Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ soccer teams in action Wednesday. William Tennent/Lower Moreland photos provided courtesy of Jon Sklut. Check back for a gallery of photos. All SOS photo galleries for GIRLS’ SOCCER can be viewed by clicking HERE. Wissahickon/PW photos courtesy of Josh Stelzer.
SOL Patriot
Neshaminy 6, Bensalem 1
It was a small sample size, but it showed a lot of what’s made Neshaminy so successful this season.
The Redskins’ starting unit played about 15 minutes before spending the rest of the night on the bench cheering on their reserves, but it wasn’t for lack of effort. In less than 10 minutes, the team’s starters had scored four goals doing what they have all fall: moving the ball, trusting each other and having fun with it.
“Our team chemistry is amazing,” senior captain Carly Fox said. “We’re always together, every practice is always fun.”
Senior captain Mercedez Paino added the team relishes every opportunity to be around each other and views each day as a chance to become closer. It’s a veteran group in many regards, and one that has high expectations but not so much that it takes the joy out of the journey.
“We’re always having fun,” senior captain Alexis Ocasio said. “I feel like some other teams are so strict once they get to soccer, but we’ll dance before our warm-ups and things like that, it really helps us to be better together.”
Fox, Paino and Ocasio are all four-year varsity players who have been a core component of the team’s rise in that span and they’re also among the quickest to point to the total group’s success.
“Staying positive is another key thing we do,” Paino said. “We keep each other up, there is no negative, it’s always positive.”
On the field, they’re fast, tenacious and skilled. They’re also fully confident in the next person in line, a key component of the quick-hit passing game that’s fueled their productive offense and a defense that’s posted 11 shutouts in 17 outings.
“It’s trust,” Fox said. “If I play a ball, I know she’s going to get there. I’m more confident playing that ball than trying to do something else all on my own.”
This group is also goal-oriented, both small and grand. Even Wednesday, the starters set a goal of scoring in the first five minutes, which they not only hit but beat by scoring twice in three minutes.
On the larger scale, the Redskins knew they had the potential to be a strong team this year. They had key players back across the field including the trio of captains, a veteran keeper in Hannah Labadie, two standouts in sophomores Kylie and Taylor Maxwell and so on.
They’ve also gotten a boost from others like Angelina Daino, who has come back strong after an injury-riddled start to her career and Gyzell Rowan, who has meshed well with the established players in the attack.
“Our coaches talked about setting goals as a team together,” Paino said. “Every huddle, we’re setting goals for each other, so we’re trying to finish each game by completing those goals.”
“We knew we were coming back strong, if not stronger,” Fox said. “We had a lot of potential coming in and even last year, we felt like we could have gone further than we did but we know we have the ability to go far this year, which comes through our players and our connections.”
Fox opened the scoring on Wednesday, netting a goal two minutes in off a feed from Kylie Maxwell. Maxwell, who leads the team in goals, scored the second and fourth in Neshaminy’s brief run from the starters, getting assists from Daino and the other from her sister Taylor.
Rowan and Daino combined on the third goal and after the starters had ventured to the bench, Aidyn Tierney scored off a pass by Bryn Taylor midway through the first half.
“We set expectations for each other,” Ocasio said. “We expect you to be at practice, we expect you to be on time and putting in your hardest every time and we rely on each other to make sure we’re all doing that.”
The moment of the match came with 90 seconds left. Senior Kaylee Avallone, who has also been through a gauntlet of injuries that basically kept her off the field the last two years, scored her very first high school goal. On the field, she was mobbed while the bench, including the first teamers, shot up in a chorus of excitement.
“Everyone has so much energy and is so excited to get on the field,” Fox said. “Tonight, one of our seniors Kaylee scored her first high school goal so that was a big moment. We were all up cheering for her and hyping her up and that’s a big thing we try to do for everyone.”
Paino, who won a club national title this summer with Ocasio and played for years with Fox, said most of the players have known each other for years and it’s a genuine feeling of happiness when they see a teammate accomplish a goal or have a moment.
While the ‘Skins aren’t afraid to say they have big dreams for the coming postseason, they’ve maintained a steady approach even as the wins, goals, shutouts and everything have piled up. Putting on a jersey that says “Neshaminy ” on the front brings a certain prestige and as Paino noted, a target on the back, so the team has made it a point to treat every game the same.
