Check out the results for SOL girls’ soccer teams in action on Friday.
By Dan Beck
National Conference
WILLIAM TENNENT 1, COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 0
One play is all it took.
In a back and forth scoreless battle between William Tennent and Council Rock South in a key National Conference matchup, Nicole Baldessare gave Tennent that play.
With six minutes remaining in regulation, Baldessare made a strong run on the ball, got it past South’s keeper, and waiting for the ball was Shannon McGuinn. McGuinn deposited the ball in the back of the net for the game-winner.
“It was a huge win,” Tennent coach James Barry said. “To be 3-1 in such a strong conference is fantastic for the players.”
The one Tennent loss came two days prior, an 8-1 thumping at the hands of conference-pacing Neshaminy. Barry believes a different Panthers team showed up Friday afternoon.
“I just don’t think we were ready to play Neshaminy,” he said. “We weren’t organized, and we didn’t play as a team. We just didn’t support each other on the field, so we sat down and spoke about it at practice yesterday. I think we had a positive practice, and then when that happens coming into a game, you can tell in the first five minutes of the game whether we’re ready to play and we definitely were today.”
Tennent also had a strong defensive effort in the win. Lauriel Krouse made five saves for the Panthers and Barry credits his backliners for not allowing the Golden Hawks any good looks at the net.
“The back four were really strong today, and the saves [Krouse] made were poor shots from outside, so we just defended really well,” he said, singling out senior captain Rachel McCabe for a strong job anchoring the defense.
The win keeps the Panthers (4-2, 3-1 SOL) within a game of Neshaminy and Pennsbury atop the National Conference standings. The Golden Hawks drop to 3-2 overall and 2-2 in National Conference play and will face Council Rock North next week.
William Tennent 0 – 1 – 0
Council Rock South 0 – 0 – 0
ABINGTON 3, BENSALEM 1
Abington followed up their impressive win Wednesday against CR South with a win on the road against Bensalem.
Kailey Horton, Sophia Carraba, and Maddie Doyle scored goals for the Ghosts, who led 2-0 at halftime. Horton, along with Camryn Lexow and Julia Guarini, had assists for Abington.
The Owls got a second half goal from Julia Murray with an assist from Tori Yorgley in the 73rd minute.
Bensalem (1-5, 1-4 SOL) has a quick turnaround, facing off with Central Bucks West Saturday. The Ghosts (3-2, 2-2 SOL) go to William Tennent on Monday for a conference game.
Abington 2 – 1 – 3
Bensalem 0 – 1 – 1
NESHAMINY 1, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 0
Neshaminy got an early goal, and that’s all the offense the Redskins needed to defeat Council Rock North in Newtown.
In the tenth minute, Neshaminy’s Maggie Daeche scored off a corner kick to lift her team to victory.
Victoria Smith and Holly Bowser were credited with the combined shutout, making four total saves. Jeri Belardo made three saves for the Indians.
Neshaminy (4-1, 4-0 SOL) can now look ahead to a battle of the unbeatens in the National Conference, as the Redskins will travel to Pennsbury Monday to decide sole possession of first place in the league. CR North (2-3, 1-3 SOL) will renew its crosstown rivalry with Council Rock South on Monday as both teams will look to get back on track.
Neshaminy 1 – 0 – 1
Council Rock North 0 – 0 – 0
PENNSBURY 7, HARRY S. TRUMAN 1
Pennsbury kept its winning streak alive and defeated Truman on the road.
Cara Thomas scored in the second minute, and then Whitney Roth added the Falcons second goal in the 35th minute. Pennsbury led 2-0 at halftime.
Hope Drewes got things going early in the second half with a goal in the 41st minute. Truman got on the board in 49th minute. Amanda McElhare scored for the Tigers.
Thomas scored again in the 50th minute to make it 4-1 Falcons. Riley Rudd scored for the Falcons in the 58th minute and again in the 60th minute. Maddie Annan scored in the 74th minute to complete a big offensive day for the Falcons.
Kelly Amador (three), Rudd (two), Jo Tennant and Cara Thomas provided assists in the win. Nany Santiago made four saves for Pennsbury and Alyssa Bosler saved ten shots in goal for Truman.
