Dan Beck highlights some of the standout stars from the American Conference this season, features Council Rock South, and tries to make sense of the ever-competitive Continental Conference
Photo by Kathy Leister
By Dan Beck
American Conference teams look to finish strong
As Upper Dublin looks to wrap up sole possession of the American Conference title (they’ve already won at least a share of the championship), the rest of the league is a bit more jumbled.
Behind the Flying Cardinals, a host of teams are jostling for second, third and fourth place in the conference as well as one of the limited spots in the District One playoffs. Last year’s American Conference champs, Plymouth Whitemarsh, along with Wissahickon, Springfield, and Upper Moreland are all keeping their postseason hopes alive, as we get through the final week of the regular season.
For the AAA squads—PW and Wissahickon—every game can be seen as a must-win at this point. On October 8, the Colonials shocked the Trojans, winning 1-0, but lost the next day to Harry S. Truman. The October 11 power rankings put Wissahickon at 28 (just in) and PW at 35 (just out).
Wissahickon got a major boost Monday when they defeated Upper Dublin in a rematch of a September 25 game, where the two teams played to a 3-3 tie. The Trojans kept their slim hopes of a league title alive with a win, and will also probably require a win on Wednesday against Cheltenham. The Colonials beat Cheltenham on Monday and travel to Norristown on Wednesday. A win in their conference finale may not be enough for a playoff berth, but we’ll let the rankings decide that.
In AA, Springfield (fifth in the power rankings) and Upper Moreland (seventh) look to be safely secured in the seven-team playoff. Though the Bears occupy the seventh and final spot, they have a wide advantage over the eighth ranked team, Nazareth Academy.
Leading the way for these teams have been some star players, helping to keep their respective teams in the thick of the playoff picture.
Forward Tori Hoffner has led Upper Dublin for much of the season, but Becca and Sizzy Lawton have provided sparks on the offensive end as well. A win Monday against Wissahickon or Wednesday against Springfield would clinch the American crown outright for the Flying Cardinals.
If there’s one thing Wissahickon can do well (and it’s certainly not the only thing), it’s score the ball. Maddie Elwell, Mady Foglia, and Krysta Memis have done a lot of that this season to propel the Trojans. With a trio of playmakers like that, Wissahickon isn’t likely a team many teams would want to face in the playoffs. Talia Abrahams has also come up clutch for the Trojans. She netted the game-winner 45 seconds into overtime to take down Upper Dublin.
Plymouth Whitemarsh has received a lift from Jewel Terraces. Terraces has been the difference maker for the Colonials in a number of games this season. After their upset victory against Wissahickon on October 8, coach Chris Young talked about how “teams key on her.”
Springfield—the smallest school in the SOL—has looked anything other than small this season, carrying an 8-6 record overall and 8-4 in conference play. Sweeper Lindsey Smith has played every minute of every game this season.
“She controls out team and leads by example,” Springfield coach Suzette Wolf. “We have many freshmen playing this year and Lindsey has been a role model to admire and emulate.”
Upper Moreland has also kept pace in the conference. Offensively, they are led by Brianna Byard, who has a team high six goal to go along with five assists. Samantha Cancel has stepped in to replace an injured Carly Wasson at center back, playing a pivotal role on the Bears’ offsides trap. In goal, Kim Benge has been critical, stopping 118 shots on the year, posting four shutouts. Maggie Finn has also impressed coach Lisa Benvenuto.
“Finn is the kind of player every coach wants,” Benvenuto said. “She works hard day in and day out. Her mental toughness, physical fitness and skill allow her to beat her opponents.
Council Rock South on the outside looking in
When Council Rock South first played Council Rock North this season, South came into the game at 3-2 while its neighbors to the north were 2-3. Both starts weren’t exactly what either team was looking for. North won that game 2-0 and since then, both teams went in drastically different directions.
The Indians (9-4-3, 8-3-2 SOL) sit just two points out of second place as they head into the final week of the regular season. They upset the then-undefeated, now league champion Pennsbury and tied in a hard fought match with Neshaminy.
