Kearsarge field hockey survives late charge by Conant to win D3 playoff game (video)

NORTH SUTTON - It's the time of year for scares and the Kearsarge Regional High School field hockey team got a good one against Conant in Wednesday's playoff game.

In control for most of the first 45 minutes of the game, the Cougars watched as the Orioles chipped away and got within a goal with a little more than five minutes remaining.

But No. 8 Kearsarge did enough in those final moments to keep No. 9 Conant from getting into the circle and the Cougars held on for a 3-2 win in the Division III preliminary round. The win sends Keasarge to the quarterfinals, where it will face No. 1 Berlin on the road at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Stella Syvertsen had two goals and an assist for Kearsarge (7-7-1) while Abby Bradbury also scored and Bella Valle had an assist. Skylar MacMichael finished with four saves, two in the fourth quarter, when Conant (5-10) had three of its six penalty corners and scored off two of them.

Brianne Dupuis had both of those goals for the Orioles, batting in a loose ball with 5:18 remaining to make it a one-goal game.

"It was a great lesson for us as we move on through playoffs," Kearsarge coach Chelsea Williams said. "At the end of the day, the girls wanted it, and once they realized what was happening, they quickly snapped out of it and woke back up. It was a good lesson for them to experience."

It didn't look like things would go that way for most of the afternoon, as Kearsarge wasted little time putting pressure on Conant's defense. The Cougars were awarded the first of seven first-half corners just minutes into the game, and Syvertsen scored just 2:39 in to make it a 1-0 game.

Kearsarge didn't let up, getting the ball back in the circle and forcing Conant goalie Gretchen Somero (12 saves) to come up with a couple of stops early. The Cougars also hit a post following Syvertsen's first goal.

"I wasn’t surprised by the start," Williams said. "Our records show that (Wednesday) was going to be a close game. I’ve felt like all season that, the games we’ve lost have been games that we’ve competed well in. I was expecting it to be a win and I show up to every game with this team expecting a win. I know we’ve had some tough losses, but we’re coming into the postseason playing our best field hockey."

Despite Kearsarge's early control of the game, Conant was able to keep it a one-goal game, thanks to Somero's play.

"She’s definitely saved us so many times," Conant coach Ashley Lingerman said. "We’re really grateful for her, to have her in the back. We trust her back there. It could be corner after corner after corner and she’s still ready in the same mindset."

The Cougars made it 2-0 on Bradbury's goal, as the senior sent a shot from one side of the circle to the other, just out of the reach of Somero to catch the far corner with 4:05 left to go until halftime.

The Orioles finally got a chance at the other end after the goal, getting their first corner, but MacMichael made a pair of saves to keep Conant off the board. Kearsarge got it to 3-0 with 7:34 left in the third when Syvertsen put home a rebound and it looked like the Cougars were in great shape.

But Conant fought back, getting on the board when Dupuis scored on a corner with 11:25 remaining. Play was in the midfield for long stretches until the Orioles got into the circle and forced another corner, scoring again.

"They started connecting passes, getting shots off, and getting corners, which is huge," Lingerman said. "We definitely showed up to play in the last quarter, it just was a little bit too late."