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ATTLEBORO - Those captains' practices during August, the sprints after practice, the time spent in the weight room - they were all part of the equation as the Attleboro High School field hockey team pocketed a 1-0 victory over Notre Dame Academy in a preliminary round match in the MIAA Division 1 South Tournament Thursday.

On the strength of sophomore Jourdan Childs scoring at 46:05 and Notre Dame misfiring on a penalty stroke with just under four minutes left in the match, the 15th-seeded Bombardiers (11-6-2) survived to play again, a first-round match Saturday afternoon at second-seeded Wellesley.

"We've been working hard on our conditioning and that was a big factor," said Bombardier senior midfielder Carly Barone, who set up the lone goal of the match with a free hit from about 30 yards out. "All that running, the sprints, that's why we were able to keep the pressure on during the second half."

The Bombardiers survived the scare of three straight Notre Dame penalty corners in the 58th minute of the match, the third admirably broken up by Lindsey Duquette. Then in the 59th minute, Cara Mercier broke up a Notre Dame advancement on the right wing, neutralizing the Cougars' chance for a potential tying goal.

But best of all for the Bombardiers was when Notre Dame's Bridget Nestor addressed the ball in the penalty circle for the penalty shot at 56:13. Attleboro senior goalie Kendra Sczuroski stood her ground, but Nestor uncorked the ball not only high, but well wide left of the net. "I could tell by the way that the kids came out, that they wanted it (victory) badly," said AHS coach Sue Hamilton, whose Bombardiers were making their fourth straight postseason appearance. Right from the outset, junior midfielder Emily Ouellette and Barone influenced the Bombardiers' possession time and penetration onto Notre Dame soil.

Within the final seven minutes of the match, Barone, Duquette and Beauregard all made their physical presences felt with Notre Dame attacking, regaining possession of the ball or forcing a clear.

The Bombardiers had six shots and three penalty corners during the scoreless first half - their best chance occurring in the 28th minute off of a Tori Beauregard drive on the left wing, forcing a save and Danielle Johnson then having the rebound shot denied by Notre Dame goalie Maggie Holland.

Finally, AHS found the net. Johnson took a whack at the ball at the left corner of the Notre Dame net, but it scurried to the right where Childs didn't hesitate in stuffing it beyond the goal line.

Johnson had two successive penalty corners in the 43rd minute for AHS. And prior to that, she had a partial breakaway in the 13th minute, Kelly Monson had a short side right shot in the 17th minute, Ouellette had a partial breakaway in the 22nd minute

"Especially when you get into the state tournament, you see your best athletes," added Hamilton of the Bombardiers' exercising their stamina and skill. "If you have good athletes out there, like we do, they're the ones who keep going in the second half, they can keep up the pace."