Kaitlyn McKinnon knew very little about the sport when she joined the Concord High field hockey team this season. The freshman evidently catches on quickly.
“She never played field hockey until this season and she ended up being the second-highest scorer on the team, which is pretty impressive for someone who actually never picked up a stick before August,” Concord coach Andrew Briers said about McKinnon, whose breakout season continued Thursday when she scored the lone goal for the eighth-seeded Tide in its 1-0 win over No. 9 Dover in the opening round of the Division I tournament at Rollins Park.
“She’s just a very good player and very dedicated as well,” Briers said.
McKinnon’s emergence as a reliable forward, along with the steady play of senior captain Carly Torrance are two of the biggest reasons why Concord (8-6-1) finds itself just three victories shy of hoisting the program’s first state championship since 2004.
To get there, Concord will have to go through the division’s best as the Tide is now slated to travel to Windham for a matchup against the No. 1 Jaguars (12-1) in Sunday’s quarterfinal round at 2 p.m.
“We know (Windham) is a very good team,” said Briers, whose team lost to the Jaguars, 5-1, on Sept. 17. “They attack very well and they suffocate you in your own end. They’re going to be an incredibly tough challenge, but you have to have faith in your team, always.”
It’s the same kind of faith Briers had in his group on Thursday despite a low-scoring, tightly contested game where neither side could swing any type of momentum in their favor.
The majority of the action occurred in the midfield as neither defense allowed much in terms of pressure.
Even when Concord scored the only goal 15 minutes into the second half, it was a result of players like junior Sam Ossoff and senior Erin Reed helping turn defense into offense.
With Dover (7-7-1) on the attack in the second half, Concord’s defense stood strong and spotted an opportunity to counter. The defense pushed the ball up to Torrance, who skillfully made her way down the field before firing a shot on the cage.
Torrance didn’t score, but McKinnon was there to clean up the rebound for her sixth goal of the season.
“Field hockey is a strange game in a way because the goals can sometimes come up out of nowhere,” Briers said. “Dover attacked really well in that second half, and all of a sudden, we got a breakaway and a rebound goal. It’s a peculiar game where someone can be attacking and the other team scores straight off it.”
It was the only offense Concord needed on a day where the defense was shining. First-year goalie Felicity Wheldon saw one shot on a goal all contest and delivered the key save to preserve the shutout.
“It was one of those moments where I held my breath because it was probably going to go in, and then it was a really good save,” Briers said. “She’s a freshman and she’s a really big part of why we’ve been very successful.”
(Jay McAree can be reached at 369-3371, jmcaree@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @JayMcAree.)
Boys’ Soccer
Concord 2, Timberlane 0
Key players: Concord – Gopal Timsina (G), Mosi Masimango (G), Alasdair Ferrier (2A), Liam Devanny (4 saves), Liam Bennett (midfield), Grant Rienstra (defense), Adamson Munyembabazi (defense)
Highlights: Ferrier was a huge part of both goals, first finding Timsina for a one-time finish in the 53rd minute before capping off the scoring by threading a pass to Masimango, who scored for the 2-0 lead in the 75th minute. Concord outshot Timberlane, 9-5, and Devanny earned another clean sheet in goal.
Records: Concord 10-3-2; Timberlane 6-8-1
Merrimack Valley 3,
Kearsarge 1
Key players: Merrimack Valley – Cam Woodman (G), Logan Cassin (2G), Mason Boudreau (keeper); Kearsarge – Ben Corbyn (G)
Highlights: MV did a great job of possessing the ball throughout the first half and Coby Mercier found Cassin for the first goal to get things rolling. Woodman buried a beautiful free kick from 25 yards out for the second score before Cassin was able to find the net one more time in the second half.
Coach’s quote: “This was another great win for us tonight. This was an entire team effort, every single player contributed and helped get the win tonight. Great energy heading into playoffs.” – MV’s Ken Fuller
Coach’s quote: “We came out a little flat in the first half and MV took advantage of it. The second half was a bitter effort we hit the post four times but the ball wouldn’t fall our way. It was a great night to say thank you to our seniors commitment to the program.” – Kearsarge’s Matt Burch
Records: Merrimack Valley 10-6; Kearsarge 6-10
Coe-Brown 2, Lebanon 0
Key players: Coe-Brown – Cayden Donoghue (G, A), Jacob Radwan (G), Ben Healey (A), Lucciano Minasalli (midfield), Mason Winiarski (midfield), Hogan Cain (7 saves)
Highlights: Radwan and Donoghue both found the back of the net for the Bears, who also received another outstanding performance in net from Cain to lock up a quality win.
Coach’s quote: “For the first 10 minutes of the game, Lebanon showed how talented they are and kept us pinned in. After that point we were able to counter more effectively and evened out the game’s momentum. Our transitional attack was good for us, and this was another game that, without Hogan Cain in net, the match is more even on the scoresheet. This was a very good result against a quality team, and the win gave us an unbeaten home record. Our guys earned it.” – Coe-Brown’s Christian Gompert
Records: Coe-Brown 11-3-1; Lebanon 8-7-0
ConVal 2, Bow 1
Key players: Bow – Ryan Leonard (G), Matt Selleck (midfield), Daniel Leuchtenberger (midfield), Graham Weisberg (defense), Sean Miclette (defense)
Highlights: Bow opened the scoring 12 minutes into the game for the early lead, but ConVal responded by scoring a late goal in each half to secure the top seed in Division II.
