Springfield Twp captured the District One 2A title. Abington was a winner in 4A action. Springfield Township photo provided by Springfield Twp soccer. Lower Moreland/GMA photo provided courtesy of Cindy Hanson. Check back for a gallery of photos.
DISTRICT ONE CLASS 2A
No. 2 Springfield Twp 6, No. 1 MaST Charter 0
All season, the Spartans clashed with teams from bigger schools but never once did they back down.
It didn’t lead to a lot of wins, but coach Dan Malora knew once his group got on a level playing field against similar-sized programs, they would show what they could really do. The Class 2A tournament looks a little different this year, especially with five-time defending champ St. Basil Academy no longer in existence, so Springfield Twp happily filled the void.
Springfield Twp burst out of the gates and never looked back as it hoisted the District 1 trophy on Wednesday.
“I’m very proud of these girls. They’ve worked so hard this year. Our record did not reflect the talent and grit that these players possess,” Malora said. “The Lady Spartans just never quit. Playing with a lead, a tie or four goals down, these girls play their hearts out for each other. The bond they have is everywhere – on the field, the bus and in their classes. Our little school has big heart.”
While they had to travel to the Tacony section of Philadelphia, it didn’t dampen the Spartans’ enthusiam to play for a championship.
“The girls were really excited for the opportunity to play in this title game and they worked hard to be ready for the match,” Malora said. “We wanted to bring a lot of pressure to start this game and we worked some good opportunities early.”
Kalei Noonan ripped a 25-yard free kick in just four minutes into the match, giving her a third goal off a free kick this season.
MaST keeper Jacqueline Gardner denied Noonan a second free kick goal soon after, but the Spartans still got something out of it when Alana Decker crashed and booted home the rebound.
By the 24th minute, the Spartans had three goals and Noonan had played some kind of role in all of them.
“The wind was a factor during the game today, and the first half found us with the breeze to our backs,” Malora said. “Kalei sent in a corner kick that rang the far post and found itself directly in front of our fullbacks, Maddie McDevitt, who put it away.”
Kaleigh Evans has been a standout performer in the attack for Springfield Twp all fall and she finished off a strong first half with a great individual goal.
“She moved the ball adroitly across the top of the 18 and put away one of her eight shots in the game,” Malora said.
With a 4-0 lead at halftime, the Spartans didn’t have to change much at the break, but they weren’t going to let up either. It’s simply not in their nature.
“The girls played at a well-controlled pace with some great ball movement. MaST made some great halftime adjustments and put together a whole bunch of attacks,” Malora said. “Our back four – Shannon Meder, Paige Robinson, Sophie Williamson and Maddie McDevitt – played a fantastic 80 minutes. They held strong and even got involved in offense.”
Emily West also had a sterling game on the defensive end to pick up the clean sheet in goal.
“Emily West kept the whole 18 clear as she earned today’s clean sheet. When the Panthers sent attacks over the top, Emily was always the first to arrive,” Malora said. “Her clears generated great counter attacks.”
Evans and Decker added tallies in the second half to bring up the final margin of victory.
“Alana Decker got her second goal off a steal in the 54th minute. She popped the ball away, dribbled into space and let loose a 25 yarder that was just out of reach for the goalie,” Malora said. “Kaleigh Evans tallied her second goal off a great pass from senior forward Vivian Lamb. When Kaleigh and Alana get space, they can really make shots count.”
The Spartans played a total of 10 matches against teams from Class 4A this season in SOL play, and while they were tough games, they served to benefit the team for its postseason appearance.
“It’s a tough season to grind through. We don’t always have the depth to outlast some of our bigger neighbors,” Malora said. “Our girls have always known that if they just get the chance to play in this game, they can prove their talents in our classification.”
Springfield Twp (4-15, 3-13 SOL) will play next in the first round of the PIAA 2A tournament on Nov. 9 against the District 12 champion.
SPRINGFIELD TWP 4 2 – 6
MaST CHARTER 0 0 – 0
Goals: ST – Kalei Noonan, Alana Decker 2, Maddie McDevitt, Kaleigh Evans 2
CLASS 3A
#7 WEST CHESTER EAST 1, #10 UPPER MORELAND 0
The Golden Bears gave the Vikings all they could handle in Wednesday’s opening round district game but couldn’t find the net. The loss brought an end to an era for a special senior class.
“Coming into districts with 10 seniors who have been here for three of their four years, we knew what this game would bring – heart, desire, and grit,” UM coach Lisa Benvenuto said. “Our girls were ready for tonight. We knew our game plan, and we executed it. Every player who stepped onto the field tonight emptied their tank. As a coach, you cannot ask more of your players.
“We dominated—we won the 50/50’s, we generated our offense and we got off really dangerous shots.”
West Chester East got a corner in the 42nd minute and capitalized.
“There was a bunch of commotion in front of the goal and Jordan Colton was able to find the net,” Benvenuto said. “We have been in this position before, and we were able to regroup and continue to push our attack and an onslaught of offense.
“Kyra Favors hit the crossbar, Emma Frasca missed the upper 90 by an inch, Willow Taylor hit a rocket that was half an inch off the crossbar, and the goalie completely stretched out to hit Brooke Lobban’s shot up and over. We didn’t stop. Up to the last second, the last whistle.”
Upper Moreland closed out its season with a 10-7-2 record overall. The Golden Bears finished second behind Lower Moreland in the Freedom Division standings with an 8-6-2 record.
