Check out the recaps for SOL boys’ soccer teams in action. CR North/CR South photos provided courtesy of John Gleeson. Check back for a gallery of photos.
SOL Patriot Division
Pennsbury 2, Neshaminy 1 (2 OT)
Almin Hedzovic picked up the game winner with two minutes remaining in the second overtime as Pennsbury earned bragging rights against rival Neshaminy with the hard-earned victory.
“We got a restart from almost the same spot we scored from (earlier in the second half),” said Pennsbury coach Tom Stoddart. “This time, Almin Hedzovic caught the keeper out looking for the cross and was able to tuck it in. He just caught him off his line and just went for a shot 40 yards out and buried it for the game winner.”
This one could have gone either way as the teams were scoreless at halftime.
“Neshaminy definitely had the better of the opportunities as they would throughout the game,” Stoddart said. “I thought my boys just stood up strong. My goalkeeper, Justin Brown, was as good as anybody I’ve ever seen play for Pennsbury, guys or girls. He just had a great night.
“That being said, I thought we did well against (Neshaminy’s) athleticism. I thought the young guys held up.”
Neshaminy’s Joe Joe Maxwell scored off a Jose Rivera assist early in the second half.
“It was a really nice combination passing between the two of them,” said Neshaminy coach Tom Foley.
“They caught us right off the tap and scored,” Stoddart added. “It was 40 seconds into the second half, so it put us on our heels for a minute, but I thought the boys responded well and got themselves back into the game.”
Pennsbury would score the tying goal in the 52nd minute.
“We got a restart and my right back, Almin Hedzovic, just lofted a beautiful ball into striker Allen Ibric, and he knocked a header in and got us back into it,” Stoddart said.
The rest of regulation and first overtime remained intense.
“For every opportunity we had – and we had some – Neshaminy probably had two,” Stoddart said. “It was just a super entertaining game going both ways. We were throwing everything we could at them. Justin was fantastic, and offensively, we were getting some pace.”
Stoddart also credited sophomore center backs Cooper Gray and Andrew Prebola, as well as senior center midfielders Ben Bostian and Reese Jones.
“The older guys are just doing a great job of making everyone kind of play fearless in a tough spot against a super talented team,” the Falcons’ coach said.
On the other side, Neshaminy had a lot of chances, but couldn’t cash in.
“Twice, (Pennsbury) cashed in on a corner kick and they quick-kicked us on the free kick in overtime to win,” Foley said. “We just got caught napping there.
“We outshot them, 25-5. The ball was down in their end most of the game. It was just one of those things where we’re struggling to find the back of the net. I can’t say anything bad about how my kids played. They all played exceptionally well tonight.
“Again, Evan O’Neil played really well in the back. He won balls and got balls wide for us. Jose Rivera and Joe Joe Maxwell did a great job attacking up front. Vince DeMaria and Matt Lamb played really well. Ethan Roney and Kaleb Raymond did well attacking up top when they played for 20 minutes tonight.
“I really don’t have a bad thing to say about how we played. We’re just struggling to score and every mistake we make seems to wind up in the back of the net. They deserved a little bit better fate tonight. The soccer gods are certainly not smiling upon us right now.
“We’ve had 51 shots in the last two-plus games and only put two in. It’s getting a little frustrating. Some of the goalkeeping has been outstanding too. (Pennsbury’s Brown) was the best player on the field today. He played really, really well. He came off his line well. He robbed us five or six times. He won the game for them. That’s the bottom line.
“I told the kids, ‘Don’t hang your heads. We played really, really well.’ We deserved a better fate, but that’s soccer. If you play soccer long enough, you’re going to win a couple of those games and you’re going to lose a couple of those games. Tonight, we were on the short end. Overall, I thought we did a really nice job. Everyone who came in off the bench did a nice job. We just half to stop making those couple mistakes and we’ll be fine.
