Check out the recaps for SOL boys’ soccer teams in action Thursday. Pennsbury/Souderton photos provided courtesy of Darry Rule of J&D Photography. Check back for a gallery of photos. (CB West photos provided by CB West soccer)
SOL Patriot/Colonial Crossover
Central Bucks West 6, Bensalem 0
The wait is over.
The Bucks notched a much-needed win, which also happened to be a historic one as coach Stefan Syzgiel notched career win No. 100.
“The whole program knew about it,” Syzgiel said. “I really appreciate the support. It’s a little painful too because at the end of the 2019 season – after that state championship game against North Penn – I was at 96 wins. Then you have a COVID year last year, which was a tough year for everybody.
“We’ve gotten off to a slow start this year. It was one of things where we’re like, ‘Can we just get this done with? Let’s move on from this.’”
Thursday’s win brought a welcome halt to a six-game winless streak for the Bucks that included a scoreless tie with Neshaminy. They scored just two goals in those six games but erupted for six on Thursday.
Ben Sterling scored with a Christian Evans assist in the first five minutes of the game, and then it was Zach Martine connecting with a Ryan Horst assist. Sterling’s second goal with an assist from Kevin Leiva-Benitez put the Bucks on top 3-0 just over the midway point of the first half. A Carter Philo goal sent West into halftime with a 4-0 lead.
“Sometimes you just know – you can see it in the way they’re warming up, see it the way they start the game,” Szygiel said. “We got off to a hot start. We scored in the first five minutes, and they felt like they finally had some momentum. We’ve been telling them for so many games now – ‘You’ve got to hang in there, we’re just not finding the back of the net. When it comes, it might come in bunches,’ and tonight it came in a bunch.
“It’s tough because we’ve been on the side where we got scored on early and just couldn’t recover. Bensalem just never got into the game, and we just kept going, which is what we’ve been waiting for them to do all season. There are some nice players (on Bensalem). We just came out with a little more energy.”
A pair of Dan O’Toole goals in the second half – the second with a Brandon Terry assist – gave the Bucks their final margin of victory.
“We were feeling it tonight, and this is the first time all season we’ve been fully feeling it,” Szygiel said. “I just hope they have an understanding of what that means because this is a young group. We’re trying to get them to understand – every game doesn’t go this way. It just went that way tonight. Don’t get cocky. You’ve got to keep going, you’ve got to keep learning.”
The Bucks’ coach lauded the efforts of several players in the win.
“Outside of Ryan Horst, Zach Martine has been our most consistent player this season,” Szygiel said. “We named him a captain yesterday, and he scored tonight, so that was nice.
“Ben Sterling has worked his way into a starting role for us. He scored twice tonight, and he does a lot of things that we want and need from our forwards. He’s a guy that gets it. We said, ‘You’re going to do some good things, just keep grinding.’ It was good to see him get a little payoff tonight.
“Ryan Horst just continues to be a true leader for us. He’s playing a little bit out of position at times, but he’s doing a job that we need for the team that we are this year. It reminds me a little of Bailey Moyer in 2019. We probably wanted to play him a little higher up the field, but it was better for our setup to play him further back. He’s not going to have the stats. He’s fallen on the sword a little bit, but it’s what’s best for the group, and he knows that. He had another good night for us.”
Goalkeeper Griffin Blokker picked up his third shutout of the season, finishing with five saves.
After the win, Szygiel was presented with a banner for his monumental win.
“It was really awesome, and I thanked the parent committee for that,” he said. “I guess that banner was apparently purchased over a year-and-a-half ago. Since that banner was purchased, we went on the worst run that I’ve had here as a coach, but I can laugh about it.
“I’m glad to get it. It means a lot to me obviously, having gone to West and graduating in 2003. I’ve been here since 2013, and if you include last year and this year, it’s basically the equivalent of eight full seasons, so I’m proud of that. We’ve obviously had a lot of great guys come through. I’ve had great coaches. It means a lot to get a hundred at this school.
“All that being said, what I care about more is that this group this year got their second win of the season. I care more about how do we get this group rolling?”
Interestingly, the historic win came against Bensalem where Szygiel had spent the first 12 years of his life. He believes Thursday’s win could mark a turnaround for his squad.
“I think we’re starting to turn a corner,” the Bucks’ coach said. “We’ve been in every game except for one lopsided Pennridge game. They jumped on us early and they played great. We’ve been in every other game, and that’s a positive. It was nice to see a payoff tonight.
“The boys needed it, the coaches needed it, the parents needed it. Everybody needed tonight, and I’m hoping we can carry this into something. I’m less concerned about districts and more concerned about our young group and getting them to keep growing up together. If the results come, great. Tonight was a good result, and that’s important. These guys needed that, they really, really did.”
