Hatboro-Horsham and Central Bucks West advanced to the second round of the District One AAAA Tournament.
#10 Hatboro-Horsham 13, #23 Council Rock North 8
Whether it was coming off the sticks of Maria Guerra, Katie McKay or Rachel Rausa, one thing was for sure – Hatboro-Horsham’s seniors know when to step up.
In a win-or-go-home meeting with Council Rock North, the trio of seniors combined to score 10 goals in a 13-8 victory over the Indians in a District One Class AAAA first round playoff at Hatboro-Horsham High School on Tuesday night.
McKay scored four times and Guerra and Rausa each tallied three while leading the Lady Hatters (15-4) to the second round, where they will face Conestoga on the road on Thursday at 4 p.m.
“In the second half, we picked things up a little bit,” Hatboro-Horsham coach Duncan Swezey said. “In the first half, their goalie had 11 saves, so even though we controlled the (draws) and the ball, their goalie kept it even.
“Later in the game, we had a two-goal lead and we kind of pulled the offense out and went in more tall in the final six minutes and they had to come and chase us down.”
Whatever the Lady Hatters switched up, it worked.
In the first half, the 23rd-seeded Indians opened the game off with a 3-1 lead. Hatboro-Horsham would battle back, however, and take a 6-4 lead into the half. Later in the second half, the Lady Hatters broke the game open and came out on top.
“It was more of the seniors tonight - they had the ball and they mixed it up pretty well between the three of them,” Swezey said of Guerra, McKay and Rausa. “They were the ones doing the scoring and we had to start playing more as a team in the second half and we had to open up the offense a little bit and move the ball around. I thought they did a real nice job of stopping us when they needed to, but we did what we had to.”
Casey Swezey added a pair of goals for the Lady Hatters, while Kaitlyn Wallace scored once. Carly Daley and Colby Eldridge each had assists, while goalies Emily Wallace and Marina Simms each played one half and made two saves apiece.
“I’m kind of glad the game is behind us, but it was fun,” Coach Swezey said.
Swezey lauded the standout defensive efforts of Jane Henry and Jenna Cutilli.
Council Rock North 4-4 8
Hatboro-Horsham 6-7 13
#21 Haverford 20, #12 Souderton 18
High-scoring games were rare for the Indians this season. They had allowed more than 10 goals just twice all season – once in a 19-13 win over Council Rock South and, more recently, in a 19-6 loss to highly regarded Radnor.
Tuesday’s game was anything but the norm for an Indian squad boasting a stingy defense.
“It was a battle of the offenses,” coach Kelly Kelly said.
The Indians led 15-12 at the 19:39 mark of the second half after an Amber Lambeth goal. They still led by three (16-13) after another Lambeth goal. The Fords made it a one-goal game (17-16), but a free position goal by Natalie Bulgier gave the Indians an 18-16 edge at the 9:36 mark. That turned out to be their last hurrah as Mairead Janzer – who was a perfect 8-for-8 on shots from the field – connected on back-to-back goals to knot the score with just under eight minutes remaining. Jess Lyons scored the go-ahead goal with 5:35 remaining, and Janzer added an insurance goal with 2:01 left in regulation.
The Indians threatened, but goalie Nikki Harnwell (14 saves) saved her best for last, turning away every shot that came her way down the stretch.
“We just didn’t finish the way we should have,” senior Chessie Rahmer said. “I think a lot of it was that we were all crammed in the eight, and we all trying to shoot on one another.”
The difference in the game, according to the Indians’ coach, was in controlling draws.
“One hundred percent it’s the draw controls,” Kelly said. “I said to the girls during a timeout – whoever is coming up with the draw is coming up with the goal.
“That’s basically what today’s game came down to. Number 18 (Janzer) had a tremendous game for them.”
Lambeth and Bulgier led the Indians with five goals each. Rahmer and Brittany Roynan each had a hat trick. Roynan also had an assist. Tori Bulgier and Nikki Palmer both added one goal and one assist.
“I think a lot of it was we were winning some draws and they were winning some, and we were not consistent the way we normally are on the draw,” Lambeth said. “And our shots could have been better.”
The Indians closed out the year with a 15-2 mark and an SOL Continental Conference title to their credit.
“You know what, the way that we have played all year – it’s disappointing to end this way, but we’ve had such an uplifting year,” Kelly said. “I’m so proud of these girls. They stepped out here, and they gave it their all. They left everything they had on the field.
“With the season they had, they should walk off the field with their heads held high.”
