Soccer Notebook: Vol. 5
By Alex Frazier
Meet…Mike Cahill
Mike Cahill is no one to laugh at, but plenty of people laugh with him.
“Soccer is supposed to be fun, so why not make it fun with jokes here and there,” said the Bensalem captain.
“He’s a born leader and he’s funny,” said coach Matt Kirschner, “The guys respect him. He doesn’t have to yell at them to get them to do something.”
Cahill transferred to Bensalem from Holy Ghost Prep in 10th grade and has started for the Owls ever since.
With the exception of the last three minutes of the Abington game, Cahill has been on the field for every minute of every game.
“That’s the kind of leadership we need from him,” said Kirschner.
Cahill plays sweeper for the Owls.
“One of my (club) coaches said, ‘Everybody needs to try defense,’ and I played and I just didn’t want to play offense,” he said. “When people have the ball, it’s fun to chase them down to show you’re faster than them. It’s the thrill of the chase. There’s a lot of pressure, but I like pressure.”
“He’s hard to beat because mentally he’s there,” said Kirschner. “That gives him an advantage because he always knows where to play and where to be and how to stop the opponent. He leads by example.”
Not only is Cahill good at stonewalling attackers, he’s also good at clearing the ball once he gets it.
“He’s quick and when he gets the ball he’s great at distributing,” said Kirschner. “He looks upfield. He’s a smart player.”
Besides soccer, Cahill also plays baseball, which was his first choice when he was younger.
“My family’s been all baseball,” he said, “so I wasn’t as into soccer as I was baseball.”
That’s changed in recent years.
“Soccer was more enjoyable than baseball,” he noted.
And it didn’t hurt that he was recognized as a third team all-league selection as a sophomore.
“That’s when I realized I was doing better in soccer,” he said. “I was getting more credit for my play. Now all I want to do is play soccer.”
He plays in the Yardley-Morrisville men’s league and during summers for the Bensalem Summer League.
Although Cahill has given up club baseball, he still plays second base for his school team.
Cahill is also an excellent student, having achieved straight A’s - with the exception of one B - since fourth grade.
“One of my teachers motivated me,” he said. “That’s what I strive for.”
He’s planning on majoring in physical therapy in college. He also hopes to play soccer but has yet to make any college visits. The University of Scranton called once, and he’s considering Alvernia and Delaware, but he’s just starting the selection process.
Cahill is hoping to end his high school experience in the district playoffs.
“That’s the only thing we’ve been thinking about,” he said. “It was so tight last year. I really want to make it this year, especially since it’s my senior year.”
Bensalem just missed getting invited last year, and this season is also going to be a tight call.
The Owls are now 4-6 overall and 3-6 in the SOL. Two of Bensalem’s big wins were over Neshaminy and William Tennent.
“I’m pleased with where we are, but we need to improve to make playoffs,” said Kirschner. “That’s our ultimate goal.”
Trojans jam – Just over halfway through the season, Wissahickon finds itself atop the American Conference. But the Trojans’ will have their work cut out for them to protect their slim one-point lead for the second half of the season. Cheltenham, which tied Wissahickon the first round, and defending champion Upper Dublin will present major hurdles.
Last year the Trojans finished third behind Upper Dublin and Quakertown. The Panthers have since moved to the Continental Conference.
This year the Trojans started optimistically with a 1-1 tie against Council Rock North, and as of Sept. 25 have yet to lose in the American Conference (a 2-2 tie with Cheltenham is their only blemish). While Wissahickon is undefeated, none of its wins have been blowouts. The Trojans twice defeated Springfield by 1-0 scores, and their other wins (except Norristown) were no more than two-goal victories.
And Wissahickon had to come back from two goals down to defeat Upper Dublin 3-2.
The Trojans notched a goal before the half, which gave them momentum for the second half. Nick Matthews scored the game winner with three minutes to go.
In the Cheltenham game, they were down a goal twice before tying the game.
