Guibord's goal gets Bishop Guertin past Concord, into D1 field hockey semis

NASHUA - Taylor Guibord stood in the circle for a moment, a look of disbelief on her face.

The Bishop Guertin High School senior had just given the field hockey team the lead back Friday, and for a moment, she couldn't believe it.

"Definitely just trying to get a shot on goal and have one of my teammates tip it," Guibord said. "I pulled right and ripped a shot and luckily it got in. It barely slipped by the post. I was pretty surprised."

So was Concord, which had spent most of the afternoon fighting to get back into the game. Instead, moments after the No. 6 Crimson Tide tied it, the No. 3 Cardinals were celebrating, and they did again at the end of the game, holding on for a 2-1 win in the Division I quarterfinals at Stellos Stadium.

The win sends Bishop Guertin to the semifinals for the first time since 2020, where the Cardinals will face No. 2 Windham at 5 p.m. on Tuesday at Bill Ball Stadium in Exeter.

Guibord's goal came with 11:21 remaining in the game, and just 5:12 after Concord tied it up. While the Crimson Tide felt like they had the momentum at the end of the third quarter, it disappeared in a moment.

"The goal definitely helped the momentum and we fizzed out after that second goal," Concord coach Nicole Armaganian said. "We put up a good fight. (Guibor) is awesome. She definitely controls the tempo of the game. I give both teams credit."

Addison Daddona had the first goal for the Cardinals (15-2), giving them a 1-0 lead midway through the first quarter. Bishop Guertin continued to put pressure on Concord (11-6-1), getting five penalty corners in the second, but the Cardinals couldn't get a good opportunity against the Tide's defense.

The third quarter was spent with both teams going back and forth in the midfield, until with under two minutes to play, Concord started a break out. Ally McGonigle ended up with the ball in the circle and put it in the back of the cage with 1:33 left in the quarter to tie it 1-1.

"These kids are gritty, they grind and they answer back," Bishop Guertin Dakota Bilodeau said. "We knew a situation like that could happen because Concord is a great program. We knew they were coming at us and they were going to come hard. We were prepared to be down or tied and be ready to answer back. They kept their cool and we were ready in a situation like that."

And it didn't take long for it to happen.

The Cardinals took control of possession to start the fourth and didn't let the ball get out of the Crimson Tide's end. Guibord's shot came from the right side of the circle and seemed to surprise everyone, even the one who shot it.

"When that when in, I got a huge sense of relief," she said. "I’m happy we scored. It was really frustrating when they scored, but I knew they were going to put up a fight."