Coach’s quote: “We made one more mistake than ConVal, thus the one-goal loss. That is the difference in tournament-like games.” – Bow’s George Pinkham
Records: ConVal 15-1; Bow 9-5-2
Farmington 7, Franklin 3
Key players: Franklin – Jacob Weaver (3G), Zach Dunham (A), Kyan Graves (A), Asher Graves (defense)
Coach’s quote: “It was a good game all around. I think we played well. There were some mistakes made that we’ll look to correct going forward.” – Franklin’s Kevin VanGorden
Records: Farmington 6-8; Franklin 7-8
Hopkinton 9,
Hillsboro-Deering 0
Key players: Hopkinton – Ian Heck (3G), Andrew Beckwith (3G), Paul Molnar (G, 2A), Shea Dickson (G), Bryce Charron (G), Logan Rockwood (A), Derek West (A), Sam Crawford (3 saves)
Highlights: It was a fun night for the Hawks, who wrapped up the regular season in style with nine goals. Both Heck and Beckwith enjoyed hat tricks, and Charron’s goal was his first of the season.
Records: Hopkinton 8-4-4; H-D 9-7
Pembroke 1, ConVal 1, 2OT
Key players: Pembroke – Maddie Bailey (G), Britney Hill, Hannah Serafin, Anna Harlow, Kaylie Leblanc (defense)
Highlights: Bailey scored with less than six minutes remaining in the match to tie things up for the Spartans. The two teams battled through double overtime to a draw despite heavy attack from Pembroke in both overtime periods.
Coach’s quote: “We knew ConVal was going to be better than their record showed. They have been playing teams hard all season. With one more game to go in three days time, we will certainly feel tested and ready for playoffs. And in the playoffs, it’s always anyone’s game and the girls have seen that firsthand the last two days.” – Pembroke’s Jess Kaufman
Records: Pembroke 12-1-2; ConVal 5-7-2
Merrimack Valley 8, Plymouth 0
Key players: Merrimack Valley – Emily Knouse (2G, 3A), Kylie Curtin (3G), Kylie Marquis (G), Kaylee Magoon (G), Emily Koufos (G), Cassidy Considine (A), Kerragan McNeil (A), Alyssa Woodman (A), Hanah Corliss (A), McKayla Palhof (A), Asia Hanson (defense), Kaitlyn Belanger (defense), Sarah Davis (midfield), Brooke Walton (midfield), Madison Merchant (goalie)
Highlights: In the 12th minute, Curtin started the scoring with a pass from Knouse, and the same two combined for the same result a few minutes later to make it 2-0. With a 3-0 halftime lead, MV started off strong and applied the pressure to score a few quick goals. Marquis finished off the scoring on a breakaway for her first career varsity goal.
Coach’s quote: “An emotional senior night for our eight seniors, who have given so much to this program the last four years. It was great to see them and the rest of the team come together and enjoy what might be their last home game at MV. It was a great team effort and I am lucky enough to say I got to experience and feel the emotions with them.” – MV’s Nick D’Agostino
Records: Merrimack Valley 9-7; Plymouth 5-11
Hanover 1, John Stark 0
Key players: John Stark – The entire team played well.
Coach’s quote: “Despite the loss the girls proved they can play anyone in the division and be a stiff opponent.” – Stark’s Chris Pike
Records: Hanover 11-3-1; John Stark 7-5-2
Belmont 3, Laconia 0
Key players: Belmont – Courtney Burke (G), Julianna Estremera (2G), Katie Gagnon (2A), Kailey Gerbig (2A), Elizabeth Fleming (defense), Emily Cochran (10th shutout), Morgan Rule (defense)
Highlights: The Raiders have been waiting to do their damage late in games, and Thursday was no different as all three goals came in the final 14 minutes of play. Belmont finishes the regular season as the likely top seed in Division III.
Coach’s quote: “Our possession game has come along really well and I thought the kids possessed well, especially in the second half. The kids have come a long way and it’s a credit to them. They’ve gotten it done.” – Belmont’s Mark Dawalga
Records: Belmont 13-2-1; Laconia 3-11-1
Hillsboro-Deering 5,
Fall Mountain 0
Key players: Hillsboro-Deering – Abbie Johnson (G), Eva LaValley (G, A), Zoe Kemp (G), Izabella Warren (G), Kendra Warren (A), Kaylea Davison (A), Madi Jones (A), Lexi McClure (defense), Lilly Edsall (defense), Cassidy Wightman (midfield), Gracie Atkins (4 saves)
Highlights: Johnson scored at the very end of the first half, unassisted. LaValley took a direct kick just outside the penalty box and Fall Mountain headed it in as an own goal 14 minutes into the second half. Izabella Warren scored later in the half on an assist from Kendra Warren and the Hillcats piled it on from there.
Coach’s quote: “The girls had a slow start to the game but settled down and took control for the entire second half. They possessed the ball well, setting up scoring opportunities and finishing them. It was very cold and our third game in a row so they dug deep and got the win. We are very proud of this team and how they have developed this season.” – H-D’s Susan Else
Records: Hillsboro-Deering 8-8; Fall Mountain 6-7-1