Check out the recaps for SOL field hockey teams in action Thursday. UD/Quakertown photos provided courtesy of Geanine Jamison. CB East/CB West photos courtesy of Tracy Valko, and Bensalem/Council Rock South provided by John Gleeson. Check back for galleries of all three games. All SOS photo galleries for FIELD HOCKEY can be viewed by clicking HERE.
SOL Patriot
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 6, HARRY S TRUMAN 0
Maddy Mela scored three goals and assisted on two others to lead the visiting Indians to the decisive win.
Mela put the Indians on the scoreboard with an unassisted goal that turned out to be the game-winner. A goal by Charlotte Ondria with a Mela assist spotted the Indians a 2-0 lead after one quarter. In the second quarter, Leah Abbe scored with an assist from Mela, and then Mela connected on back-to-back unassisted goals to send the Indians into halftime with a 5-0 lead.
Jordyn Zazoff’s unassisted goal in the third quarter gave the Indians their final margin of victory.
Council Rock North (5-9, 4-8 SOL) will host Bensalem on Monday, and Harry S Truman (0-13, 0-12) will travel to Pennsbury on Monday.
Council Rock North 2-3-1-0 6
Harry S Truman 0-0-0-0 0
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 6, BENSALEM 0
Kylee Hager played the role of facilitator on Thursday, assisting on four goals.
Caroline Martin scored with a Hager assist to give the Golden Hawks a 1-0 lead after one quarter. She added her second goal to open the second quarter, also with a Hager assist. Back-to-back goals by Kelly Longmore – both with Hager assists – sent the Golden Hawks into halftime with a 4-0 lead.
In the fourth quarter, Gianna St. Thomas scored with an assist from Meghan Darragh, and a goal by Darragh with a Breanna Gable assist closed out the scoring.
“Megan Rafter consistently controlled the middle of the field, and Kylee Hager was involved in almost all of our goals – she did a great job bringing the ball into the circle for our team,” Rock South coach Kelly Mason said. “Our forwards, Caroline Martin and varsity newcomer Kelly Longmore, each had a pair of a goals. Meghan Darragh was aggressive on the right-hand side of the field and scored a goal. Gianna St. Thomas also had a goal. We need this offensive momentum to carry through the rest of our season.”
Council Rock South (7-6, 7-5 SOL) will travel to Haverford on Friday for a non-league game, and Bensalem (2-9, 1-9) will host Pennridge on Friday.
Bensalem 0-0-0-0 0
Council Rock South 1-3-0-2 6
SOL Colonial
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 2, CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 1 (OT)
What a difference a year makes.
Those were the sentiments of coach David DeAngelis after his team eked out a thrilling win over its sister school in Thursday’s Pink Out contest. Kendall Siegle and Lily Cosner teamed up for the
game-winner early in OT.
“It was about this time a year ago when – during our second match against CB East – that we also went to overtime, but we lost that match 2-1,” the Bucks’ coach said. “Having the privilege to watch student-athletes grow as they have has been a real blessing.”
The Bucks took a 1-0 lead three minutes into the second quarter when Mimi Duffy finished off a passing sequence from Lily Cosner and Avery Anderson
“I thought that we controlled the ball, we had good passing and connecting, and we were constantly attacking into their zone,” DeAngelis said.
The Patriots evened the score with 9:33 remaining in the second quarter when Alli Troth scored with a Paige Keller assist.
“From that point on, I felt that we dominated possession in their defensive half, but we weren’t able to finish our opportunities,” DeAngelis said.
As a result, the Bucks found themselves playing in an overtime game for the first time this season.
“We are and were very confident with our 7v7 unit,” DeAngelis said. “East began overtime with ball possession and did put pressure on us early.
“We were able to take possession, transition the ball up and attack into their zone, and we earned a corner from that counter rush.”
Bucks’ captains Siegle and Cosner capitalized just over a minute into overtime.
“Lily Cosner received the insert, made a slight move and hit the ball towards the cage, and that’s where Kendall Siegle – who inserted the ball – was able to get the picture-perfect tip into the back of the cage,” DeAngelis said. “All I want to say is – ‘What a difference a year makes.’”
East coach Emma Rosenthal lauded the performance of her squad as well.
I am extremely proud of our team tonight for a hard-fought battle,” the Patriots’ coach said. “Our defense was exceptional, and we really worked hard for the entirety of the game. It’s tough to have play any team twice within a week, let alone our rivals, but I’m very happy with how we played.
“Audra Szymborski made 12 saves, including a stroke in the first quarter, and Sienna Valenti had a diving defensive save to keep us in it.”
The Bucks held a 17-2 advantage in penalty corners.
Central Bucks West (12-1, 10-1 SOL) will travel to North Penn on Monday, and Central Bucks East (5-7) will host Central Bucks South Monday.