With the win, Pennsbury improved to 2-0, while Neshaminy is now 1-2 (0-2 SOL). The Falcons play at Council Rock South on Friday, while Neshaminy plays at Truman on Saturday.
Pennsbury 0 1 0 1 – 2
Neshaminy 0 1 0 0 – 1
Bensalem 6, Harry S Truman 0
Gael Menchaca and Nate Rosas scored first half goals and then Bensalem continued to dominate and put Truman away with four in the second half for the SOL Patriot Division win.
“We started off last week in a bit of a funk as a team and I had to suspend five players for the first half of the game today for violating team rules,” said Owls’ coach Rob Brown. “We had a team meeting yesterday and I felt we had a great training session and we worked hard.
“We got off to a good start pressuring Truman’s back line and getting ourselves some good opportunities that we just couldn’t finish. We finally broke through on a great cross and second chance shot by Gael Menchaca. He shot the ball and the keeper made a save but he got the rebound and finished. He had a chance at a second but our own guys got in the way on a far post effort and Truman was able to clear.
“We had a free kick about 40 yards out and Nate Rosas stepped up and hit a laser over the keeper’s head and into the net. We had some other chances but didn’t finish any more in the half. We came into halftime and I was not happy with only finishing two when we had so many chances. We could have scored four or five, but we didn’t. Yes, I was happy to be up, but I thought we were sloppy.”
In the second half, Josh Murray converted a PK to make it 3-0. Collin Meo, Omar Padilla and Andrew Leibig added goals to finish off the win.
“We moved Josh Murray off of the back line to play center mid and he wound up making some really good runs,” Brown said. “He’s a very good player and he drew a foul in the box for a PK. I wouldn’t give him the chance usually because he always puts them over in practice, but my guy said he earned it, let him have it. He was able to convert and made it look easy.
“Our fourth goal was by our birthday boy Collin Meo as he hit an impressive shot from about 30 yards out. It just knocked off the inside of the near post and went in. The next goal came from Omar Padilla, who was all up and down the far touch line and he got in and hurried a shot low. We finished up the scoring with Andrew Leibig, who has been playing well as part of our strong sophomore/freshman class. He was able to get in behind the defense and put one away.”
Brown also credited Rohan Patel on the defensive end.
The win was the first of the season for Bensalem (1-2-1, 1-1 SOL), which next hosts Council Rock North on Friday. Truman (0-3, 0-2) hosts Neshaminy on Saturday (10 a.m.).
“I hope Truman can keep battling and we wish them well,” Brown said. “We now move on to face CR North in another tough SOL matchup. Should be a good one. Joe Stackhouse always has his boys playing tough against us.
Bensalem 2 4 – 6
Truman 0 0 – 0
Council Rock North 2, Council Rock South 0
Nick Wise broke a scoreless tie and Tanmay Ondkar also scored in the second half, as CR North remained unbeaten in the SOL Patriot with the rivalry-game win on Tuesday.
“(We) came out of the halftime break with a higher level of intensity and won most of the ground tackles and head balls as well to press the issue, and the work rate paid off with junior Nick Wise connecting on a head ball assist by James McCullough on a restart,” said Indians coach Joe Stackhouse. “Ten minutes later, junior Tanmay Ondkar found a loose ball on the flank, made a great run at goal and beat South keeper (Kieran) Barry to the far side.”
The first half saw both goalkeepers step up big to keep the game scoreless.
“It was a two-half game as South came out strong and North was quite lucky to get to halftime at 0-0,” Stackhouse said. “A great deal of pressure was put on North goalkeeper Jeremy Berman, who withstood the challenges to keep a clean sheet. South’s Kieran Barry was equally spectacular, saving a penalty kick with under five minutes in the first period.”
In the second half, North’s Berman had a lot of help.
“The defensive unit of McCullough, Ryan Muroff, Dom Wagner, Connor Cell and Mike Pinho contributed to the shutout. Jeremy Kamp had a fantastic match cleaning up multiple loose balls in the back and always controlled the air.”
