By Alex Frazier
Welcome to the 2010 season.This year brings some changes not only to me but also to soccer in general. For the first time in SOL history, the girls will be playing in the fall.
I believe that’s good, but it does complicate things somewhat for me because now boys’ soccer will have to share the limelight.
This year’s coverage will be a bit different, but hopefully just as relevant and informative.
Since my time will be divided this year, I’m hoping to get some help from coaches, players, parents and interested fans. Anybody who has story ideas, remarkable accomplishments or extra-special game stories that the soccer community would be interested in, please contact SuburbanOneWports@comcast.net, and I will follow up on them.
Here is the tentative schedule for this season. Instead of going to games (with the exception of Featured Games and playoffs), we will be writing game wraps at least once a week for both girls and boys, usually on days when there are a lot of games being played.
Once a week there will also be a notebook, one week it will be for boys and the next for girls. That will alternate throughout the season. A new addition this year – thanks to our sponsor Kick ‘N Wear – is that each week a player from each conference will be highlighted as nominated by the coaches.
Welcome to new coaches—With the move to the fall, there are quite a few girls’ coaching changes, nine to be exact. We would like to welcome all the new coaches and wish them good luck in the coming season.
Here’s the new lineup:
National Conference
Rachel Clemens, Neshaminy
Rachel Clemens was Rich Reice’s assistant coach last and took over the varsity when Reice decided to stay with the boys’ team.
John McOwen, William Tennent
John McOwen has been a legend in the local and state soccer scene since 1980, when he started the girls’ soccer program at Villa Joseph Marie with 13 girls. One of his best seasons was 1998 when the Gems were ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation.
McOwen was also instrumental in starting a state championship for girls’ soccer.
“I was able to get girls soccer state playoffs started in 1992, after I called and asked the PIAA to allow my girls’ team in the boys’ playoffs in 1990 because there were no girls’ state playoffs,” he said.
Since then, his teams are 30-2 in the state playoffs, which includes a record 27 consecutive wins in state playoff action. His teams won six state championships and finished second twice.
McOwen’s overall record is 439-44 -27, including nine District One Championships and 17 league playoff championships.
His teams have been nationally ranked by NSCAA and "USA TODAY" eight times.
Needless to say, his coaching accolades include 1990's Coach of the Decade from the Trenton Times, Pennsylvania Coach of the Year, NSCAA Regional Coach of the Year and NSCAA finalist for National Coach of the Year.
The Tennent girls obviously are in good hands since he took over the program in mid-August.
“William Tennent has a group of good soccer players, and I couldn't ask for more support than I have received from the athletic director, Lou Pacchioli, and everyone I've come in contact with at the school,” said McOwen. “The girls and their parents have been very helpful in helping me and my assistants (Jerrod Sifford and Dan Russo).”
John Oberholtzer, Council Rock South
John Oberholtzer takes over for Tim Keddie, who led the Golden Hawks to the semifinals of the PIAA State Championship last year.
Oberholtzer comes from Lower Moreland High School, where he was the girls coach from 2004-10.
Before that he was the varsity boys coach at Council Rock (1993-1997) and Lower Moreland (1974-1992).
Oberholtzer also coached wrestling at Lower Moreland for 15 years and girls basketball for four years.
Rick Tompkins, Abington
Rick Tompkins has been very active in youth soccer for 30 years and has been a coach with the Drexel men's team for the last 17 years.
“The team goal is to win the league, a daunting task, and to play attractive, possession-oriented soccer,” said Tompkins. “There is plenty of competition for positions. The team is infected with enthusiasm and has dedicated itself to better conditioning this year with the help of a private trainer, Hadley Winthrop, who worked with a number of the players over the summer. The strength of the team is their willingness to work for each other.
“Watch out for the Ghosts as the season rolls along. We hope to put a scare into our opponents.”
Continental Conference
Paul Eishold, Central Bucks East
Paul Eishold takes the reins for Paul Duddy, who opted to remain with the North Penn boys for the fall season.
Eishold has a wealth of coaching experience. Actually he returns to the position of head coach at East, which he held from 2002-04. He was also Duddy’s assistant last year.
In addition, Eishold has coached at Vereinigung Erzgebirge, FC Delco, Tamanend Middle School and Hatboro-Horsham and has been on the senior coaching staff of the National Soccer Camp for the past 10 years.
Eishold lists his goals as providing consistency to the program and improvement through player development.
“My expectations include competing in a very difficult league and providing opportunities for players to excel in high school girls soccer,” he said.
John Dehner, North Penn
Though this will be John Dehner’s first stint as a varsity head coach, he is no stranger to the North Penn program. Last year he was Neil Johnson’s assistant, and he has also coached at the junior varsity and middle school levels.
Dehner was also an assistant boys’ coach at Kennedy-Kenrick for four years.
“This should be an exciting season full of unknowns,” he said. “The team is coming off of a short off-season and taking their experiences from the spring as motivation for the fall.”