Pennsbury (5-0, 4-0 SOL) will battle fellow undefeated team Neshaminy on Monday for the top spot in the National Conference, but first the Falcons have a nonleague meeting with Unionville on Saturday. Truman (0-6, 0-4 SOL) will play Bensalem at home on Monday.
Pennsbury 2 – 5 – 7
Harry S. Truman 0 – 1 – 1
Continental Conference
SOUDERTON 1, PENNRIDGE 0
Souderton pulled off the stunner of the young season, edging Pennridge and clogging up the competitive Continental.
"All the girls played great and did everything we asked of them," coach Chris Felber said. "Girls played in different positions based upon this game's need, and no one complained.
"It was a total team effort. Vivian Feliciani was excellent in goal. Pennridge is an excellent team. They were very tough, but our girls rose to the occasion and deserved a big win. This program is not the program it was just a few years ago."
The Indians showed signs of turning the corner last season under then first-year coach Chris Felber, winning league five games. For a team that had won a total of two games in league play the preceding four years combined, winning five games in a season was something close to monumental. Friday’s win over a Pennridge squad that has won the last four conference titles suggests that the Indians are a team to be reckoned with in the Continental.
Meredith Moore scored the game’s lone goal at the 20-minute mark of the first half with an assist from Cara McCausland.
"I really feel like we were the better team," Felber said. "I think Pennridge is a better team than us, but on that night, we were the better team.
"I matched their speed on the outside with the fastest players that I had, and we kept them honest. We kept three up top, and we didn't let them swamp us. Right at the start of the second half, we had a great chance. We got behind them again and almost scored."
It was that change in the Indians' strategy that paid dividends.
"Kylie Heath usually plays wide midfield for us, but I moved her to wide defender because I knew she had that speed," Felber said of his senior captain. "Ashley Nguyen got a start as well. She usually comes off the bench, but because she was my faster option I used her. I changed the middle of our midfield and changed our shape just so we wouldn't give them much space in the middle.
"I kept three players up top, so they had to keep five players back almost the whole game. I didn't go into an all-out defensive shape. I played three center midfielders – I always play three center midfielders but usually two of them are attacking and one is defensive, but rather than having two attacking, I just had three center mids.
"We actually created better chances than they did and more of them. We were unlucky not to win that game two to nil. We had two very good chances to score in the second half and missed them both."
Feliciani earned the shutout in net for the Indians.
"I think Viv only made four actual saves," Felber said. "She picked up a lot of through balls, a lot of crosses – she was on the ball a alot, and she played very well covering through balls and that sort of thing.
"In terms of them shooting and making her make a save, there were only three or four."
Souderton (5-1, 3-1 SOL) will host Mount St. Joseph Academy in a non-league contest on Saturday and then will host Central Bucks South in a key SOL battle on Monday (7:30 p.m.). Pennridge (3-2, 2-2) will host North Penn on Monday.
Pennridge 0 – 0 – 0
Souderton 1 – 0 – 1
QUAKERTOWN 2, HATBORO-HORSHAM 1
Quakertown almost got its first league win on Wednesday against a tough North Penn team.
Almost.
The Panthers fought back and tied the game late to force overtime, where the Maidens got the golden goal.
On Friday, Quakertown righted the ship and picked up its first win in the treacherous Continental Conference against Hatboro-Horsham.
The Panthers scored first in the 18th minute. Carly Peacher made a nice run on the ball, and after it got deflected around, Haley Pursel put the ball past the Hatters’ keeper with a floater from around the 18.
In the 27th minute, Quakertown made it a two-goal game. Junior forward Katie Crouthamel got past a defender and made a beautiful centering pass to find Peacher for the goal. The goal was set up off a great pass from midfielder Victoria Sturgess.
“Vic [Sturgess] played the big ball and I knew I had to sprint because they have a fast right back,” Crouthamel said. “Once you get inside of them you just have to stay composed and [Peacher] was calling for it. I played it across, and Carly shot it nice and low.”
Crouthamel played aggressively all afternoon and provided the Panthers with plenty of opportunities on net.
“She is the player that has the ability to create those chances that terrorizes other teams,” coach Mike Koch said of Crouthamel. “She’s flat out what makes it happen. She puts teams under pressure.”
The Hatters scored shortly into the second half. Erica Paluszek placed what Hatboro coach Ike Onyeador called a “world class ball” to Kelley Thomas. Thomas’ shot was deflected off the keeper and Madalyn Falcione put back what would be the Hatters only goal, as the Panthers held on for the win.
