Bedford girls soccer scores late to knock off Bishop Guertin

NASHUA – The Bedford High School girls soccer team is spending the early part of the season figuring out how to mix its experience and youthfulness.

Against Bishop Guertin on Wednesday, the Bulldogs showed they are leaning things quickly.

When Johanna Celli’s shot hit the crossbar and caromed back into the box, teammate Saylor Clark was right there to bury the rebound and five Bedford the only goal it needed in a 2-0 win. The play was similar to one in the first half, the only difference being that no goal was scored.

“That was learning from experience, I would hope, because we had one in the first half and everyone stood still,” Bedford coach Michelle Winning said. “The second time, we weren’t letting that happen again.”

Bedford (2-0 in Division I) got an insurance goal from Regan Schiappa in the 72nd minute and survived a few second-half chances by the Cardinals to record its second shutout of the season. Goalkeeper Brooke Barrett made eight saves in the win.

“We played well at times, and at times, we didn’t play so well,” Winning said. “Give BG credit, they took it to us for a while. They took control of the game for a while. We’re just trying to work things out and find the right combinations. We have a lot of younger players who we’re trying to work into the mix, and we’re mixing that with our experience.”

The Cardinals got eight saves from Maggie Tremblay, who did her best to keep the Bulldogs off the board until late in the second half.

“We worked hard and we lost to a very good team in Bedford,” Bishop Guertin coach Patrick Mulchay said. “I thought we were matching up with them pretty evenly, but I thought they outworked us in the second half, which created the two goals. I thought our girls continued to work hard and we created some good scoring opportunities, we just didn’t score on them.”

Through two games, Bishop Guertin (0-2) has yet to score, but Mulchay isn’t worried about the team’s offense just yet.

“It’s only the second game, so we have a lot to work on, and hopefully at some point, those goals do come,” he said.

The Cardinals came close to taking the lead themselves early in the second half. Bishop Guerti’s Marie Laplante went in alone on the goal, maneuvered around a diving Barrett and got a shot by Brenna Williams and on the empty goal. The ball was on its way in until Christina Campbell’s sliding save knocked the shot harmlessly to the side.

“We’re definitely starting fresh,” Winning said. “We just have some different personnel that we’re getting into the mix and trying to get them used to this level of play. We’re starting three or four freshmen by choice, and mixing that with our senior leadership.”