The question awaiting answer during the Class L field hockey preliminary round was who would win – Bishop Guertin, Londonderry or impending darkness.

After more than two hours, a pair of sudden death overtime sessions and nine rounds of corner hits, Londonderry edged both foes, 3-2, on Wednesday, Oct. 21.

Despite the loss, it was an impressive stand for the Cardinals, playing their first playoff game in only the second year of the program.

Leading the charge for Guertin the last two years is a core of eight Bedford residents who have played a vital role in the early success of the team.

Senior Kristianna Purington of Bedford was the main cog behind starting the team. She approached the administration during her freshman year and began the field hockey team as a club sport.

During their inaugural season in 2008, the Cardinals won once, but this year the team went 5-7-2, earning the No. 10 seed in the tournament.

“It’s been an interesting road,” said head coach Steve Duprat. “The girls came in as freshmen without a team. Then when they won that one game last year, it was like they had won the Super Bowl. They got the taste, and they built on it in the offseason.”

Forward Laura Viel gave BG a 1-0 lead in the first half against the Lancers, but Londonderry notched the equalizer just after intermission.

Bedford’s Alexandrea Solms put the Cardinals back in front when she pounded home a loose ball with 14:45 remaining in regulation, and Guertin was poised to pull an upset in its first postseason action.

Though goalie Christiana Carlini turned one shot away with a diving save, she couldn’t stop a second effort by the Lancers, who evened the match with only 2:08 left.

The teams played two scoreless 15-minute overtime sessions, and the game was decided on corner hits.

Neither team managed a goal in the first eight frames, and after the Cardinals missed on their ninth attempt the Lancers capitalized and found the back of the net to advance to play No. 2 seed Winnacunnet.

“I couldn’t have been let down whether we won that game or lost,” said Purington. “There are teams who have had programs for six years that don’t make the playoffs, and here we are in overtime against the defending state champions. It’s now an expectation for girls in this program to continue this.”

In addition to Purington and Solms, Bedford’s Julia Wright, Morgan Karanasios, Jessica Lambert, Kayla Lambert, Reanica Wong and Karolyn Castaldo all suit up for BG.

“Those girls from Bedford are the ones who started this program, and now it helps because girls will say they want to be a part of a program like this,” said Duprat. “(This season) solidifies that we’re actually a program, not just a team that’s going through the motions.”