Inheriting a winning tradition – current Neshaminy assistant coach McKenna Mullin was a state champion in her career – instills that same drive in the current group of players.
“That’s a goal for us,” Paino said. “It’s our senior year, we want to be there.”
Bensalem, which had a full bench’s worth of injured players, got some good goalkeeping from Haley Esposito and had a good moment in the second half when Vanessa Shay scored a nice goal on a cross by Caitlin Groves.
Neshaminy has already crossed off one major goal for the season by winning the SOL Patriot. While the Redskins did the same last year, they had to share it with Council Rock North. This year, they wanted to be all their own.
“At the end of last season, it was a big thing that we had to share the title and we didn’t want that again for our last year,” Ocasio said. “We set a goal to get that for ourselves and we did it by taking it one game at a time, which just made us want to win the next one and the next one and on, which brought us here.”
Next up is the postseason, although Neshaminy will have to see how the math works out if it gets a top four spot and a bye or has to host a first round game. Either way, the ‘Skins plan to be ready.
“I’m excited for how competitive it’s going to get and how everything is on the line,” Paino said. “We’re ready to play as hard as we can and just the energy overall, we know with this group of girls that we can go so far. I can’t wait to start.”
Neshaminy (16-0-1, 14-0-1 SOL) is slated to resume its suspended game against Council Rock North at 3:30 on Friday.
NESHAMINY 5 1 – 6
BENSALEM 0 1 – 1
Goals: N – Kylie Maxwell 2, Carly Fox, Gyzell Rowan, Aidyn Tierney, Kaylee Avallone
Council Rock South 3, Harry S Truman 0
The Golden Hawks had nine seniors to honor on Wednesday and thanks to Truman’s generous sportsmanship, got to do just that.
“Hats off to Mike McHugh and his girls for allowing us to do a ceremonial kick for Allison Roberto, a senior who has missed the last two seasons with two ACL tears,” CR South coach Nick Heim said. “You could tell by the hugs Allison got from her teammates walking off the field and the reception from the bench how much the program loves Allison, so to be able to celebrate her on senior night, although not in the ideal way, was special for us.”
Once the pregame ceremony and special first kick were through, the Hawks’ seniors went right to work on the field. While they weren’t able to secure a conference title, they are battling for a high district playoff seed and at least one home match in the postseason.
“The seniors kept the momentum rolling and two minutes in Ashley Yeager started her senior night by getting on the end of a Zoe Brossman corner to give us a 1-0 lead,” Heim said.
Cam Blatz built off her last outing and ended up with a pretty nice performance as a result.
“Ten minutes later Reghan Mudie found Cam Blatz on a nice through ball to give herself an assist on the night celebrating her class,” Heim said. “Midway through the first, Blatz was taken down in the box and converted the penalty to give us a 3-0 lead.”
The rest of the night was spent giving the seniors extra time on the field and also rotating in reserves for some quality minutes in front of a great home crowd.
Karissa Smedley and Kiara Wysocki – both seniors – combined on the shutout while the Hawks also honored Kylee Bamberger, Kelly Lee, Emily Davis, and Kim Speiser along with Roberto, Yeager and Mudie.
“We have a great group of nine of them that have really set the tone for what they want the program to be this year. They have bought into our vision since their freshman year, and are great leaders on the field for us,” Heim said. “More importantly, they are great role models in the classroom and local community for the younger girls in the program. It was fantastic to celebrate what they mean to our program and school tonight.”
Council Rock South (11-3-3, 10-3-2 SOL) hosts Souderton at 3:30 on Thursday.
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 3 0 – 3
HARRY S TRUMAN 0 0 – 0
Goals: CRS – Cam Blatz 2, Ashley Yeager
Council Rock North 1, Pennsbury 0
CR North (11-4-2, 9-4-2 SOL) will resume its suspended game with Neshaminy at 3:30 on Friday.
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH – 1
PENNSBURY – 0
SOL Liberty
Abington 5, Quakertown 0
The Ghosts most definitely enjoyed their long ride home Wednesday night.
Not only had they put together a pretty complete effort to pick up a win, they’d achieved a sublime goal as an exclamation point and a division title to cap the night. With Hatboro-Horsham falling earlier in the day, the door was open for Abington to seize its second SOL title in the last three years.