The Golden Hawks (6-7-2, 4-7-2 SOL) have sputtered this season. It’s been unfamiliar ground for South, which has amassed a number of league titles since opening its doors in 2002, and the Hawks may be in danger of missing out on the postseason this year.
So what gives?
South is a relatively young squad and carries just two seniors—Emily Discavage and Emily Wilkinson. Injuries have also plagued the Golden Hawks. Discavage has missed significant time this season, as well as center back Casey Schlupp, who was dealing with a concussion.
“We hit a rough stretch in the beginning of the season,” assistant coach Nick Heim said. “We had quite a few injuries. When you lose that type of player (Discavage), you have these seniors who are injured on the sideline not able to step in and take over the game like they know how to.”
Discavage and Wilkinson, the lone seniors, have still been fantastic for South in a tough year, according to Heim.
“They’re consistently positive and I think that’s why the confidence is there,” he said. “When things aren’t going your way, that’s when you need that the most. We’re used to having big senior classes—six, seven kids—where you can kind of share the responsibility, but these two have not been shy about putting it on their backs.”
South is getting itself on the right track, though. Heim sees a more confident group on the field now. They avenged losses from earlier in the season to William Tennent and North, but unfortunately for the Golden Hawks, they were ties.
In the current ranking system that no longer takes into account other coaches’ opinions, it may be hard for the Hawks (ranked 38th as of the October 8 rankings) to find their way to the top 28. One vote they likely would have had is from Indians’ coach Wendell Beres.
“I think a lot of people look at them and see their record, but it doesn’t reflect their team,” Beres said of the South after last Thursday’s tie between the two sides. “In the old system where there was a seeding meeting, I think they’d have a shot at getting in because a lot of teams that have played them will tell you they’re substantially better than their record indicates.”
Beres continued: “You don’t want to play them right now. They’re as good as any team we’ve played. They are one of the top 28 teams in our district certainly.”
The opportunity for a playoff bid is still there for South. On Monday, they battled in a narrow loss to league champion Pennsbury. On Wednesday, the Hawks will close out the regular season at Neshaminy. A win in that game and the District One AAA playoffs may have one more very dangerous team in the bracket.
A glance at the dangerous Continental
Ask any coach from the Continental about their team’s schedule and you will certainly be greeted by comments about just how difficult it really is to play against the litany of tough opponents. But what that’s usually followed up by is another comment about how the schedule prepares their teams so well for the playoffs.
Six teams from the Continental have a shot at the District One AAA playoffs, and each of these teams can surely make a legitimate case for one of the coveted 28 spots.
Central Bucks East, arguably the best team in the state, let alone the district, has cruised through its Continental and nonleague schedule staying undefeated. Last week, the Patriots clinched the Continental title. But after East, it’s a little more complicated.
We have Pennridge and Central Bucks South, both at 7-4-2 in league play. Souderton (6-6-1 SOL) sits four points back. Central Bucks West is certainly still in the conversation at 5-6-2, and we can’t forget about North Penn (5-6-2 SOL), which just upset Pennridge and Souderton in its last two games.
There’s a tangled web of who-beat-who, so there’s little use in trying to determine who’s better. Instead, just know that no one wants to play any of these six teams in the district playoffs.
The power rankings, however, have certainly taken notice of just the amount of power that the Continental packs. Four teams—CB East (#1), Pennridge (#10), CB South (#14) and Souderton (#20)—are all ranked inside the top 20.
Some big matchups await the Continental teams in the final week of the season.
Souderton will play CB East and CB West will go to CB South on Wednesday. A few teams will close out their regular seasons later in the week with nonleague contests. The unpredictability of the rankings system has told us that no team is ever a sure “in.” Up to the last week, every game remains big.
Extra kicks
Neshaminy, currently second in the National Conference, has received a major lift this season from senior Gabby Farrell. The Liberty recruit scored her 67th and 68th career goals in her team’s 7-0 win over Harry S. Truman on Monday. She sits at number two on Neshaminy’s all-time list behind only 2014 graduate Megan Schaefer, who had 102 goals.
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