Check out the recaps for SOL field hockey teams in action in Monday’s District 1 3A openers. Wissahickon/Abington photos provided courtesy of Keith Clemens Photography. To view a gallery of game photos, click on this link: https://solsports.zenfolio.com/f1049091362
#10 QUAKERTOWN 6, #23 COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 0
0-10-1
It’s a record that seems as though it would be light years away for a Panthers’ squad that captured a share of the SOL Liberty Division squad, but three short years ago, in a COVID-shortened season, the Panthers were winless.
Kiera Gallagher and Megan Roth remember it well, and they admit – winning a championship and competing in districts were the furthest things from their minds.
“Our freshman year our record was 0-10-1,” Roth said. “To go from that to this is pretty big, and I’m proud of the people that stuck through since freshman year.
Added Gallagher, “It goes to show – we stick with the program, and we really wanted what’s best, and I think that’s huge.”
It hasn’t hurt that the Panthers have inherited some promising young talent
“That’s been a crucial part,” Roth said. “We lost good players last year, and we didn’t know who was coming up the next year, but the freshmen that came in – some of them are really committed to the sport and play club
“It’s been a long time since Quakertown has had athletes committed to (field hockey) outside of school, so it’s nice to see the change starting to shift.”
Talent certainly played a part in the program’s turnaround, but it’s more than that.
“It’s getting used to each other,” Gallagher said. “We’ve had a pretty similar connection throughout the years – we’ve always worked together.
“Our passing has always been huge, and I just think putting in the hard work – we were out here at 8 a.m. (Sunday). It goes to show – days off we’re willing to work.”
That work paid off with a decisive win over the visiting Indians.
“This is huge for us,” Quakertown coach MacKenzie Moser said. “I said right from the beginning of the season I wanted to go top 10 (in the district), and I wanted to beat last year’s record, and we did that today.
“They’ve been working very, very hard day in and day out, so this is huge for us. Last year, we got to playoffs and got knocked out in the first round.”
Junior Katelyn Moyer put the Panthers on the scoreboard with four minutes remaining in the opening quarter, scoring on a strong shot from the top. The Panthers took that 1-0 lead into halftime.
Paige Longacre scored midway through the third quarter, and Sunny Draper added a goal with 1:14 remaining to give the Panthers a 3-0 lead heading into the final quarter.
“They picked up on what Council Rock was doing – intercepting their passes, looking at their 16-yard hits and picking up the ball wherever we could,” Moser said of her team’s five-goal second half after scoring one in the first. “Stepping to the ball and just reading their play – that was a huge part of it.”
Four minutes into the final quarter, Katelyn Landis scored her second goal, firing a shot from the top of the circle. With 4:18 remaining, Draper scored on a follow-up play after a goalie save to make it a 5-0 game. Cadence Jozefowski scored on a tap-in with 3:20 remaining for the 6-0 final.
“Going back to all the work we put in – we’re willing to push until the last minute, we keep on fighting. Even that last quarter was huge for us,” Roth said.
“I think all of our games we played better the second half,” Roth said. “The first half it always takes time to adjust to how their team is because every team plays differently, so being able to read that and adjust to it in the second half, we were finally able to connect.”
And just how does it feel to be part of the program’s remarkable turnaround?”
“It’s so much fun,” Gallagher said. “It’s amazing to see how we went from basically nothing to something. It’s huge for us.”
Roth added, “As seniors, the fact that we stuck together since freshman year – we’ve gone through all of this together.”
For the Indians, simply advancing to districts was a step in the right direction for the program.
“I was just super proud of the girls,” Rock North coach Jules Singer said. “I think that just shows their resilience throughout the season.
“Last year, we only won six games, and to turn around and make it above .500, I’m just happy that we made it to playoffs. It just shows the girls’ hard work. I’m so proud of them.”
Despite the outcome, there were no long faces on Rock North’s sideline.
“This was really exciting because we haven’t made playoffs in a while, so this is our first time,” junior Sierra Kim said. “So even though we didn’t win our first game, I feel super confident that next year and in coming years – our team is going to grow a lot.