“We got a lot of contributions in a very good team win,” Abington coach Rick Tompkins said. “They played well tonight, we moved the ball well, I was pleased.
“We heard in the first half that Hatboro had gotten beaten and they were psyched, it was if we win tonight, we’re in, so they knew and really put the pedal down.”
Abington was paced by its big three of offensive contributors, with Piper McGinley and Carley Slavin each scoring a goal and senior Maura Day netting another hat trick in what’s been a brilliant season so far.
“The girl is ridiculous,” Tompkins said of Day. “She has 24 goals, she’s just deadly.”
Abington’s defense has had its share of ups and downs this fall, but Wednesday was one of the unit’s best performances of the season despite losing a stalwart to injury in the first half. Senior Anna Cleary collided with a Quakertown player, opening up a hefty gash that Tompkins said was plenty bloody and required stitches.
Cleary’s teammates stepped up in her place. Neveah Brauer had another good showing in the back, Madison Oldham was steady as always, Sarah Kaeser was strong and Jocelyn Pollock came through in extended minutes while keeper Olivia Richards posted the shutout.
“The defense was really good tonight,” Tompkins said. “Madison, she’s only a sophomore but plays like a senior. I never mention her because she’s so automatic, but she really is a solid player.”
As the second half wore on, Tompkins started rotating in his reserve players and had only senior Lily Gray and McGinley left when the Ghosts were awarded a free kick. With the players he wanted to sub in at the midway line, Tompkins figured he would let McGinley have a go.
The junior rewarded her coach’s faith with an unbelievable strike for the final goal of the night.
“Piper’s goal was ridiculous, it was a free kick that had to have been 35 yards out and if she had a dart, she couldn’t have thrown in any better to where this thing ended up in the corner of the goal,” Tompkins said. “It was trailing sparks, it was the nicest goal I’ve seen in a long, long time from a high school kid. She wants it, she’s pretty focused.
“When she scored the goal, she took a bow and got mobbed by her teammates because this thing was crushed.”
Abington (14-3, 13-2 SOL) visits Upper Dublin at 3:30 on Friday. Quakertown (9-7-2, 7-6-1) hosts Plymouth Whitemarsh at 7 on Thursday.
ABINGTON 3 2 – 5
QUAKERTOWN 0 0 – 0
Goals: A – Maura Day 3, Carley Slavin, Piper McGinley
Upper Dublin 1, Hatboro-Horsham 0
Alex Devers even has trouble describing exactly what position she plays on the field.
The Upper Dublin senior spent time at forward, attacking midfielder and even as a holding mid to close out things in the second half. Wherever she’s at and whatever role she’s filling, the Christopher Newport recruit has done a good job of it this fall.
Devers’ goal and versatility helped the Cardinals pick up a key late-season win as they look to secure a first round home playoff game in the District 1 4A bracket.
“I have no idea, I’ll play anywhere I’m needed,” Devers said.
Back in September, the teams played to a 0-0 draw. The Cardinals felt the difference in that game was their inability to generate enough offense to break down a stout Hatters defense.
Senior Regan Rubin said the idea was to stretch out Hatboro-Horsham’s defense and Devers added the Cardinals knew they needed to be more aggressive early, especially with a lot on the line.
“A lot of it comes from playing for each other,” Rubin, a Nevada recruit, said. “We really wanted this win. We know how strong a team they are, their record shows that for itself, but we knew we could compete with them from last time and we could get a better result.”
UD did come out aggressive, putting six shots on goal and making plenty of forays up the pitch to test the Hatters’ defense. Knowing the offense needed a little more punch, the Cardinals put their do-it-all senior in a different position than she’d played the first time, at least to start.
“A major change we made was that I played up top this game instead of playing in the midfield and I think they were surprised by that,” Devers said. “We were changing up our positioning with Regan and Anna (DiMartile) and I think it surprised them.”
There’s a lot of versatility across the Cardinals’ roster, with players changing positions sometimes in the midst of play, so keeping things together is paramount. Devers added that the team’s on-field communication was really solid on Wednesday, which contributed to the win.
“It’s all of us, we all have each other’s backs,” Rubin said. “We know going into a game who their bigger players, the better players, are and we’re making sure to keep an eye on them. Whoever is on them is always talking and if they move, you’re passing them off.”
With 11 minutes left in the first half, senior Lilli Kleiman found Devers just outside the 18.