Stackhouse also praised the efforts of South’s Shane Cohen, Lex Lenoir, Frankie Rafferty and Dave Aquino.
“This one had the usual make-up of the neighborhood rivals,” Stackhouse said.
CR North (2-2, 2-0) plays at Bensalem on Friday, while CR South (2-1, 1-1 SOL) hosts Pennsbury.
CR North 0 2 – 2
CR South 0 0 – 0
SOL Liberty Division
Hatboro-Horsham 2, Plymouth Whitemarsh 0
Jack Elwell and Nick Katherine scored goals in the second half as Hatboro-Horsham broke open a scoreless game to post the SOL Liberty Division win.
“Nick scoring his first goal of the season is great,” said Hatters’ coach Kyle McGrath. “Our center midfielders again were really good and my center backs (had) their third shutout of the season in three games. Jacob Kim and Caleb Hudson were really good again, and Noah (Schlosser) in goal is commanding his box well, and that’s allowing us to play a little more freely offensively. Just contributions from all over the field.”
The scoreless first half saw both teams with chances, including early for PW.
“They had a real good opportunity that they didn’t capitalize on, and my guys woke up a little bit and started to play better,” McGrath said. “Second half was much better for us. We settled down, started to knock the ball around, get into some dangerous spaces and we were able to finish two really nice goals.”
H-H broke the scoreless tie in the 45th minute.
“We got the ball wide after a nice bit of possession in the midfield,” McGrath said. “We played wide to our winger, Nick Katherine, who played the ball across on the ground, which we’ve been working on a bunch, and Jack Elwell was able to get on it at the end of it to beat the keeper into the top of the goal.”
Katherine scored his first goal in the 61st minute.
“My goalkeeper, Noah (Schlosser) had the ball, and he distributed it to a little past midfield, and Anthony Pumilia went up, won a head ball, flicked it on in between their center backs, and Nick ran onto it and finished a breakaway to make it 2-0.”
The win improves H-H to 3-0 on the season (2-0 SOL), heading into Friday’s game at Abington. PW (1-2, 1-1) hosts Upper Dublin on Friday.
Hatboro-Horsham 0 2 – 2
PW 0 0 – 0
Abington 4, Wissahickon 1
Pat Capone scored in the first half, and Abington tacked on three more goals in the second half to remain unbeaten with the win over Wissahickon Tuesday night.
Capone’s goal 10 minutes in held up through the first half, but the game remained close. Thiago Danielle made it 2-0 15 minutes into the second half, and Liam Hartman then made it 3-0.
After Wissahickon scored to make it 3-1, Hartman had his second goal of the game to put it away for the Galloping Ghosts.
“It was a lot closer than a 4-1 win,” said Abington coach Randy Garber. “Wissahickon gave us all we could handle. They did a nice job. They worked hard and they never gave up. The only difference between the two teams was we put the ball in the back of the net four times. Otherwise, it was an even game. It’s going to look like a 4-1 game and Abington had its own way, but honestly, that wasn’t the case.
“Kevin Krechman, our goalkeeper, did a nice job. Drew Paxson, in the back, was outstanding. Liam Hartman did a nice job scoring two goals, two very good finishing shots. Everyone worked hard.”
The Ghosts held a slim 10-8 edge in corner kicks and 12-10 advantage in shots, underscoring the fact that the game was tightly contested.
Abington (3-0, 2-0 SOL) hosts Hatboro-Horsham in a key SOL Liberty game on Friday, while Wissahickon (0-3-1, 0-2) looks for its first win at home against Quakertown.
Abington 1 3 – 4
Wissahickon 0 1 – 1
Upper Dublin 3, Quakertown 2
The Flying Cardinals (1-2, 1-1 SOL) won for the first time in this one.
Quakertown goals were scored by Sam Maugle and Ayden Walsh, but the Panthers came up just short and slipped to 0-3 (0-2 SOL) on the season.