Haverford 9-11 20
Souderton 9-9 18
#15 Central Bucks West 15, #18 Wissahickon 9
The Bucks used a second-half spurt to put some separation between themselves and the pesky Trojans and went on to earn their first district win in more than a decade
“We’ve been stressing the idea of improvement,” West coach Tara Schmucker said. “Every year we have been adding something else.
“First of all, they haven’t ever been seeded above the 20’s in over a decade, and I have never had a playoff win since I’ve been coaching at Central Bucks.
“In general, this gives the girls more confidence. They’re seeing improvement. Overall, it’s something to keep in their minds that they are competitive and they can continue to be competitive even though District One is so strong.”
The Trojans didn’t go quietly, trailing by just an 8-6 score at halftime.
“The girls never backed down,” Schmucker said. “It was a back-and-forth game in the first half, and they kept their composure and kept fighting.
“We started losing draw controls, but they never let up. In the second half, we went on a three-goal streak, and that’s when we took the wind out of their sails a little bit. When it went down on the defensive end, we had some key stops by our defenders, and our goalie came up with some really big saves.”
The Bucks were clinging to a 10-8 lead when Elena Romesburg scored with 10:15 remaining in regulation, sparking a mini-run that gave West control. Jacq Fitzgerald scored at the 7:46 mark, and Bryn Boylan capped the run with a goal with 7:33 remaining. The Bucks never looked back.
“It really was a team effort,” Schmucker said. “I said to them at the beginning – play as a team, win as a team, and I really think everyone came out to play today.
“Elena had an awesome game – she had four goals, three assists and five draw controls, and Jacq Fitzgerald had an awesome game with five goals and one assist. We had some defenders like Meghan Darcy, Madison Shields and Paige Savard – they all came up huge for us tonight.”
In addition to Romesburg and Fitzgerald, Boylan added a hat trick while Meghan Tillger, Savard and Sarah Gebre each added single goals. Amanda Gundlach had an assist.
For the Trojans, senior Zoe Gomez led the way with four goals, one assist and three grounds balls. Freshman Carolyn Wilde added two goals, one assist and three draw controls. Freshman Emily Vervlied had one goal, one assist, three draw controls and two ground balls, and junior Lauren Irvine had one goal, three draw controls and two ground balls. Senior Rachel Zucker closed out the scoring with a goal. Freshman Megan DeGroat also had three ground balls.
Naylor had six saves in goal for the Bucks, and Wissahickon goalie Julie Silverman also was credited with six saves.”
The Trojans closed out their season with a 7-2 mark in SOL play (12-6 overall). The Bucks (15-4, 7-2 SOL) will faced second-seeded Springfield-Delco in second round action on Thursday.
Wissahickon 6-3 9
Central Bucks West 8-7 15
#9 West Chester Henderson 20, #24 North Penn 3
The Maidens were no match for the Warriors in Tuesday’s opening round game. The mercy rule was in effect by halftime as Henderson opened up a 13-0 lead.
Senior Michelle Lassen scored two goals and Emily Schulze added a single goal for the Maidens. Sophomore goalie Michelle Dyck was credited with 15 saves in a solid outing.
Henderson senior Katie O’Donnell was held to just three goals until the final two minutes of the game when she scored a pair.
The Warriors held a 38-15 advantage in shots.
The Maidens closed out the season with a 6-3 record in league play (11-8 overall).
North Penn 0-3 3
West Chester Henderson 13-7 20
#6 Radnor 14, #27 Central Bucks South 4
Courtney Dietzel scored a pair of goals and Sarah Poli added a goal and an assist for the Titans, whose young squad didn’t back down against a seasoned Radnor squad.
“We fought to the end, and we couldn’t be more happy with our girls,” coach Janique Craig said. “Our team had 12 freshmen and sophomores that either started or received playing time today.
“Entering the district playoffs and playing a team of that caliber is a fantastic experience for these young players. This was a great season, and the team came together quite nicely. We are so proud of the strides they made this year.”
The Titans, who had 14 caused turnovers, were led defensively by Corrine Kenney with five caused turnovers while Courtney Taylor had four and Krysta Reading, three caused turnovers.
Central Bucks South 2-2 4
Radnor8-6 14
#1 Garnet Valley 21, #32 Central Bucks East 3
Senior Julia Norek had two goals, and Lauren Burrell had a goal and an assist for the Patriots. Alana Rivas was credited with four saves.
- Log in to post comments