The Panthers also got a lift from goalkeeper Morgan Small. She made ten saves, including one in the 60th minute to rob the Hatters of a scoring chance.
Miranda Royds, in net for the Hatters, made a couple nice stops. On one occasion, she stoned Crouthamel, who had an open run at the goal. Crouthamel’s line drive shot was deflected up and away from danger by Royds. In total, Royds had four saves.
“Miranda Royds is the type of goalkeeper that is going to keep you in games,” Onyeador said. “When you’re dealing with situations that looks like almost a certain goal, Miranda more often than not is going to make those saves.”
After a rough start to the season, Onyeador is optimistic about the future of his young team that starts only two seniors.
“We’re looking at the long term and saying, ‘can we build a program that has an identity and a system of play that people understand?’ he said. “That way, we’re not winners one season and losing record the next. For us, the focus is on having a set system so when we start winning two years down the road, we’re still winning after that.”
After Wednesday’s tough loss against North Penn, Koch and his squad were happy to come out on top Friday.
“This is an insanely difficult conference,” Koch said. “I believe it’s the best conference in the state. For a small school like us, results are hard to come by sometimes, so it is nice to get validation.”
“Getting a win that means something in our conference is huge because the last game gave us a lot of motivation to come in and win,” Small added. “Next opponent is CB East. It should be a good game and I’m looking forward to facing them.”
A date with the Patriots comes on Monday for Quakertown (2-3, 1-3 SOL), and Hatboro-Horsham (0-5, 0-4 SOL) stays at home to play Central Bucks West.
Quakertown 2 – 0 – 2
Hatboro-Horsham 0 – 1 – 1
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 1, CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 0 (OT)
Another close game. Another win. Central Bucks East pulled out an overtime victory over Central Bucks South on Friday afternoon.
An East forward was fouled just outside the 18, setting up a direct free kick for the Patriots. Coach Paul Eisold called on his star—Emma Loving.
Loving buried the free kick in the lower left-hand corner of the net, breaking the scoreless tie in the 85th minute to lift East to victory. The win comes a week after the Patriots won a pair of tight games against Pennridge and North Penn. Add another close win to their resume.
“Unlike most teams, I think every game appears to be close for us because everybody wants to play us tight,” Eisold said. “We’re very seasoned in those types of games and I think that’s starting to show through a little bit.”
South battled close with East all afternoon. Eisold said he thinks the Titans had the two best goal opportunities of the game during regulation, but they just missed the mark. Defensively, South handled East’s attack well.
“I thought [South] was excellent today,” Eisold said. “I thought their defense was outstanding and they had great goalkeeping. Sophia Boggs did a really nice job. They didn’t allow us to penetrate and get close and we couldn’t really break them.”
Boggs made 14 saves in net for the Titans. South coach Betsy Bullock was pleased with the play of the defense in front of Boggs, naming Nicole Wills, Makenzie Ehresman, Courtney Taylor and Krysta Reading as solid contributors.
The Patriots got a combined shutout from its goalkeepers. Senior Katie Dolf played the first half and Kristin Obetz stepped in in the second half and held the Titans at bay.
“It’s definitely a good way to win a game,” Eisold said of the overtime win. “I’d prefer to not do it that way, but it definitely allows the girls to see success after working tremendously hard. We’ve been fortunate to have the balls bounce our way.”
CB East (4-0, 3-0 SOL) plays next at Quakertown on Monday, while CB South (3-1, 2-1 SOL) goes to Souderton for a key Continental battle.
Central Bucks East 0 – 0 – 1 – 1
Central Bucks South 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 1, NORTH PENN 1
Two overtimes wasn’t enough time to decide a close contest between Continental opponents, Central Bucks West and North Penn.
The Maidens struck first in the first minute. Marrisa Werner scored after taking a pass from Allison Williams.
West answered back in the second half. Ellie Manca scored with an assist from Madison Billingsley.
A pair of overtime period went by with no goals and the two sides ended up tied at one.
Jenny Sutorious made six saves in net for the Bucks, while the Maidens’ Hannah Lambert made eight saves in the draw.