“We’ve been improving a lot recently, so I’m really confident that next year we’ll improve a lot more. I’m really excited for the future. Next year, we’re going to be really good, I hope.”
Quakertown (15-3-1, 13-2-1 SOL) will travel to #7 Avon Grove for Wednesday’s second round game at 6:30 p.m. Council Rock North closed out its season with a 10-9 record overall (8-8 SOL).
Council Rock North 0-0-0-0 0
Quakertown 1-0-2-3 6
#9 WISSAHICKON 6, #24 ABINGTON 2
In the third meeting between the two Liberty Division squads, it was the Trojans – behind Riley Ball’s hat trick – notching the convincing win in Monday’s opening round game.
For the Trojans, who have regularly earned first round byes, playing an opening round game was a new experience, one that coach Lucy Gil hopes will serve her team well.
“In other years, we’ve always had a bye – I would say for the last four or five years we’ve had a bye, and it was just so long from our last game to our first game that we have, and a lot of our momentum just flies out the window,” the Trojans’ coach said. “We’ve gone out a bunch of times in the second round after a bye, so I thought this was perfect for us because it would give us some momentum going into Wednesday that we would need.
“Great Valley is one (seed) above us, it’s eight and nine, so that’s going to be a really tough game. I’m hoping that this win can be a stepping stone and give us a little bit of an edge. Our last game was Tuesday, and that would have been over a week to wait. Sometimes you can get a little scrimmage in here and there, but it’s never the same, so this was good for us. We dominated the game, we put in a lot of goals, which was our goal. I think it’s going to give us a boost for Wednesday.”
Less than two minutes into the game, Ball scored with an Avery Mullin assist, and five minutes later, Cait Connaghan scored with a Kayla Mullin assist. The Ghosts answered 30 seconds later with a goal of their own when Janice Coonahan scored to make it a 2-1 game.
Carly Lehman got that goal back with 90 seconds remaining in the quarter, using an Audrey Walsh assist for a 3-1 Wissahickon lead.
In the second quarter, Ball turned a penalty stroke into a goal to put the Trojans on top 4-1, but Maeve Link found the back of the cage with an assist from Maura Calladonato to make it a 4-2 game. Ball connected on her third goal with an Audrey Walsh assist, sending the Trojans into halftime with a 5-2 lead.
“Riley had a really good game even though she got hurt in the first quarter and had to come out – she fell on the turf and scraped her entire body,” Gil said. “She came out for a few minutes, but she had a great game.
“Our senior captain, Faith Gampo, broke her wrist, and she was our center midfielder, so Riley had to drop from center forward and become our center midfielder, and she has just embraced it, and she’s a powerhouse in there. She’s everywhere.”
Neither team scored again until four seconds remained in regulation when Cait Connaghan scored with an Avery Mullin assist.
“I thought the game was very chaotic,” Gil said. “We didn’t play a nice clean game. I don’t know if the girls were nervous or what was going on.”
The Trojans’ coach acknowledged the improved play of the Ghosts.
“They got stronger as the year progressed,” Gil said. “I was impressed – the second time we played them they were a different team, and today they held their own.”
Ava Fell was credited with five saves in a winning effort in goal. Abington Caitlin Murcar recorded 10 saves.
Wissahickon (14-4-1, 13-2-1 SOL) will travel to #8 Great Valley on Wednesday. Abington saw its season come to an end with a 7-11-1 overall record (6-9-1 SOL).
Abington 1-1-0-0 2
Wissahickon 3-2-1-0 6
#14 CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 2, #19 GARNET VALLEY 1
Last year, the Patriots missed out on a chance to go to districts, finishing last in the six-team Colonial Division with a 6-10 record. This year, they took a dramatic leap, notching 14 wins and finishing behind only Central Bucks West and North Penn, the district’s third and sixth seeded teams.
As the 14th seed, the Patriots were awarded a home game, and they made the most of that opportunity, opening up an early 2-0 lead on their way to the win.