Central Bucks East 0-1-0-0-0 1
Central Bucks West 0-1-0-0-1 2
NORTH PENN 4, PENNRIDGE 2
The visiting Rams seemed intent on putting a damper on North Penn’s Senior Night celebration, opening up a 2-0 lead in the second quarter, but the Knights rallied, scoring a goal just before halftime and adding three more in the second half to earn the big win.
“We had a night game scheduled back in September, but it was postponed because of rain, so this was our first night game, and I think there were some nerves involved in that, some excitement because we had a huge crowd tonight, and I think the girls needed to settle into the game a little bit,” NP coach Shannon McCracken said. “Pennridge came out strong. They’re a much-improved team than the first time we saw them.”
Just over a minute into the second period, the Rams broke a scoreless tie when Leah Verespy scored, and they upped their lead to 2-0 when Lexi Capo turned a Payton Muth pass into a goal with 3:38 remaining in the half.
The Knights cut the Rams’ lead in half with 2:14 remaining in the quarter when Maddie Lewis scored on a rebound.
“I think it was huge to put one in before the half because the second quarter we had some more opportunities,” McCracken said. “It was 2-1, and we felt better going into halftime.
“At halftime, we talked about some things – we needed to make a few adjustments. The big adjustment we talked about at halftime was – we needed to step to the ball harder and win the 50-50 balls because Pennridge had a better step to the ball in the first half. Once we started doing that – wanting the ball more, anticipating and stepping in front better, then we started to control the ball and get back to our game of in and out passing, moving the ball at a faster pace.”
The Knights evened the score when Laura Albert scored with a Catherine McGeehan assist on a corner three-and-a-half minutes into the third quarter. They took their first lead midway through the frame when sophomore Erika Pickford – on the left post – found the cage with an assist from Caleigh Sperling. Pickford (Albert assist) added an insurance goal early in the fourth quarter for the final margin of victory.
“It’s always fun to win on Senior Night because what a way to honor your group of seniors by putting a good game together,” McCracken said. “We have 13 seniors – one of them is a manager, so we have 12 players. They’re a fun group, they’re a dynamic group, lots of different personalities. They’re very good academically, and they’re involved in a lot of organizations and clubs – they’re a fun group. It’s always fun to get the win.”
The Knights’ coach credited the efforts of several players.
“Senior Jocelyn Franek had a very important defensive save that shifted the momentum of the game,” McCracken said. “They put a ball in the air that got past the goalkeeper, and one of my defenders (Franek) went behind her and put her stick up and was able to stop it, which was a really important play. If they put another one in, it could really deflate the good things we were doing.
“Two of my defenders – Annabelle Smink and Melissa Sessler – did a great job of stepping up in the backfield against a speedy Pennridge attack. We scored on two penalty corners tonight, which is excellent when the kids can execute the plays. It’s always fun to see.”
North Penn held a 7-6 edge in penalty corners and a 12-8 advantage in shots. Knight goalie Kiera Holt was credited with five saves and teammate Kara Stringfellow had one. Pennridge goalie Maya Machado recorded six saves.
North Penn (8-6, 8-4 SOL) will host Central Bucks West on Monday, and Pennridge (5-7-1, 4-6-1) will be on the road at Bensalem on Friday.
Pennridge 0-2-0-0 2
North Penn 0-1-2-1 4
SOL Liberty
UPPER DUBLIN 2, QUAKERTOWN 1
The Flying Cardinals scored a pair of goals in the first quarter – Ashley MacNeal had a hand in both. It was exactly the kind of strong start UD needed against a Panther squad that entered Thursday’s game with an eight-game winning streak.
“That was really important for my team,” UD coach Emily Town said of getting the early lead. “I don’t know that we’re necessarily a comeback team. We’re more of a score early team.
“It was a great confidence boost for us because they knew Quakertown just came off eight wins. Our first game against them ended in a tie – with four minutes left in overtime, there was a thunderstorm, so me and their coach decided to pack it up, go home and leave it a tie, so today was battle of who would have won that overtime game – that’s kind of what this game was for everyone involved.”
MacNeal put the Cardinals on the scoreboard four minutes into the game, finding the cage on an unassisted goal.
“It actually came off their foot right on the goal line, and I was screaming for a stroke, but luckily, (the ref) gave us the advantage and we were able to put it in,” Town said. “That worked out in our favor right there.”
With time winding down in the quarter, the Cardinals were awarded a penalty corner, and they converted with time expired when Rayla Kratchman found the cage, using a MacNeal assist.
“It was on scrappy kind of play,” Town said. “Actually, Rayla earned the corner for us, so it was really exciting that she was the one who got the goal from it.
“I told them during halftime – ‘If you want that goal and you work for it, you’ll get it.’ Rayla worked for the corner, got the corner. Rayla worked for the goal, got the goal. It’s a great example to set for our team.”