CB West (2-6-1, 2-5-1) has a nonleague game at Conestoga on Saturday before returning for another crossover game Monday at Council Rock North. Bensalem (2-7-1, 2-6) hosts North Penn on Monday.
CB West 4 2 – 6
Bensalem 0 0 – 0
Council Rock North 2, Central Bucks East 1
Two first-half goals set the tone in this one, as CR North went on the road and came away with an important crossover division win.
“Nick Wise scored what would be the game winner right before halftime,” said CR North coach Joe Stackhouse. “Simon Rupp opened the scoring about seven minutes in with a brilliant across-the-grain run from the left flank to the center of the field and buried a top of the box low-liner.”
Trevor Jopling made it close with CB East’s lone goal with six minutes remaining in the game, but the Indians never gave up the lead.
“(We) pressured most of the game but East keeper Casey Prazer was very good in goal and kept the match tight,” Stackhouse said. “Our central midfield tandem of Nick Cirincione and Ari Pollack were the engine all day.
“Defensively, Ryan Muroff, Connor Cel, Jeremy Kamp and Chase McCaffrey held East to very few chances.”
With the win, CR North is now 4-4-1 overall and 4-3-1 in SOL play. It takes on CB West at home Monday, while CB East (5-3-2, 4-2-2) hosts Truman.
CR North 2 0 – 2
CB East 0 1 -1
North Penn 3, Council Rock South 2
North Penn bounced back from a slow start, tied it before halftime and then took over in the second half for its fourth straight win.
“We started some new players today and got off to a sloppy start, went down a goal and slowly got into the game,” said Knights coach Chris DePeppe. “Jovani Gonzalez earned a PK and Alex Stewart buried it. We took over in the second half.”
Josh Nikolevski scored CR South’s first goal in the 10th minute off a Mike Burns assist only to watch Stewart tie it with his PK, and the two teams went into halftime deadlocked 1-1.
Jimmy Perrin gave North Penn the lead off an assist from Hayden Wagner, but the Golden Hawks came right back to tie it midway through the second half with a Gavin Hagan goal, assisted by Stepan Kovalev. Five minutes later, Gonzalez scored the game winner.
“Jovani won a corner and scored the winner with a perfect header off of a curling corner kick from Nate Kim,” DePeppe said. “Alex (Stewart) and Jovani (Gonzalez) and Hayden (Wagner) played very well. We were happy to get away with three points.”
CR South had chances itself to come home with the win.
“I’m disappointed with the result,” said Hawks coach Alan Nicholl. “North Penn is a terrific team and play some wonderful football, but I feel we did enough to earn something from the game. We left some goals on the field, and that’s a tough pill to swallow given how talented North Penn is.
“Mike Burns and Josh Nikolevski were outstanding in keeping North Penn’s attack in check.”
North Penn (6-2, 5-2 SOL) hosts La Salle in a nonleague game on Saturday. CR South (6-4, 4-4 SOL) hosts Pennridge on Monday.
North Penn 1 2 – 3
CR South 1 1 -2
Pennridge 1, Neshaminy 1
Two of the top teams in the Suburban One League squared off in this one, and two halves and two overtime periods wasn’t enough to produce a winner, as they settled for a 1-1 tie.
“It was a really good game,” said Neshaminy coach Tom Foley. “Hats off to (Pennridge). They played well, but it’s Groundhog Day with us. We probably carried a lot of the play today; we doubled them in shots. Their goalkeeper had to make double the saves our goalkeeper had to do. We just struggle to find the net.”
Scoreless at halftime, Neshaminy’s Jose Rivera picked up a goal off of a Jon Lopez assist.
“Jon Lopez got the ball on the right side,” Foley said. “It was bouncing and he lofted it over the top, Jose Rivera ran on to it. The goalkeeper came out, and he had a real nice touch and put it over his head into the corner. It was a very composed goal. We had a lot of chances in the second half. We just couldn’t cash in.”
Pennridge’s tying goal, with two minutes remaining in regulation, was scored by Troy Thanel.
“Jared Hess was able to cut up their defender on the left back and was able to slot a perfect ball across, and Troy Thanel was able to cut through the middle and head it in to tie the game up,” said Rams coach Pete Valimont.
“It seems every faux pas we make usually winds up in the back of our net,” Foley said. “We get scored on with a shade over two minutes to go. We stress to these guys, ‘Get the ball out, get the ball out.’ We were fooling around with the ball, Pennridge picked our pocket, and they went down the right flank, had a cross, it was a really, really nice goal. It was disappointing. We played very, very well. At some point, we have to get rewarded for our hard play.”