Mike Koch, Quakertown
For the last seven years, Mike Koch has been an assistant coach at Central Bucks West, where he was part of a staff that produced three state champions.
Before that, he took time off to watch his daughter Erin (Pennridge ’06) play Division One soccer at American University.
Koch also coached Phoenixville from 2002-07, where he produced more wins than any other coach and led the team to its only district playoff victory in 2005.
In 2001, he led Mt. St. Joseph Academy to its first Catholic Academies League championship final since 1993.
“I am excited to be back coaching and am particularly happy with this team,” noted Koch. “The team has worked hard this August, and I expect us to compete in every game in our conference.”
American Conference
Jared Elias, Norristown
Jared Elias comes to Norristown from Radnor, where he was the boys’ jayvee coach the past four years.
“I experienced tremendous success both in our record (wins and losses) and in building relationships with my players,” he said. “My coaching philosophies are not necessarily soccer based but sports based in general—hard work, dedication and approaching the game with a positive mental approach. These are the ideals that I hope my girls inherit.
“As far as goals go, I want to finish the season with the same group of girls that started the season. In past seasons it is my understanding that keeping the numbers was a challenge, so far we are off to a good start in that department.”
Kevin Willis, Wissahickon
Kevin Willis has been coaching soccer for 20+ years. He started his career playing at western New York's soccer powerhouse Brighton High School and then went on to college ball at SUNY Delhi. His first coaching stint was at Cazenovia High School in New York.
For the past 10 years, he has coached intramural, select and travel teams with the Plymouth Soccer Club.
Before coaching at the Wissahickon Middle School from 1999-2005, he coached at Cheltenham for three years and was the jayvee head women’s coach at Haverford College.
Suburban One Outlook – Here is a look at how the conferences could shape up and my predicted finishes. The one thing you can count on is that it won’t be right. That said, see if you can do any better.
National ConferenceDefending champion Council Rock South returns six all-league players, including first teamers Mary Kate Callahan, Paige McDowell and Chris Vollrath.
The Golden Hawks are in a good position to finish at the top again.
But they will be challenged by Pennsbury and Neshaminy. The Falcons will hope to maintain more consistency this year with a more experienced crew in Molly Phillips, Lindsey Jones, Kersten Formento, Becca Kovalick, Stephanie Fischer and Alysa Navroth.
Neshaminy, which tied Pennsbury for third place, will also be in the mix, although the Redskins will be younger. Kimber Kisselback, Alyssa Kirk, Hannah Sufrin and Jen Slivka are players to watch.
William Tennent, which finished second last year, will have a new coach. While John McOwen may be new to the league, he has wealth of experience and a solid reputation in developing state-ranked teams at Villa Jos. Marie. He’ll rely on Kellie Foley, Alex Pero, Allison Pio, Danielle Ciocco and Erin Foley.
Never overlook Council Rock North. The Indians will certainly be competitive and could vie for a top spot or play a spoiler role. Sara Scheidel is the Indians’ top returning player. Caitlin Hannegan, Meghan Higgins and sophomores Nicole Moonan and Adreana Rosario will jump-start Rock North.
Abington had a much-improved season last spring and is looking to build on that under new head coach Rick Tompkins. Shelia Longo and Chelsea Dyjak are the Ghosts’ lone returning all-leaguers.
Bensalem and Harry S Truman will once again battle it out for the remaining two spots.
Truman returns Teresa Landrum while the Bensalem’s Casey Gendron will return for her junior year.
Predicted finish
1. Council Rock South
2. Pennsbury
3. Neshaminy
4. Council Rock North
5. William Tennent
6. Abington
7. Bensalem
8. Harry S Truman
Continental Conference
It looks like it will be defending champion Pennridge and Central Bucks South vying for the laurels again this year. And that’s not to discount Central Bucks West, which is always a dangerous team.
The Rams lost league MVP Sarah Senoyuit but return first teamers Stevi Parker (junior) and Natalia Pinkney (sophomore) and five other all-leaguers.
C.B. South lost an excellent defender in Mel Keer, but return Ashley Saylor and keeper Megan Kaminski and three other all-league players.
C.B. West returns Lindsay Horst a two-year captain and team catalyst, as well as keeper Bri Benedict. Youngsters Kailin Ojert and Elena Oschenreither will also provide experience to a team that seems to just reload every year.
Muddled in the middle of the pack will be North Penn, Central Bucks East and Hatboro-Horsham.
With a new coach this year, North Penn is somewhat of a question mark. The Maidens had a rough start against Council Rock South (4-1 loss), but they are always a talented club. They lost two of their better players last year and will build around returners Haley Mangiaruga, Alex Ruth, Katie Miller and Lizzy Kohler.
C.B. East also has a new coach. Last year the Patriots made a strong run at the end of the season, and they hope to build on that this year with Paige Ruthhardt as the only returning all-leaguer.