The Panthers didn’t go down quietly and put a goal on the scoreboard with seven minutes remaining in the third quarter. That score stood the rest of the way.
“They came out of halftime with a lot of umph – they definitely wanted it,” Town said. “Their goal rocked us a little bit, but just knowing where we are in our (district) rankings – I can’t stress to them enough how important it is to be in the top eight versus the bottom eight of the 16 that go to districts.
“This put us in the top eight, and that was a big goal for them because we have a really hard week coming up next week. Winning this game was a security blanket of sorts. We needed a boost of confidence going into our difficult week next week.”
The win, according to Town, was a team effort.
“The whole thing that me and my assistant talked about – we couldn’t believe how well they worked together as a team,” the UD coach said. “All season, we’ve been saying, ‘You need to work together, you need to work together,’ and we finally saw that with the give-and-go passing, helping each other, less selfishness. I couldn’t pinpoint one player because it was such good teamwork.”
UD freshman goalie Camryn Muth was credited with seven saves in the shutout win.
“She’d never played goalie before (this year), so every win for her is really special,” Town said. “My defense did a great job today – Hannah Gong, Ella Lyon and Sofia Ferraro.”
While the Cardinals are ranked eighth in the latest District One 5A power rankings after Thursday’s win, Quakertown is ranked 14th in what will be a 24-team field in Class 6A
Upper Dublin (8-5-1, 7-4-1 SOL) will host Wissahickon on Monday, and Quakertown (8-4-1, 8-3-1) will host Palisades in a non-league game on Friday.
Quakertown 0-0-1-0 1
Upper Dublin 2-0-0-0 2
ABINGTON 1, PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 0
Katie Small called Thursday’s game something close to a must-win.
“This was – in my opinion – a must-win for us going into the end of the season,” the Ghosts’ coach said. “I thought if we could beat PW, we’d have a really good chance to hold on to at least be in the top 24 to make the district playoffs, so I definitely felt this game was our top priority in our last couple of games.”
Camryn Stewart and Erica Devlin teamed up for a goal that turned out to be the game-winner.
“I moved Cam to right mid for a little bit of today, and she brought it down on the right side and crossed it, which is something we’ve been practicing the last couple of practices,” Small said. “And Erica Devlin was just in the right spot – she stopped it and put it into the left corner. It was right to left, which is exactly what you want as a coach. It looked great.”
The Ghosts may have had the edge in time of possession, but both teams had their chances.
“I would say that we held it in our offensive 50 most of the game, but they definitely had a lot of opportunities,” Small said. “It’s PW – you have to expect it. They’re a very, very good team, but my defense held strong, and we were able to capitalize on a couple of plays, get it out of our circle and maintain possession in our offensive end quite a bit today, which was really, really good.”
Small praised the showings of several players.
“Olivia Dougherty played out of her mind today in the backfield,” the Ghosts’ coach said. “I was really impressed with her play. She really held Plymouth Whitemarsh, and they had a hard time bringing it down the center of the field.
“Maddie Slavin, my left mid, really prevented their wings from being able to get a consistent flow as well. Senior Emma Brown – this was her best game. She played in the back, and I’ve never seen her play as well as she did today.
“Up top, Carley Hughes, a freshman, started today because one of my players missed a couple of couple practices due to an injury, so she stepped up and gave their defense some stuff to deal with because she’s not a typical attack. She’s a quick girl, she runs to the ball, and you don’t expect her to do the things she did. She did really well today.”
The Ghosts held an 8-1 advantage in corners. Abington goalie Caitlin Murcur notched her fourth shutout in six games.
“She’s actually my jayvee goalie, and she had to step up due to an illness with my starting goalie, and she’s just done an amazing job,” Small said. “We’re very fortunate.”
The win avenged a 1-0 loss to PW in the division opener for both teams.
“That game was played between the 25s, and they were able to execute on an issue we had, and this time we got lucky that it was our turn,” Small said. “PW is a good team, they really are.”
Abington (8-5, 7-4 SOL) will host Hatboro-Horsham on Monday (4:45 pm), and Plymouth Whitemarsh (6-6-1, 6-4-1) will host Quakertown on Monday.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 0-0-0-0 0
Abington 0-1-0-0 1
LOWER MORELAND 4, UPPER MORELAND 1
The Lions celebrated Senior Night with a win over their neighboring rival.
“It was a beautiful night for field hockey and Lower Moreland’s Senior Night celebration,” LM coach Janet Lutter said.
The seniors played starring roles in the win with seniors Carlie Keller and Liz Neeld accounting for all the team’s goals – both players scored two goals. Junior Jess Pachman contributed a pair of assists, and senior Jessica Shein had one assist.
LM senior Maya Vaisman had one defensive save while senior goalie Sarah Rosala was credited with five saves.