“The play before I switched with Lilli Kleiman because I saw she had a lot of pressure on her back,” Devers said. “I knew I had to turn quickly, so I did and shot it.”
UD coach Chuck Gesing cited Rubin for seeing an issue forming in the Cardinals’ midfield and making the move to fix it, which involved having Devers drop in another midfielder.
“We were getting over-run in the midfield a little bit,” Rubin said. “They had a few of their strong players like Emma in that center midfield and they were running at us and getting some good chances so we figured if we dropped somebody else in we could mark up a little bit better and absorb that – if we made them a little more direct, we’d have a better chance to keep them out of the net.”
The win vaulted Upper Dublin to No. 13 in the district rankings, in line for that first round home game.
“Our negative results have shown us how badly we want to win and how good of a team we can be,” Rubin said. “We have to keep putting it together and like Coach Gesing says, peaking at the right time of the season is really important.”
“We’re learning how best to play with each other and what our different strengths and weaknesses are,” Devers added. “I think figuring that out as we get to the playoffs should take us far.”
Upper Dublin (10-5-1, 9-5-1 SOL) hosts Abington at 3:30 on Friday. Hatboro-Horsham (12-2-3, 12-2-2) visits Mount Saint Joseph Academy at 4 on Friday in a make-up game.
UPPER DUBLIN 1 0 – 1
HATBORO-HORSHAM 0 0 – 0
Goals: UD – Alex Devers
Wissahickon 1, Plymouth Whitemarsh 1
The Colonials entered the week with plenty at stake trying to earn a spot in the District 1 playoffs.
At the same time, Wednesday brought the opportunity to celebrate and honor the team’s seniors. With the upperclassmen leading the way, PW picked up a result that could go a long way to securing that postseason bid.
“It was our Senior Night and Angelina Balcer came out on a mission,” PW coach TJ DeLucia said. “She had a goal called back five minutes in due to a hand ball in the build-up. But she kept on the front foot and put one in midway through the first half.”
The Trojans, who are also battling to keep their hold of a first round home playoff game, managed to tie it up when senior Kylie Friedman took matters on to her own feet with a long solo run and finish before halftime.
“That was it. Our defense of Kate Yocom, Bri Reynolds, Meg Wendler, Ella Clark, and Marleigh Burton was outstanding,” DeLucia said. “Caitlyn Dinh made several outstanding saves in one of her best games of the season.”
Dinh was credited with 16 saves by Ed Morlock of PA Prep Live.
Wissahickon snapped a four-match losing skid and with the points from the draw, ended the night No. 12 in the District 1 4A rankings.
PW’s final week has one more stop with another opportunity to lock up some crucial points as the Liberty tries to 6-for-6 on district qualifiers in the 28-team field.
“Caelin Kosvitch was terrific in midfield. Played 100 minutes and the work rate was absurd,” DeLucia said. “We had a lot of kids play a lot of minutes tonight, but we are looking forward to playing Quakertown tomorrow night.”
PW (8-7-2, 6-7-2 SOL) travels to Quakertown at 7 on Thursday. Wissahickon (10-6-1, 9-6-1) will await its first round District 1 playoff opponent.
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 1 0 0 0 – 1
WISSAHICKON 1 0 0 0 – 1
Goals: PW – Angelina Balcer, W – Kylie Friedman
SOL Liberty
Central Bucks East 4, North Penn 0
At the start of the final week in the regular season, the Patriots had one main goal in mind.
“Going into the week, we talked a lot about how we wanted to build a bit of momentum going into Districts and are proud of how our girls took ownership of these games and put away their chances,” East coach Jake Nesteruk said. “I thought North Penn came out and created a few good chances on us and were a bit more threatening on the counter than we were in possession.
“Major credit to Brooke Roumy who made a few really important tackles and Aralynn Patterson for a really big save early in the game. On the other end, the chances we did create we did a nice job of finishing.”
Jessie Bernabe continued to be a spark plug offensively for East, splitting her brace neatly with a goal on each side of the halftime break.
“Jessie continues to show up on the scoresheet and puts herself in positions to finish the ball off and she is so deserving,” Nesteruk said. “She is a pain to defend off the dribble and times her movement off the ball so well. “
Bernabe opened the scoring in the first half and got some help from Mikayla Gray. Gray has also established herself as a consistent player for the Patriots in their midfield with a high work rate that was rewarded on Wednesday.