Foley credited the efforts of several players.
“Dan Albarran started for us today, and he did a really nice job,” the Redskins’ coach said. “He’s a hard-nosed kid, and he won some balls for us. Jose Rivera played well up front, and AJ Rivera played a really strong game in the back again.
“We had to really pay attention to Aiden Castle. He’s a really clever player. Give credit to Pete (Valimont). He’s a really strong coach. He has his kids always in the right place, he runs a tight program, and you know it’s always going to be a war when you play Pennridge. He always gets the most out of his players. He does things the right way, so kudos to him and his group.”
Valimont lauded the effort of hi goalkeeper, CJ Dimmick.
“He was outstanding,” the Rams’ coach said. “He made a couple of pointblank saves. If they go in, obviously it’s a much different game. Overall, collectively as a team effort – every one of the guys did a fantastic job.”
Neshaminy defeated Pennridge in the District One championship game a year ago, so the two teams are hardly strangers.
“We did a good job,” Valimont said. “It’s probably the toughest game in these crossover games that we’ve had.
“They jumped on us, which any team at home on that field is a huge advantage for them. They took it to us for a little bit after they scored, and to give credit to my guys, they never stopped. We didn’t sub very much. I had guys battle through and play 100 minutes.”
Neshaminy (4-3-2, 3-3-2) hosts Abington on Friday. Pennridge (7-1-2, 5-1-2) plays at Council Rock South on Monday.
Pennridge 0 1 0 0 – 1
Neshaminy 0 1 0 0 – 1
Souderton 6, Pennsbury 0
Joe Sirchia scored two goals, as Souderton jumped up in the first half and put Pennsbury away with an impressive win for the Indians.
Ryan Schewe scored off a Brandon Fornwall assist in the 18th minute to make it 1-0, and then Souderton went up 2-0 as Ty Quintois scored off assists from Dillon Barbieri and Thomas Smith. Sirchia made it 3-0 in the 36th minute.
Second half goals were from Fornwall, Sirchia and Parv Kumar.
Aidan McClure and Roman Sigafoos both played in goal for Souderton and combined for the shutout.
“Today was a solid team win,” said Souderton coach Matt Benner. “The whole team stepped up and played with good energy and physicality. We got goals and assists from many different positions.
“I hope we can use today’s result to continue gaining confidence as we near the halfway point of the season.”
Souderton (5-1-2, 4-1-2 SOL) will travel to Dock Mennonite Academy on Saturday for a non-league game (7 p.m.). Pennsbury (3-4-1) will travel to Northwestern Lehigh on Saturday.
Souderton 3 3 – 6
Pennsbury 0 0 – 0
SOL Liberty/Freedom Crossover
Hatboro-Horsham 2, Cheltenham 0
The Hatters dominated this one, scoring in both halves and keeping the Panthers off the board for the crossover win.
“People are going to look at it and say 2-0, but it was a good game, and we move on,” said Hatters’ coach Kyle McGrath. “It’s always difficult to play at their field because it’s grass and not what we’re used to. Just another solid league win.”
Tommy Harmon gave H-H the lead it wouldn’t surrender in the 26th minute.
“We had been pressuring quite a bit and just unable to break through,” McGrath said. “Jack (Elwell) got a ball down in the corner and beat a guy, played a perfect cross into the box and Tommy made a run from the midfield and finished the header past their goalkeeper.”
That was the Hatters only goal until the 71st minute when they were able to make it 2-0.
“(Cheltenham) was very organized defensively,” McGrath said. “They made it very difficult for us to generate good opportunities. (Coach Bill Tonkin) had them very organized and very compact.
“Finally, in the 71st minute, after settling for a lot of shots, we had a nice combination play down the wing. Jake Freedman played a ball across that Jack (Elwell) was able to get on the end of and finish it to give us a little breathing room.”
McGrath once again got solid performances from some of his veterans.
“My center midfielders – Ryan Toporowski controlled play and Jake Freedman had an assist,” the Hatters’ coach said. “He’s another one of my guys in the center midfield who is just all over the place. My backs weren’t asked to do too much, and they did keep another shutout. Noah Schlosser had two saves. t would have been easy for him to lose focus, but he didn’t.”
H-H (7-2, 6-2 SOL) hosts Archbishop Wood in a non-league game on Saturday night. Cheltenham (1-7, 0-7 SOL) hosts Wissahickon on Monday.
H-H 1 1 – 2
Cheltenham 0 0 – 0
Abington 4, New Hope-Solebury 1
After a scoreless first half, the teams exploded with offense in the second half. Liam Hartman and Thiago Danielle had two goals each for Abington, which remained undefeated with the cross-over division win on Thursday.
