Turgeon's late goal lifts Dover field hockey past Concord in D1 semifinals (video)

EXETER - Sarah Michaud knew the Dover High School field hockey team was going to have to take advantage of every opportunity against Concord.

The Crimson Tide had only allowed two goals all season, so when the Green Wave had a chance to score, they needed to capitalize.

Dover did just that, scoring on two of its three penalty corners in the second half and taking advantage of a counterattack in the first half to pull out a 3-2 win Tuesday over Concord in the Division I semifinals at Exeter High School. The Green Wave advance to the title game for the first time since 1985, where they will face Windham, which beat Bishop Guertin 3-0.

Jeannine Turgeon scored two goals for Dover, both off penalty corners, including one with 2:59 remaining in the game after Concord (10-1-1) had come back from a 2-0 deficit to tie the game early in the fourth quarter. Trixie Williams also scored and Jessica Couture had two assists for the Green Wave (8-2).

"I am just so proud of them," Michaud, the Dover coach, said. "This is one of my most favorite seasons at Dover, just the group of kids we have. Obviously, we have some really talented players, but they work really well as a team. They’re connecting on passing and their communication fell into place. It’s been a work-in-progress but everything came together."

The Green Wave was also able to hold up against a relentless Concord offense that had nine penalty corners and continued to put pressure on Dover's defense throughout the second half. Goalie Hayley Tosh finished with six saves for Dover, including one late in the third quarter that kept her team up by a goal.

That lead disappeared with 8:08 to play, when Maria Armaganian scored on a corner, crushing a reverse shot through the Dover defense and into the goal. Armaganian also assisted on Emma Beaujouan's goal in the third quarter, that made it 2-1 just 1:13 after the Green Wave had taken a two-goal lead.

"We knew they were going to be a tough team," Concord coach Andy Briers said. "They’ve got tough players and they’ve obviously got a really great coach, too. I think anyone who comes into the semifinals is always going to be tough. I think as a team, we never really underestimated the opponent all year. It turned out to be a really good game, too."

Most of the first quarter was spent in the midfield, as neither team was able to get a great scoring chance early. Concord got the game's first corner about eight minutes into the second, and the Crimson Tide kept possession despite not being able to convert the attempt.

But that extended chance on offense allowed Dover to counter quickly, as Couture raced down field with the ball and sent a centering pass right to Williams, who was able to knock it into the cage after an initial bobble, giving the Green Wave a 1-0 lead with 5:54 left in the half.

Turgeon gave Dover a 2-0 lead with her first goal six minutes into the second half, but Concord answered right back, with Beaujouan deflecting a shot by Armaganian into the goal.

The Crimson Tide seized momentum after the goal, and after several chances, Armaganian tied it up.

"Going into that fourth quarter, we were talking about momentum," Briers said. "We had it at the end of the third and the first 10 minutes or so of the fourth."

But with under four minutes to play, Dover got back-to-back corners. On the second one, Couture put the ball in play to Meghan Fitzgerald, seemingly to the surprise of the Crimson Tide defenders. Turgeon slipped to an open spot in the circle and converted the feed from Fitzgerald to put the Green Wave back on top.

"Sarah called it and Meghan was there. It was just the right pocket," Turgeon said. "There was someone by Meghan and someone by stroke, and she was able to pass it perfectly to me. It was wide open for a shot. It couldn’t have gone any better."