“Mikayla was able to extend the lead before the half. After a good sequence of possession, we turned the ball over near the top of the box and had that immediate response we talk about a ton,” Nesteruk said. “Jessie was able to win the ball back, play a short ball in behind their backline and just a great finish from MK. MK does so much for us defensively and works so well with Sofia Mignon to win the ball in midfield, so it’s always a great moment when she finds herself in front of goal and able to take care of her chances.”
Elliot Forney followed up Bernabe’s second goal with one of her own in the second half.
“I thought Katie Bullard did a very nice job today and made the game easier for us in key moments,” Nesteruk said. “Second half we were able to extend our leads with two excellent team goals from Jessie and Elliot. This was a total team win and any time we can get all of our kids into the game with meaningful minutes, it is a good day.”
The Patriots (12-6, 10-6 SOL) ended the night holding the No. 15 spot in District 1 4A, which would secure them a first round home game. With their regular season done, the numbers may change between now and the brackets being released but East won’t be a team anyone is eager to see in that opening slate of contests.
“We aren’t sure where we will sit ranking wise, but just proud of our kids for the season they’ve put in so far,” Nesteruk said. “We knew going in that we’d get teams best games and we did. We will refocus over the next few days and just take it a moment at a time.”
North Penn (6-10-1, 6-9-1) hosts Great Valley at 3:30 on Friday.
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 2 2 – 4
NORTH PENN 0 0 – 0
Goals: CBE – Jessie Bernabe 2, Mikayla Gray, Elliot Forney
Pennridge 3, Central Bucks South 0
The Rams put a wrap on their regular season and will wait to see when their playoff run begins.
Pennridge ended the night holding the No. 3 spot in the District 1 4A rankings, with the top four teams receiving a first-round bye. The rankings will fall where they may, but everything going forward is in their hands.
“We can’t lose a game from here on out,” Anderson said – noting a possible exception for seeding games. “Making sure we’re playing a certain way moving forward is really important for us.”
Wednesday was also Senior Night, or “Joey Night” this year, in honor of the team’s lone senior player in co-captain Joey Tomlinson. Anderson said the players also made sure to honor senior Katie Yoder, who has been the team manager this fall but opted to cede the night to Tomlinson and not be introduced pregame.
Tomlinson, who will play at Robert Morris next year, didn’t score on Wednesday but she did have a nice moment to conclude her final regular season game when Anderson subbed her off with 30 seconds to play.
“She had a great cheering section, we had a lot of little kids there and when we took her off, we had to stop the clock because we were winning, so they were all cheering her on,” Anderson said. “When you talk about someone who has spent four years with this program, it wasn’t an easy four years by any stretch but she went through it, stayed the course and had a great moment. She’s won a state championship, four conference titles and two district titles so she’s accomplished a lot.”
South – under the direction of first-year coach Gabbie Nolan and her assistant/sister Kayla Nolan – has struggled to score all year but proven a tough team to play against. To that end, it looked like the Titans were going to pick up a minor win by taking the game to halftime scoreless until Pennridge’s Caitlyn Peace netted a goal with just 48 seconds to go.
Anderson called Peace’s goal the difference-maker that set the tone for the Rams’ second half efforts.
“It was a bit of a relief to get that goal because I felt like we were knocking on the door,” Anderson said. “To go in with all that hard work and a 1-0 lead at halftime was huge.”
Lindsey Balmer continued her run of good play, scoring a goal early in the second half for her fourth tally in the last five games. Emma Shaeffer wrapped up the scoring with her first varsity goal, another moment Anderson called a highlight of the night.
“She dislocated her elbow the third day of preseason, it was nice to see her score after such a long injury layoff,” Anderson said. “She was killing it in the preseason and I thought ‘wow, I’ve got to have her on the field’ then she has this injury and she’s out almost the entire season – she just came back last week – so I think everybody was happy for her.”
With the postseason right around the corner, Pennridge (17-1, 15-1 SOL) will start to prepare and follow its leaders as far as they can go.
“Our leadership in the second half of the season has been outstanding,” Anderson said. “With the experience we have, even with just the one senior, they’ve done a great job with the way they’re communicating and the level of play they are and aren’t willing to accept from their teammates and what the expectation is.”