“New Hope worked hard and never gave up,” said Galloping Ghosts coach Randy Garber.
Abington is 8-0-1 overall on the season and 7-0-1 in SOL play. It takes plays at Neshaminy in a non-divisional game on Friday.
New Hope (0-9, 0-7 SOL) plays at Hatboro-Horsham on Monday.
Abington 0 4 – 4
New Hope 0 1 – 1
Plymouth Whitemarsh 4, Springfield Twp 3
Jake Clatterback scored the game-winner as Plymouth Whitemarsh emerged in an exciting one that saw the two teams combine for seven goals.
“Jake Clatterbuck scored with just about four minutes to go,” said PW coach Rich Kessler. “It was a great back and forth game. Springfield played great and deserves a lot of credit for battling the whole time. Their goalkeeper played amazing, really made some top class saves and also was very dangerous with his distribution.”
Grant Williams opened the scoring from Springfield, only to see PW bounce back with two goals, by Connor McBride and Brendan Corpus. Peter Schmidt made it 2-2 with Springfield’s second goal and that was the score at halftime.
Then, in the second half, Corpus scored his second goal to give the Colonials the lead back, but the Trojans countered as Riley Martin scored.
That set the stage for PW’s game-winner
“Jake Clatterbuck scored on a breakaway – 1v1 again the goalie down the middle of the field to win it for us late,” Kessler said. “Springfield nearly answered yet again, hitting the crossbar late in the game. It was a fun game with lots of great play.”
PW (5-4, 5-3) hosts William Tennent on Monday. Springfield (5-2-1, 4-2-1) plays at Abington.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 2 2 – 4
Springfield Twp 2 1 – 3
William Tennent 2, Quakertown 0
Two first-half goals sent Tennent on its way to the win in this one, holding off a spirited second half from Quakertown.
“The first goal was scored by Christian Huslin, who retrieved the ball in the box to finish the chance after some hard work was put in by Jimmy Manning,” said Tennent coach Nick D’Andrea. “Then, Paul Nedeoglo picked up a ball outside the box and hit a great shot to make it 2-0 going into the half. The second half, Quakertown played really well and created chances.”
D’Andrea credited Quakertown’s Micah Reinford, Billy Reinoso and Andrew Sturgess for their play.
“They seem to settle into the game and were the key catalysts for Quakertown,” D’Andrea said. “It was a great game.”
With the win, Tennent is now 4-4-2 overall and 4-3-1 in the SOL. It plays at Plymouth Whitemarsh on Monday. Quakertown (1-7, 1-6 SOL) plays at Upper Moreland.
Tennent 2 0 – 2
Quakertown 0 0 – 0
Upper Dublin 1, Upper Moreland 0
Freshman Reilly McLaughlin turned a corner kick from senior Zach Berman into a goal midway through the first half, and that goal stood the rest of the way as the Flying Cardinals earned the bounce-back win after a disappointing 1-0 loss to William Tennent two days earlier.
“Just our spirit and not being held down by our upset on Tuesday,” UD coach Noah Johnson said. “Friday is going to be our fourth game this week, and just being able to bounce back as positive as we possibly can and keep our heads up and fight through this tough challenge of playing so many games back to back because of everything that happened.”
The UD coach credited the play of his defense.
“The back line – Elias Abebe, Zach Berman, Tanner Wilmore and Thomas Deng – played well,” Johnson said. “(Goalkeeper) Gabe Copley did an awesome job once again.”
Upper Dublin (4-5, 4-4 SOL) is back in action Friday with a game a non-league game at Central Bucks South. Upper Moreland (4-3-3, 2-3-3) will host Quakertown on Monday.
Upper Moreland 0-0 0
Upper Dublin 1-0 1
Thursday, Sept. 30
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 4, HARRY S TRUMAN 0
AJ Peev scored a pair of goals, propelling the visiting Titans to a 2-0 halftime lead on their way to the shutout win.
Aidan Davis assisted on Peev’s first goal – the game-winner, and Jaimin Davis had an assist on the second.
Contributing second-half goals were Logan Campbell assisted by Aidan Davis on a corner kick and Ethan Cunningham with a Jeremy Chen assist.
“The Tigers played the Titans even for the first half, led by the consistent defense of Umut Akin and Kevin Sides,” Truman coach George Matwijec said. “The midfield play was held steady by Ayoub Fast and Emre Aydin.
Central Bucks South (6-2-1, 5-2-1 SOL) will host Upper Dublin on Friday, and Harry S Truman (0-9, 0-8) will travel to Central Bucks East on Monday.
Central Bucks South 2-2 4
Harry S Truman 0-0 0
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