“Hannah Lambert had another great game keeping North Penn in it,” Maidens’ coach James Dehner said. “The game could have been won by either team on several occasions.”
Bucks’ coach Chris Shank was impressed with the play of Lindsay Morgan and Abby Mulhearn, who “put constant pressure on their backs and goalkeeper.”
The Bucks (2-2-1, 2-1-1 SOL) return to the field Saturday when they take on Bensalem and the Maidens (3-3-1, 1-2-1 SOL) travel to Pennridge on Monday.
North Penn 1 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 1
Central Bucks West 0 – 1 – 0 – 0 – 1
American Conference
UPPER DUBLIN 5, PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 2
Upper Dublin opened up a 3-0 halftime lead and never looked back to remain unbeaten on the season.
Freshman Sizzy Lawton scored a hat trick for the Flying Cardinals, while Tori Hoffner and Megan Boyle each scored a goal apiece. Tori Hoffner stayed hot and had four assists on the goals scored.
The Flying Cardinals improve to 5-0 overall and 4-0 in league play. They play Upper Merion on Monday.
The loss drops the Colonials to 2-3 overall and 2-2 in the league and they’ll meet Springfield (Montco) on Monday.
Upper Dublin 3 – 2 – 5
Wissahickon 0 – 2 – 2
UPPER MORELAND 2, SPRINGFIELD 0
Upper Moreland got a pair of goals late in the second half en route to its first win of the season over American Conference foe Springfield.
Amanda Walker scored in the 69th minute to put the Bears on the board. Christina Kane had the assist on the goal.
“Christina Kane shielded the ball, turning her defender and playing the ball to Walker who placed the ball in the left corner,” Upper Moreland coach Lisa Benvenuto said.
Brianna Byard added another Bears goal in the 80th minute off a header from a Samantha Cancel corner kick.
Keeper Kim Benge, according to Benvenuto, played aggressively and earned her first shutout of the season for Upper Moreland.
“We came out ready to play,” Benvenuto said. “Following a tough loss and an injury to Carly Wasson [on Wednesday to Upper Dublin, we] were ready for a win. It was a great win.”
The Golden Bears had 17 shots on goal. Springfield goalie Katie Fitz recorded eight saves.
Upper Moreland (1-4, 1-3 SOL) will play Cheltenham at home on Monday, and Springfield (2-2, 2-2 SOL) plays Plymouth Whitemarsh.
Upper Moreland 0 – 2 – 2
Springfield 0 – 0 – 0
WISSAHICKON 8, UPPER MERION 0
Wissahickon picked up another league win behind a strong game from Krysta Memis.
Memis scored three goals to lead the Trojans. Maddie Elwell scored first in the 15th minute. Memis added her first goal in the 17th minute, scoring off a pass from Alexis Smith. Smith got another assist finding Talia Abrahams in the 26th minute for a goal, and Memis scored her second goal of the game with an assist from Elwell before the end of the first half to make it 4-0 at intermission.
The Trojans kept up their offensive firepower in the second half. Memis completed her hat trick in the 49th minute, again with an assist from Elwell, and less than a minute later Abrahams added her second goal on the afternoon. Gabby Unipan scored from Regan Ryan in the 53rd minute, and shortly thereafter, Caty Santucci scored with an assist from Maddie Elwell to make it 8-0.
Nicole Hastings made eight saves in net. Coach Shannon Franke gave credit to her defense for preserving the shutout.
“Jasmine Bishop was playing exceptionally well at left back, pitching in when needed to support midfield and overlapping the winger to push forward,” she said. “Emily Vervlied at right back had a brilliant save in the first half, banging it out from the line supporting Nicole Hastings at keep.”
Next up for Upper Merion (1-5, 1-3 SOL) is a battle with conference-leading Upper Dublin on Monday. Meanwhile, Wissahickon will play Norristown.
Upper Merion 0 – 0 – 0
Wissahickon 4 – 4 – 8
CHELTENHAM 7, NORRISTOWN 0
Corinne Packel connected for the hat trick as Cheltenham defeated Norristown on Friday afternoon on the road.
In addition to Packel’s hat trick, the Panthers received goals from Christina Morton, Brigid Rose, Amber Turner and Carly Waldman
Norristown (0-4, 0-4 SOL) will play next on Monday against Wissahickon and Cheltenham will take on Upper Moreland.
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