“Kaiden McSeed had a great game, creating chances for his teammates and demanding a lot of attention from his Upper Dublin in the attack,” Panthers’ coach Bill James said. “Our group continues to learn from one another each game and is getting better. Hats off to Upper Dublin on some great finishes.”
Upper Dublin plays at Plymouth Whitemarsh on Friday, while Quakertown hosts Wissahickon.
Upper Dublin 3
Quakertown 2
SOL Freedom Division
Upper Moreland 1, Cheltenham 0
After a scoreless first half, Upper Moreland capitalized in the second half as Mike Scollon scored the game winner and the Golden Bears’ defense held tough down the stretch to score the shutout win.
“(It was) scoreless in the first half,” said UM coach Justin Allegra. “And in the first minute (of the second half), Alex Emmell plays a great ball across the box and Mike Scollon finishes it with a great header.
“Aaron Snyder had another shutout with one save. Superb play for our defenders – Logan Holman, Mike Soroka and Alex Emmell.”
UM (2-0-1, 1-0-1) hosts Interboro in a nonleague game on Wednesday. Cheltenham (0-2, 0-2) plays at Lower Moreland on Friday.
Upper Moreland 0 1 – 1
Cheltenham 0 0 – 0
Lower Moreland 2, New Hope-Solebury 1
Nathan Waychoff scored 25 minutes into the second half, as Lower Moreland capped of a 2-1 win over New Hope after falling behind in the first half.
“New Hope is a well-coached program,” said LM coach Bob Barnhart. “Dave (Bachart) always has them set up to compete against the best competition. We knew going in that they had just come off of three tough games and played an overtime game (Monday). The plan was to use that to our advantage, especially with the heat.”
New Hope jumped ahead 1-0 in the game, on a Ethan Sirken goal, but a LM goal late in the half tied it up.
“We had a lot of early chances, we just couldn’t find the net,” Barnhart said. “They scored first, late in the first half of a miscommunication and I knew that we were in for a fight from there.
“We were fortunate to get a late goal with five minutes to play before halftime to go in 1-1.”
Defensively, Lower Moreland held on in the second half to preserve the victory.
“Senior Brian Grant came up with some huge stops late in the second half and our back line held together to see out the 2-1 win for us,” Barnhart said. “It’s always important getting the first win of the season and to do it against a scrappy New Hope team will be something that we can use to build on moving forward for the rest of the season.”
New Hope coach Bachart credited the play of Sirken, Jake Hausner, Kyle Campbell, Kyle Northrup and Logan Moore.
“We played OK today,” Bachart said. “We were a bit tired from our game that we played (Monday) against Neshaminy.
“We have been showing marked improvement over the past several games but we have pledy four games in about five days, so we were tired today, but the team played well. We moved the ball well, we took advantage of mistakes that Lower Moreland made, but Lower Moreland has a great defensive back and they played very well today.”
Lower Moreland (1-0-1, 1-0-1 SOL) hosts Cheltenham on Friday, while New Hope (0-4, 0-2) goes for its first win at William Tennent on Friday.
New Hope 1 0 – 1
Lower Moreland 1 1 – 2
Springfield Twp 2, William Tennent 1
Peter Schmidt scored the game winner in the second half, as Springfield knocked off defending champ Tennent in an SOL Freedom game on Tuesday.
Riley Martin scored the Spartans’ first goal off an Evan Bunting assist, while Tennent had a goal from Paul Nedeoglo and the teams were tied at the half.
Schmidt’s goal, off a George Navo assist, was the difference in the game.
Goalkeeper Julian Casabon had six saves for the Spartants.
The win improved Springfield to 2-0 on the season heading into Friday’s home game against Upper Moreland. Tennent (1-2-1, 1-1) hosts New Hope-Solebury on Friday.
