) to spend much time with it inside the 25.

"We knew we were down two starters," Bishop Guertin coach Erica Chareth said. "That got to our heads and we were really nervous. I know even at full strength we’d be nervous going against a team like Bedford. They weren’t aggressive like normal. They caught us on our heels, but I’m glad that we were able to keep it at that."

Bishop Guertin was able to hold Bedford scoreless the rest of the way despite the Bulldogs finishing with seven corners and plenty of other opportunities to score. Makenna Reekie made five saves for the Cardinals and Stephanie Reap played well defensively.

"We did have plenty of opportunities," Anneke McStowe said. "It came across their goal plenty of times, we just weren’t able to get on a post and get it in. The girls, up until recently, lacked a little confidence in scoring. They play very defensively and then they start to gear up. I think they finally realized they are capable of scoring."

The win was the sixth in a row for Bedford and its fourth shutout of the season. It was also the ninth time the Bulldogs have scored at least two goals in a game.

For Bishop Guertin, it was a second-straight loss following seven wins in a row, and the first time the Cardinals have been held to fewer than two goals since the first game of the year.