Central Bucks South closed out its season with a 7-11 record overall (6-10 SOL).
PENNRIDGE 1 2 – 3
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 0 0 – 0
Goals: P – Caitlyn Peace, Lindsey Balmer, Emma Shaeffer
SOL Freedom
Lower Moreland 2, William Tennent 1
The Lions had a game in hand but took care of things in the division with a win Wednesday to lock up the SOL Freedom title.
“I was proud of how my girls played today,” LM coach Todd Hill said. “They came out ready to play with lots of energy.”
Hill, in his first season as head coach, inherited a roster that returned every play from a season ago and won a division title. That didn’t mean it was going to be awarded to them again on merit and LM came through with quite a few wins in games like Wednesday’s.
“In the first half, Demmi Fox sent the ball into the box, and Morgan Pennisi fought for it all the way to goal -punching it in as she fell across the end line -lots of grit and determination,” Hill said.
The first time the teams met, LM needed overtime to top the Panthers, and with Tennent winning four straight since then, it was another close game.
“After WT tied it up in the second half, our girls kept attacking,” Hill said. “Late in the second half, Ruby Levin dribbled the ball to the right corner and sent a beautiful ball across the box, and Demmi Fox placed into the left corner of the net.”
The Lions, currently No. 10 in District 1 3A, aren’t done yet and will try to play their way into a home game for the postseason.
“I was pleased with the whole team but felt that my outside backs Sophia O’Brien and Gabbie Wasserstrom played really smart and aggressive today, which put a lot of pressure on William Tennent’s wings,” Hill said. “Additionally, Kenna Rozanski really controlled the pace of play in the middle of the field today.”
Lower Moreland (9-7, 9-6 SOL) visits Springfield Twp at 7 on Thursday and visits Central Bucks West at 3:30 on Friday.
LOWER MORELAND 1 1 – 2
WILLIAM TENNENT 0 1 – 1
Goals: LM – Morgan Pennisi, Demmi Fox
Springfield Twp 3, Cheltenham 0
Cheltenham closed its season under the lights, in front of a terrific crowd and took the opportunity to thank its seniors.
The Panthers also made sure the visiting Spartans felt welcomed before playing a very competitive match. While Springfield Twp used three first half goals to pick up the win, it was a night both teams were able to enjoy.
“Tonight was our Senior Night and it was an awesome environment and night for soccer,” Cheltenham coach Leah Matusow said. “We had a great crowd, and it was amazing to see all of the support for our team and our incredible group of seniors.”
Spartans’ coach Dan Malora lauded the Panthers for their hospitality and the environment at kickoff.
“We recognized the seniors from both schools. The night was chilly, but the crowd was fired up. Coach Matusow and her staff made the evening a wonderful event,” Malora said. “The night featured local youth teams during opening ceremonies and halftime. The game itself was a great match.”
Springfield’s dynamic duo of Kaleigh Evans and Alana Decker provided enough offense to get the Spartans back on the bus with a win.
“Kaleigh Evans and Alana Decker got our team the goals we needed for the win, but both teams put all of their hearts into the full 80 minutes,” Malora said. “Kaleigh Evans got the scoring started in the first 10 minutes with one of her very familiar breakaways.
“Kaleigh Evans found the back of the net a second time in the 25th minute. Kaleigh also added an assist to her stat line in the 32nd minute when she found Alana Decker open on top of the 18. Decker finished off the opportunity with a beautiful rip.”
Down, but not out, the host Panthers regrouped at the half and talked about closing the season out the right way.
“It was a competitive game and at halftime we talked about how we wanted to give everything we had in the second half and really enjoy playing together on the field, as those moments are becoming fewer,” Matusow said. “We might not have won on the scoreboard, but this team, and especially our seniors, are absolutely winners in our book.”
Cheltenham recognized the careers of Anneliese Craigo, Lily Crocker, Amelia Fishman, Ava Klebanoff, Maddie Messa, Lucy Trott and Taden Versaw-Barnes prior to the game.
“They have all been great teammates, mentors and leaders throughout the season. Our younger players definitely look up to them and it has been amazing to see them grow not only on the field, but off it too,” Matusow said. “I am really grateful and proud to be their coach, and I know they are all going to do great things in whatever comes next for them.”
“The Panthers played hard throughout the whole match and left no doubt about how much they care about their senior teammates,” Malora said. “It was a really great night.”