“Looking around at my team – we don’t have the five Division 1 commits we had three years ago,” East coach Emma Rosenthal said. “It’s a group of girls that are really gritty, and I don’t think anybody expected us to do what we’ve done this season.
“I don’t even know if at the beginning of the season – if you told them we’d be in the second round of districts, I don’t know if they would have believed it. It’s exciting.”
Senior Paige Keller acknowledges it might have been a stretch to expect such a big turnaround from last season.
“I think at the beginning of the season – losing as much talent as we did last year and a lot of Division 1 commits, we didn’t expect to go as far as we did,” the Patriots’ captain said. “But I think we have a lot of hard workers on the team that have been able to get us as far as we are.”
It also has helped that the players share a special camaraderie.
“I think just bonding off the field and closing that gap between underclassmen and upperclassmen – I think we have a really good bond overall,” Keller said.
With 50 seconds remaining in the first quarter, Riley Schmidt put the Patriots on the board, scoring during a scramble in front of the cage, and the Patriots’ lead grew to 2-0 when Keller scored on a shot from the top of the circle with 8:36 remaining in the second quarter.
“Definitely momentum and scoring first were important,” Keller said of the keys to Monday’s win. “In a lot of the games we’ve won, we’ve scored first and just got our energy up and it kept us going.”
Five minutes later, the visiting Jaguars cut that lead in half with a goal that sent the Patriots into halftime with a 2-1 lead that stood the rest of the way.
“The game was played mostly in the middle of the field,” Rosenthal said. “It was pretty back and forth and evenly matched. It was definitely physical, but that’s what you expect in the playoffs because everybody wants it badly.
“The win-or-go-home mindset lights a fire under everyone, so it was definitely tense.”
The Patriots’ coach credited the strong play of several players.
“Paige Keller really had a great game,” Rosenthal said. “She controlled the tone of the game.
“One of our starting defenders got an injury yesterday at practice, so today we really had to make some adjustments. Our defense today switched around a lot, but it consisted of Maddie Mandia, Anna Daly, Sienna Valenti and Avery McCann all rotating around and filling where needed. They really stepped up.”
The Patriots had an advantage in shots. East goalie Audra Szymborski was credited with seven saves in a winning effort.
“She had a great game in goal,” Rosenthal said. “She had seven saves and really just held it down back there.”
The Patriots’ coach also credited the play of the Jaguars’ keeper.
“Their goalkeepers had a great night – they played amazing and kept us out of the back of the cage,” Rosenthal said. “We definitely had scoring chances, and I’m proud of our girls for getting it done.”
Central Bucks East (14-5, 12-4 SOL) will face a familiar opponent in Wednesday’s second round when the Patriots travel down the road for their third meeting with Central Bucks West, the tournament’s third seed.
“It was fun to play somebody we didn’t know today, but I’m really excited for a third shot at West,” Keller said.
Garnet Valley 0-0-0-1 1
Central Bucks East 1-1-0-0 2
#18 SOUDERTON 2, #15 PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 1 (2 OT)
Tatum Andrews has found a new home on the right side of the forward line, and it’s paying dividends.
“I’ve moved all over the forward line since I was a freshman,” the Souderton junior said. “I’m just used to change. We’re always changing, trying new things to win.
“I know in the beginning of the season I tried it out for a few games, and it wasn’t clicking. Then I moved, and that wasn’t clicking either. Once I got back, I knew – I need to figure this out, and it was just like a switch flipped. My right pulls, just everything – getting the ball up the field, and it’s honestly been such a game-changer.”
Andrews was a game-changer in Monday’s district opener at PW, scoring both her team’s goals, including the game-winner with 4:40 remaining in the second overtime.
“Julia (Blair) had beat a defender, and I had run up the middle of the field to get to the stroke mark, and she was running down the right side of the field,” Andrews said of the game-winning sequence. “She crossed it right at the perfect time. I ran to the ball and shot it on goal.
“We were definitely relieved. It was awesome just knowing that we’re safe and moving on, and that wasn’t the end of our season.”