“We are so proud of our girls and their accomplishments this season,” Benvenuto said. “Congratulations to Natalie Walton, Molly Meakim, Annalise Messina, Skye Kramer, Kylie Gaul, Sophia Hopf, Olivia Hendrickson, Riley Mullen, Gracie Cartin, Angelena Martino, Reva Naik, Brooke Lobban, Erin Hamill, Mallory Roedig, Katie Slear, Abby Engart, Willow Taylor, Emma Frasca, Kyra Favors and Mikel Lancit.”
UPPER MORELAND 0 0 – 0
WEST CHESTER EAST 0 1 – 1
#8 GWYNEDD MERCY ACADEMY 2, #9 LOWER MORELAND 0
A successful season came to an end for the Freedom Division champion Lions when they fell to the Monarchs in the opening round of the District One 3A Tournament.
When it was over, coach Mike Gould had nothing but praise for his young squad, which does not have a senior on its roster.
“It was a great season and I’m super proud of the girls for the effort they put in this year,” the Lions’ coach said. “I’m really excited for the future ahead with this team going forward with their youth especially.
“There’s a lot of great girls on the team and a lot of things they should be really proud of this season, (especially) considering that the other times Lower Moreland has won the league it’s been on the back of upperclassmen that went on to play at the next level.
“Our junior class of Payton Lennon, Demmi Fox, Sofia O’Brien and Madison Sahl really stepped up big time this year and played like seniors. Really proud of them.”
The Lions closed out the season with an 11-8 record overall, finishing with a 10-6 record in league play.
CLASS 4A
No. 13 Abington 6, No. 20 Ridley 2
The Abington team that came out for the second half of Wednesday’s playoff opener was a far different one that the team that left the field after the first 40 minutes.
It most certainly showed on the scoreboard. After an uneven, sometimes sloppy and a little tentative first half, the Ghosts came out flying in the second and blitzed the visiting Raiders with four straight goals to break open a 2-2 tie at the break.
“We made a key adjustment and it definitely helped,” Abington coach Rick Tompkins said. “It was kind of silly stuff in the first half. We played nervous would be the best way to say it.”
Ridley, especially forward Adria Kitzinger, gave Abington plenty of trouble in the first half, so Tompkins was quite adamant that she be neutralized as a threat in the second half.
“She was excellent and we knew going in she was dangerous, but she ended up being more dangerous than we thought, and she got loose,” Tompkins said of the Ridley striker. “We put Mei Mei Cheng on her and that was that. Mei Mei marked her and we just played with one less in the midfield.”
The Abington coaches figured Cheng, a senior midfielder with a motor that never seems to redline, was the best fit due to her speed and willingness to work hard and that it wouldn’t stress their formation much.
“This girl had a lot of speed, so the first option is to put one of the backs on her but that disrupts the defense,” Tompkins said. “Maura (Day) and Carley (Slavin) looked at me like ‘two midfielders? Are you crazy?’ so we had Harper (McGinley) drop back and help them and just went with two up top.
“I said ‘I’m not letting this girl beat us.’ That calmed everything down and by the end, it didn’t matter how many we had up top.”
At halftime, Tompkins felt his side was the better team but wasn’t playing like it. Lily Gray staked the Ghosts to a quick 1-0 lead, but a defensive miscue led to the equalizer before Cheng and Kitzinger traded tallies.
The entire Abington roster got the message to pick things up in the second half, but no one took it more to heart than forward Piper McGinley. The sophomore was unstoppable after halftime, scoring three goals and assisting on the fourth as she took over the game and led her team to Thursday’s second round.
“You play a ball into her feet and she’s going to be able to hold it against any defender, it doesn’t matter who it is,” Tompkins said. “She’s a quintessential No. 9 and has really good skills that way where if you post her up, she holds the ball and I’ve got plenty of midfielders that come in behind her where she can lay off the ball and get us in motion.”
McGinley helped give the Ghosts the lead when a quickly-played short corner allowed her to send in a cross that Slavin flew in to head home for the 3-2 lead.
The sophomore bagged three of her own after that, but she needed a little push in the right direction to get on track after a slow start.
“You can’t ask for any more than she gave us, but in the first half, she wasn’t there for us,” Tompkins said. “One of our assistant coaches took her aside and told her ‘You’re a really good player but you’re not showing it.’ To her credit, Piper stepped up.
“She works hard, she does a lot of dirty work that doesn’t get recognized but she’s also capable, as she showed today, of doing something special and putting on a show.”
She also capped the day in serious style with a fantastic goal off a direct free kick.
“It was a sick goal, around the wall and to the near post,” Tompkins said. “I can’t even imagine taking the shot, let alone placing it where she did. It banked off the post and in, it was ridiculous.”
With the game being postponed from Tuesday night due to the weather, Abington benefitted from its strong second half. Tompkins gave all 22 players minutes and was able to get his starters some rest with a quick turnaround to Thursday’s second round.
“We put the ball on the ground and moved it the way we’re capable of moving it when we’re going well, it was a team effort and everybody had a hand in it,” Tompkins said. “Nobody had a bad go in the second half. The expectation is the same for all of them.”
Abington (14-5, 12-4 SOL) will face No. 4 Downingtown East on Thursday with the losing team going home for the season.
ABINGTON 2 4 – 6
RIDLEY 2 0 – 2
Goals: A – Piper McGinley 3, Mei Mei Cheng, Carley Slavin, Lily Gray
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