Bishop Guertin's Nayla Hardwick, left, slides to boot the ball away from Nashua North's Allison Frye (5) and Kathryn Azevedo during Saturday's Division I clash at Presentation of Mary in Hudson. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

HUDSON — It felt like the first day of the regular season Saturday, with the sun beating down on Presentation of Mary’s turf field and the temps reaching near 80.

But Saturday’s 4-0 Bishop Guertin High School girls soccer win over Nashua North was more about a time when it will be much cooler – tourney time.

Both teams got a taste of what that intensity will be like.

“We talk about it every game,” said Cards coach Chris Millett, his team now 13-1-1 and atop Division I. “We’ve got to play our system. We can’t get too bogged down with our opposition. … We just have to do our best, and I think we can beat anyone.”

“Today was more focusing on where we need to be for playoffs,” North coach Jacqueline Thompson said, her Titans now 8-5-1 but certainly a team to watch in two weeks. “This doesn’t do anything except give us experience. We’re up against teams that have been there over and over again. We don’t have that experience, so this is our experience.”

It was a battle throughout. Guertin got two goals by Zoe Horton-Sousa to lead the way, but the first one was by Ava Borecki during a mad scramble off a corner kick in the 22nd minute. With just over five to play in the half, Horton-Sousa just beat North first-half keeper Nora Ross (four saves) to make it 2-0 after 40 minutes..

The way both teams were playing, the Cards needed the comfort of a multiple goal lead. Had the Titans found the back of the net at any juncture, it might have been a different game. And as Millett said, “They almost did. … They’ve (Allison and Sarah Frye) have a lot of speed, and the ball at their feet can be a game-changer.

In the first half, for example, with Allison Frye creating having in front of the BG net, Guertin defender Meg Hartshorn robbed the Titans of a goal when she booted a ball off the goal line before it could roll into the right corner. “I don’t know how she got back in time, credit to her,” Millett said. “She’s a senior, and so happy and proud of her hustle.”

Cards keeper Jess Lacroix robbed Allison Frye late in the first half, and in the second half the Titans, down 3-0, had two free kicks by Sarah Frye saved by Lacroix and another rocket off the foot of Allie Dandeneau was fisted up and almost tucked under the bar, but Lacroix managed to corral it.

Meanwhile, Guertin added to its lead, as Titans second half goalie Rachel Gauthier was kept busy. Freshman Paige Gabriel scored off a corner kick frenzy in the 66th minute to make it 3-0. Horton-Sousa got her second goal and the final one of the game in the 69th minute, converting a cross from wing Elena Ellia.

“They’re (BG) a good team,” Thompson said. “If we want to play with the best, we’ve got to compete with them. … We didn’t play our game. We were reactive instead of pro active.”

But both teams will be active in a big way when the temperature drops.