The Indians are one of 16 Class 3A teams still standing, a spot they undoubtedly couldn’t have imagined finding themselves in after an 0-5-1 start.
“It honestly feels amazing,” Andrews said. “Coming from a team that lost so many people, and we know we’re young, but we have so much to prove.
“We don’t want to give up – we want to keep winning. Once we got that first win, we got momentum and got back – I wouldn’t even say back to our old ways because we’re a new team, and we want to make a name for ourselves. I think all these up-and-coming sophomores and freshmen are going to have a huge impact next year, and that’s a massive thing. It’s awesome to see.”
Late in the first quarter, Andrews scored the first goal of the game during corner play.
“Julia Blair had the ball at the top, and she lifted it, and then I got it off pads and reverse flicked it into the goal,” Andrews said.
That 1-0 lead held until late in the fourth quarter when freshman Gracie Kerns scored the equalizer during corner play for the Colonials, setting the stage for not one but two overtime periods.
According to Souderton coach Sue Casciato, it was not one of her team’s best performances.
“We had no energy,” the Indians’ coach said. “We had a poor warmup, so I was a little concerned before the game started.
“We used a lot of subs, we used different lineups, things did not click. We had a couple of players who kept us in the game, so that was good.”
No one played a bigger role in keeping the Indians in it than Andrews.
“We moved her from the center of the field to the right side on the forward line, and she’s using her speed,” Casciato said. “All of a sudden, she’s comfortable making a couple moves, and she’s been able to take the ball down the field.
“She’s really good at bringing the ball on the end line, which we’ve been preaching to people all year, and we just were not able to do it successfully. That’s been a big difference – Tatum being able to carry the ball down the field on the right side for us.”
The Indians aren’t the only team to experience a major turnaround. The Colonials – under coach Charise Halteman in her first year back at the helm – opened the season 1-5 and also went 10-2 in their final 12 regular season games.
“We had a competitive field hockey game with Souderton today,” Halteman said. “Hadley Blake had a stellar game in the backfield and it was while she was out on the sideline with an injury that Souderton scored in the second quarter to take the lead into halftime.
“Souderton continued to put pressure on our defense throughout the third quarter, but Sam Skivo, Kasey Johnstone, Kate Dobrowolski, and Blake maintained their composure.
“In the fourth quarter, we got some great attacking opportunities, thanks to some solid play and decision making by freshman, Gracie Kerns, who scored the tying goal, finishing a scramble in front of the net after a corner. We continued to threaten in both overtimes with multiple circle entries and earned corners by Kerns, Emily Dobrowolski, and Ella Catania but just couldn’t find the back of the net.”
PW goalkeeper, Carly Spinner, had 11 saves on the day.
Souderton (11-7-1, 10-5-1 SOL) will travel to #2 Downingtown West on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. contest. The two teams met twice last year during the postseason. The Whippets defeated the Indians 2-0 in the district quarterfinals and brought an end to Souderton’s season with a 1-0 win in the opening round of the state tournament. Plymouth Whitemarsh closed out its season with a 12-7 record, 12-4 SOL.
Souderton 0-1-0-0-0-1 2
Plymouth Whitemarsh 0-0-0-1-0-0 1
#16 SPRING-FORD 3, #17 NESHAMINY 2 (OT)
In a contest that was every bit as close as the seedings suggest, it was the Rams connecting for the game-winner late in the first overtime, bringing the Redskins’ season to a heartbreaking end.
Despite the outcome, Neshaminy coach Jamie Pinto had nothing but good things to say about her team’s performance.
“We played so hard today,” the Redskins’ coach said. “I told the girls – ‘We went down fighting.’ You couldn’t have asked for a better effort.
“We played well. There were times during the season where I thought we should have won games and could have done this better or that better, but there’s nothing I would change about this game. They left it all on the field. They played awesome. I really think this is the best we played all season long. As a coach, there was nothing else I could have asked them to do.”