Springfield Twp will try to send its seniors out right on Thursday.
“Strong defensive play from Paige Robinson, Shannon Meder, Ashley Jenkins, Sophie Williamson and Maddie McDevitt generated a lot of transition attacks,” Malora said. “Kalei Noonan, Leni Rumer, Shannon Silvius, Zhanna Ivanick, Samantha McDevitt and Fiona Rizzo all provided great ball movement and possession in the midfield and generated a lot of great opportunities for our forwards.”
Springfield Twp (7-10, 5-10 SOL) hosts Lower Moreland at 7 on Thursday.
SPRINGFIELD TWP 3 0 – 3
CHELTENHAM 0 0 – 0
Goals: ST – Kaleigh Evans 2, Alana Decker
Upper Moreland 5, New Hope-Solebury 0
The Golden Bears were not going to be stopped on their Senior Night.
“We actually played relatively well but UM was on a mission and they were playing their senior night,” Lions coach Matt Duffey said.
With a charged-up stadium behind them, the hosts came out firing and didn’t let New Hope-Solebury have an opportunity to spoil the night.
“The atmosphere for tonight’s game was electric. It was such a great night for our team and our senior class. We had a really good crowd out supporting us; students, parents, families, UMSC youth teams, and even alumni–it was an awesome experience and environment for the girls to play in,” Bears coach Lisa Benvenuto said. “Kudos to New Hope for their play tonight as well. It is evident that when given opportunities they can be dangerous.”
Kylie Wiest and Willow Taylor went off for Upper Moreland, combining to score all five goals for the Bears. They may be underclassmen, but the duo made sure the team’s seven seniors had a good night with their sustained production.
Wiest opened the scoring in the 12th minute off an assist by Kyra Favors, then Taylor got her first in the 23rd minute for a 2-0 halftime lead.
“Our goal for tonight was to play within ourselves, to play our game and to score early. We wanted to dominate possession and win the 50/50 balls. The entire team followed this game plan—everyone contributed, and it was awesome to see,” Benvenuto said. “Our seven seniors really stepped up today. They left it all on the field. Congratulations to Natalie Walton, Skye Kramer, Katie Slear, Gracie Cartin, Madison Forrest-Rivera, Eliza Feil, and Victoria Rosenbaum on a well-played match.”
The Lions didn’t see the results they wanted in the win-loss column, but they had a solid group of senior leaders of their own who set the tone for Duffey in his first year coaching.
“Big kudos once again to all of the New Hope seniors; Brooke McLaughlin, Margaret Tresler, Riley Marschall, Ava Marrone, Meeghan Griffith, Nicole Michael, Maggie Tritremmel, and Anne-Charlotte Arnould,” Duffey said. “Also wanted to give a nod to our underclassmen Elena Shire, Isha Mukherjee, Mia Usatin, Lily Marrone, Autumn Brasof, Ellie Gudusky and Nina Meixler.
“They are a resilient group and always came back each game and worked hard even when we were outmatched.”
Brooke Lobban made sure the second half started right, tallying back-to-back assists on Taylor’s 44th minute goal and Wiest’s 49th minute marker. Wiest capped her hat trick, giving Favors a second helper in the 67th minute.
“In both the first and second half, we were able to get into a rhythm. From the defense to the offense, we were finding feet, making great runs, and finishing. With the defense and the midfield playing so well, it allowed our offense to really transpire. The offense was on fire,” Benvenuto said. “Brooke Lobban, Maggie Brophy, Willow Taylor and Kylie Wiest were spectacular tonight. Willow and Kylie’s finishes were composed and struck so well. Kyra Favors, Katie Slear and Eliza Feil distributed the ball consistently to the outside midfielders and the forwards. Which allowed us to build our attack, and to be really dangerous offensively.”
Upper Moreland (9-7-2, 8-7-1 SOL) ended the night No. 8 in District 1 3A, in position to host an opening round playoff game.
Natalie Walton recorded her sixth shutout of the season. The defensive line was solid in containing New Hope’s attack, and clearing the ball,” Benvenuto said. “Tonight was a great team win, and puts us in a really good mindset going into next week.”
UPPER MORELAND 2 3 – 5
NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY 0 0 – 0
Goals: UM – Kylie Wiest 3, Willow Taylor 2
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