Hatboro-Horsham and East tied last year for fifth in the conference, and they could end up knotted again this year. The Hatters return their two highest scorers from a year ago, including Mary Kate Bateman, who was a second team selection last year. They also return second team defender Kellie McGoldrick and honorable mention forward Tory Adlam.
The Hatters were competitive against the best teams last year and hope to get over the hump this year.
Souderton had an uncharacteristic season last year, winning just three league contests. The Indians should be improved this year but not yet ready to challenge the likes of Pennridge, C.B. South or West. The Indians will be young as they return just one all-league player in junior Brooke Pinkos.
The surprise team in the league this year might just be Quakertown. The Panthers won just two league games last year, but were competitive in many more. New head coach Mike Koch inherits a team that is athletic and fast, albeit young, but they just might post a few unexpected upsets.
Predicted finish
1. Pennridge
2. Central Bucks South
3. Central Bucks West
4. Hatboro-Horsham
5. North Penn
6. Central Bucks East
7. Souderton
8. Quakertown
American Conference
Upper Dublin might just make another undefeated run on its way to the top of the league. Last year the Cardinals were a perfect 13-0, but they won’t match that since Springfield defected to the Bicentennial League. Still, 11-0 won’t be bad either.
The Cardinals return seven all-league players, led by first teamers Emily Marvill (senior), Erin Lafferty (junior) and Ryan Noe (junior).
Wissahickon also had a young team last year but may not have the depth to seriously challenge the Cardinals. The Trojans will look to senior Alex Schaeffer to provide leadership and skill on the field. Wissahickon also has a young goalie in sophomore Rachel Stone, who was a second team all-league selection as a freshman.
Cheltenham, Plymouth Whitemarsh and Upper Moreland will duke it out for the third spot.
Cheltenham, which finished third last year with a young team, could repeat behind the play of Marissa Gorman, Bree Hansteen, Rhoda Moise and Allison Craig.
PW lost several good players but returns Jessica Knudson, Jen Lurty, Amanda Cranny and Kerri-Ann Ciesielka.
Upper Moreland is poised to move up in the standings this year.
Coach Joe Joyce moved his best midfielder Ali Roberts back to sweeper and has three potential game changers in freshmen Lyndsay Walders (MF) and Morgan Valera (forward).
Upper Merion and Norristown will look to improve their standing. The Eagles have a new coach in Jared Elias, who will strive to take the program up a step.
The Vikings have a couple of players to build on—Kristin O’Sullivan, a freshman first-team selection last year, and senior Tracey Kline, who made the second team.
Predicted finish
1. Upper Dublin
2. Wissahickon
3. Cheltenham
4. Upper Moreland
5. Plymouth Whitemarsh
6. Upper Merion
7. Norristown
Around the league – There have been some interesting matchups, both intra-league and non-league to start the season.
Central Bucks South started fast with a pair of wins over Catholic schools Archbishop Ryan and Archbishop Wood. Against Ryan, Emily Casey, Molly Grove and Ashley Volm gave the Titans a 3-0 win. Caitlin Boyle and Lauren Buchanan-Dwyer notched goals in a 2-1 win over Wood to make it five different goal scorers for South.
Pennsbury also shut out Great Valley behind tallies from Taylor Tini and Kersten Formento in the first four minutes of play. Lexi Brown added a pair of goals for the final 4-0 score.
Neshaminy edged District One powerhouse Downingtown West 2-1.
In intra-league play, Cheltenham and Central Bucks East tied at 1-1 on goals by Alix Macklin (Cheltenham) and Nicole Panella (CBE). Cheltenham then lost a 3-2 game to up-and-coming Abington 3-2.
Council Rock South showed it has lost little since going to the state semifinals last year by thumping North Penn 4-1. Cara Deola scored a pair of goals while Colleen Diviny and Chrissy Vollrath chipped in a goal and an assist apiece.
Council Rock North scored a second half goal to break a 1-1 tie with Wissahickon, whose tally came from Alex Schaeffer.
Upper Merion’s Ali Swider scored in the second half to lift the Vikings past Harry S Truman, 1-0.
SOL Pre-Season Top Five
1. Council Rock South
2. Pennridge
3. Central Bucks South
4. Central Bucks West
5. Upper Dublin
NSCAA Region III Rankings
(Sept.7, 2010)
Rank Team Record
1. Immaculate Heart (NJ) 0-0-0
2. Downingtown East 1-0-0
3. Penninmgtown School (NJ) 0-0-0
4. Conestoga 0-0-0
5. Pingry School (NJ) 0-0-0
6. Council Rock South 0-0-0
7. Morthern Highlands Regional (NJ) 0-0-0
8. Central Bucks South 1-0-0
9. Ramapo (NJ) 0-0-0
10. Peters Twp. 2-0-0
11. East Brunswick (NJ) 0-0-0
12. Unionville 1-0-0
13. Eastern (NJ) 0-0-0
14. Neshaminy 1-0-0
15. Lenape (NJ) 0-0-0
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