“The entire team moved the ball well, found the open spaces and switched fields at the right times,” Lutter said. “We look to continue this type of play on Monday when we play Cheltenham.”
The Lions scored one goal in each of the four quarters while the Golden Bears got on the scoreboard in the fourth quarter when Jenna Piantieri connected on a goal.
“It was a fast-paced and physical game,” UM coach Marissa Elizardo said. “Our team played with a lot of energy and heart but at times played rushed and frantic. I am proud of the effort and hustle that our girls showed tonight.”
Lower Moreland held a 10-1 advantage in corners.
UM goalies Addi Hurley (7 saves) and Tierney Hogan (2 saves) combined for nine saves.
Lower Moreland (6-7, 5-7 SOL) will travel to Cheltenham on Monday, and Upper Moreland (2-10, 4-10) will host William Tennent for its Senior Night game on Monday (7 pm).
Upper Moreland 0-0-0-1 1
Lower Moreland 1-1-1-1 4
SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP 4, WILLIAM TENNENT 0
Emma Yoder had a hand in all four goals, scoring three and assisting on a fourth, to lead the Spartans to the division win.
Yoder turned a pass from Hailey Lesniak into a goal three minutes into the game, and the Spartans never looked back. Yoder added an unassisted goal late in the second quarter to send the Spartans into halftime with a 2-0 lead.
In the third quarter, Gracie Buchholz found the cage with a Yoder assist, and Yoder put an exclamation point on the win with an unassisted goal with 8:55 remaining in the third quarter.
The Spartans held an advantage in shots (15-0) and corners (15-1).
Kennedy Braddock and Grace Bell combined in goal for the shutout.
Springfield Township (7-6-1, 7-4-1 SOL) will host New Hope-Solebury on Monday, and William Tennent (1-10, 1-9) will travel to Upper Moreland on Monday.
William Tennent 0-0-0-0 0
Springfield Township 1-1-2-0 4
WISSAHICKON 10, HATBORO-HORSHAM 0
The Trojans displayed their teamwork with 10 goals – all 10 with assists. Sophia Havrilla’s four-assist effort led the Trojans while Caroline Kirkpatrick had three helpers. Both had a hand in five goals with Havrilla scoring once and Kirkpatrick connecting on a pair of goals. Riley Ball’s hat trick led the Trojan goal scorers.
Ball scored a pair of goals in just over two minutes to open the game – the first with a Kirkpatrick assist and the second with an assist from Havrilla. Havrilla and Kirkpatrick accounted for the Trojans’ two second-quarter goals with Ella Hummel assisting on Havrilla’s and Havrilla providing the assist for Kirkpatrick.
Wissahickon took a 4-0 lead into halftime and then doubled that with four goals in the third quarter. Kayla Mullin scored just over a minute into the frame with a Kendall Crowley assist, and then it was Kirkpatrick connecting on her second goal of the game – also with a Havrilla assist. Crowley closed out the quarter with back-to-back goals in a three-minute span with Havrilla and Kirkpatrick contributing the assists.
In the fourth quarter, Ball (Kirkpatrick assist) completed her hat trick with a goal in the opening minute, and two minutes later, Kayla Pak scored with an assist from Audrey Walsh.
Despite the outcome, Hatters’ coach Marie Schmucker – whose young team was coming off its first two wins of the young season – saw positive signs.
“The girls played tough but were just overpowered by a good team,” the Hatters’ coach said. “We had some corners in the first half but couldn’t connect.”
The Hatters were minus three starters due to injury and illness.
“It was a tough day all around,” Schmucker said. “We’re still seeing improvement and hoping to turn it around next week.”
Meredith Walsh and Ava Fell (1 save) combined for the shutout in goal. Mia Fisher was credited with 10 saves for the Hatters.
Wissahickon (14-0, 12-0 SOL) will travel to Upper Dublin on Monday, and Hatboro-Horsham (2-10, 2-9) will be on the road at Abington on Monday.
Hatboro-Horsham 0-0-0-0 0
Wissahickon 2-2-4-2 10
SOL Freedom
NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY 12, CHELTENHAM 0
Avery Mendola scored four goals and assisted on three others to lead the Lions in Monday’s win in the opening game of division play. Ava Cozza added a hat trick while Sophia Cozza contributed two goals and two assists.
Riley Spera-McLaughlin added a pair of goals, and Sophia Leonardi had one goal. Mia Patino and Abby Varghese both had one assist.
The Lions opened up a 3-0 lead after one quarter and took a 4-0 advantage into halftime on their way to the win.
New Hope-Solebury (12-2, 10-2 SOL) will travel to Springfield Township on Monday, and Cheltenham (0-11) will host Lower Moreland Monday.
Cheltenham 0-0-0-0 0
New Hope-Solebury 3-1-4-4 12
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