The Rams took a 1-0 lead in the second quarter, a lead that stood until the third quarter when the Redskins scored a pair – the first by Maddy Shtino and the second by Mia Sermarini – to go on top 2-1. Spring-Ford evened the score with three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, and the stage was set for OT.
“We were down going into half, we came back and scored goals – they were good goals, and we just played hard,” Pinto said. “It was a total team effort. Everybody played hard. We didn’t get down.
“Everything we worked on all season long – we had passing, we had opportunities to score – they were good opportunities, we applied pressure defensively. They were communicating, they were working together. It’s a tough way to go out when you played that hard.”
Both goalies came up big for their respective squads.
“Our goalie, Megan Gonzales, played awesome,” said Pinto. “She was making glove saves in the air, she had a stick save. She made unbelievable saves tonight and kept us in the game.
“Morgan Shaltens, our senior center back, had two defensive saves – one right after the other. Morgan played so strong. She really carried the team out of the back.”
The Redskins’ coach had plenty of praise to go around.
“Everybody played so well,” Pinto said. “Maddy Shtino played well, Alayna (Roscoe) stepped up, Cait Colyar did her job back there. Kasey Reiger played well – she hustled up top and generated a lot of offense.
“In the midfield, Mia Sermarini stepped in because Ava (Arbakov) is still hurt, so Mia has been playing center mid. As a senior, she just stepped up. She did a nice job carrying the ball, distributing the ball. She was a presence on offense.
“Claire Saloky, at left mid, stepped up and did a nice job tonight.”
Pinto bids farewell to a special senior class that included captains Mia Sermarini, Molly Courtney, Cait Colyar and Morgan Shaltens as well Hannah Stanton, Keira Loftus and Olivia Lobecker.
“They are a great group of girls,” the Redskins’ coach said. “They did a great job leading. They’re all different in their own ways. They’re not the loudest bunch, but they just led by their actions, their work ethic.
“All seven girls – they were good at hockey, and they were just a nice group of seniors that we’ll truly miss. The whole team this year – and I think it stemmed from the senior leadership – I really think all the girls liked each other. Practices were fun. They got along well, they were able to take criticism from each other well. It was just a good group of girls.”
Shaltens has been a four-year starter for the Redskins.
“The way she played tonight – and throughout the whole season, honestly – she’s just strong,” Pinto said. “I remember her at right back, and she was this tiny, little nervous freshman. To see what she grew into and how good she got, it’s unbelievable to me how strong she became. Especially tonight, she played so well.
“If you have to go out, this is the way to go out. Go out giving it everything you have.”
Neshaminy closed out its season with another SOL Patriot Division title and a 13-6 record (12-4 SOL).
Neshaminy 0-0-2-0-0 2
Spring-Ford 0-1-0-1-1 3
#13 KENNETT 2, #20 CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 1 (2 OT)
It took two overtimes, but the Blue Demons escaped with a win over a tenacious Titan squad, connecting for the game-winner with 4:48 remaining in the second overtime.
“I’m so proud of this team,” South coach Kelli Chioffe said. “They stepped up and never backed down to a strong Kennett team.”
The Titans took an early lead, going on top 1-0 with 2:47 remaining in the first quarter when Ella Haag scored during corner play with an assist from Kaeli VanDerSluis. That score stood until 5:43 remained in the third quarter when the Blue Demons found the cage with the equalizer, setting the stage for OT.
Chioffe lauded the efforts of her players.
“Senior captain Sam Thomas played an outstanding game as well as senior goalkeeper Emma Kraft,” the Titans’ coach said. “Ella Haag, Kaeli VanDerSluis, Erin Kelly, Amy Hazel, Avery Tyler, Kate Porter, Kaitlin Sullivan, Carrie Williams, Kelly Hemsley and Tessa Walls all played a part in this hard-fought game.”
The Blue Demons had a 12-4 advantage in penalty corners. South goalkeeper Emma Kraft was credited with eight saves.
Central Bucks South closed out it season with a 9-10 record overall, 9-7 SOL.
Central Bucks South 1-0-0-0-0-0 1
Kennett 0-0-1-0-0-1 2
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