Springfield 1 1 – 2
Tennent 1 0 – 1
SOL Colonial Division
Central Bucks East 1, Souderton 1 (OT)
Nick Raysky scored a second-half goal for CB East, but a late foul in the box led to a penalty kick, which Souderton’s Nolan Hughes converted as these two SOL Colonial rivals settled for the 1-1 tie Tuesday night.
“The boys played outstanding against a well-coached and organized Souderton team,” said CB East coach Josh Isaacsohn. “The first half seemed to be a bit more in our favor, as we moved the ball around well and had quite a few chances on goal.
“In the middle of the second half, Nick Raysky scored after staying tough through a scrum inside the box.”
The late penalty gave Souderton the chance it needed to pull out the tie.
“With just over a minute left, a PK was called, a red card was given, and Souderton converted,” Isaacsohn said. “The team pulled together and saw the game through to an exciting and well-fought tie.”
Isaacsohn also credited the play off Cole Biruk, and Dylan Walker and Trevor Jopling on the defensive end.
Keeper Aidan McClure had seven saves for the Indians.
“Center back Tyler Bovell gave us a physical presence,” said Souderton coach Matt Benner. “Forward Ben Lare had good energy and created a lot of chances.”
CB East (1-1-2, 0-0-2 SOL) plays at rival CB South on Friday, while Souderton (2-0-2, 0-0-2 SOL) plays at North Penn.
CB East 0 1 0 0 – 1
Souderton 0 1 0 0 – 1
Central Bucks South 1, Central Bucks West 0
Aidan Davis scored in the first half, and that goal held up for the Titans, who earned the hard-fought win over host CB West on Tuesday.
“Really good win,” said CB South coach Joe Coscia. “West made us work really hard for it.
“Aidan Davis scored our goal in the first half, assisted by Sean Reiber, who flicked on a redhead to get Aidan behind their ‘D’.”
Coscia also credited the play of his backline.
“Especially Logan Campbell, Jamin Fee, Thijs Pompa and AJ Peev,” he said. “All had narrow misses that could’ve sealed the game sooner than the nail-biter it turned out to be.”
CB West goalkeeper Griffin Blokker finished with five saves.
“Overall, the young Bucks played well against a more experienced CB South team, but couldn’t find the back of the net,” said West coach Stefan Syzgiel. “South outmuscled us a bit, but we hung in there.”
CB South (2-0-1, 1-0-1 SOL) hosts CB East on Friday, while CB West (1-2, 1-1) plays at Pennridge.
“We have a quick recovery before a string of four tough matches in seven days,” Coscia said.
CB South 1 0 – 1
CB West 0 0 – 0
North Penn 2, Pennridge 1
Jovani Gonzalez stole the spotlight in the Knights’ hard-fought win with a pair of goals, including the game-winner in the second half as North Penn edged Pennridge on the road Tuesday night.
Both of Gonzalez’s goals came on free kicks.
“His hold-up play and class on the ball would have earned him high marks, but the two free kicks were beauties,” said North Penn coach Chris DePeppe.
After the hard-fought win, DePeppe had a lot of praise to go around.
“Nate Kim played an outstanding match,” he said. “Alex Stewart and Jack Gorham in the center mid worked very hard and moved the ball well, and Brian Scott and Ryan Mindick together at center back were in the right spots and played intelligently. And Hunter Stiles had a great two-way game and really impacted play all over the field.”
Pennridge scored on a penalty kick in the 65th minute.
“That’s a very strong, balanced Pennridge team, so we’re happy to get three points on the roach because that probably won’t happen often to them this season,” DePeppe said. “Our conference is stronger than ever this year, and we expect every conference game to be a dogfight. And, we have four games in eight days starting Friday so this stretch will be a real crucible for us.”
North Penn (2-1, 1-1 SOL) hosts Souderton on Friday, while Pennridge (1-1-1, 0-1-1 SOL) hosts CB West.
North Penn 1 1 – 2
Pennridge 0 1 – 1
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