“We haven’t put a whole game together yet,” said coach Stuart Malcolm. “We seem to be playing in patches. It’s enough at this point to give us the record we have. We’re hopeful we can show some maturity in the second half.”
The tale of the tape will come Thursday when the Trojans travel to Upper Dublin for the re-match.
Wissahickon is still relatively young with four seniors, six juniors, three sophomores and three freshmen. There are two brother combinations. Freshman Stefan Daschbach plays right midfield, while his two-year older brother Sepp plays next to him in the center.
The Matthew brothers are a lethal combination. In a recent game against Upper Moreland, they accounted for both goals in the shutout. Senior Nick Matthews scored the first goal unassisted. On the second, freshman Dan assisted his middle brother Kevin.
“It was a ‘Matthews affair,’” said Malcolm. “A third of the team is brothers.”
Sophomore goalie Erik Riefenstall has four shutouts this year and is steadily gaining confidence and skill in his first year in the net.
“We’re talented,” said Malcolm. “The big knock on us having younger players, we’re not going to be the most physical team. Hopefully we’re making up for that with our ability to move the ball, and we do have some speed which helps negate a lack of strength and size.”
Around the league – On Friday, Hatboro-Horsham got by North Penn on a Ryan New goal. Central Bucks South also nipped Pennridge 3-2 on Tom Stackhouse’s overtime tally.
Pennsbury’s 1-0 defeat of Council Rock North on Wednesday afternoon gave Abington a short-lived tenure atop the National Conference, but when the Ghosts tied Neshaminy that night, Pennsbury found itself all alone on top with Rock North and the Ghosts tied for second.
“We needed it,” said coach Peter Hughes, whose Falcons lost to Rock in the first meeting despite dominating a majority of the game. “If we had lost, we would have been in a hole.”
The rivalry between the two teams is even greater since some of the players compete together on the YMS Explosion, which is ranked second nationally.
Forward Askia Rumph scored the game winner in the 16th minute and the defense held.
“It was a more evenly contested game than the first time,” said Hughes.
After a 3-2 loss to Council Rock North, Abington rebounded to knock off undefeated Central Bucks East 1-0 on a goal by Greg Hill on Saturday, Sept. 20.
William Tennent’s Justin Massaro notched a goal in the 51st minute to lift the Panthers to a 1-1 tie with Hatboro-Horsham. In a previous game, the Hatters’ Andrew Weyerhauser scored with just 38 seconds left to lift Hatboro-Horsham over Quakertown, 2-1.
Congratulations to Central Bucks South’s Mike Lambing, who scored all three goals in the Titans’ 3-2 win over North Penn. He also notched another goal and an assist in a 5-0 thumping of Quakertown Wednesday evening.
SuburbanOneSports.com’s SOL Top Five
1. Pennsbury
2. Council Rock North
3. Abington
4. Central Bucks East
5. Neshaminy
Southeastern Pennsylvania Soccer Coaches Association (through Sunday)
1. Downingtown West (8-0-0)
2. Lower Merion (9-0-0)
3. Father Judge (6-0-1)
4. Pennsbury (6-1-0)
5. Council Rock North (5-1-2)
6. Abington (6-2-0)
7. Central Bucks East (7-1-0)
8. Holy Ghost Prep (5-1-0)
9. Strath Haven (7-0-1)
10. North Catholic (5-0-2)
11. Neshaminy (5-2-1)
12. Bayard Rustin (6-1-2)
13. Germantown Academy (4-1-2)
14. Central (7-0-0)
15. Christopher Dock (5-1-1
16. Pennridge (5-3-0)
17. St. Joseph's Prep (5-3-0)
18. Archbishop Wood (6-0-1)
19. Marple Newtown (7-0-1)
20. Upper Darby (6-0-1)
Others receiving votes: Pottsgrove, Lansdale Catholic, North Penn, Conestoga, Archbishop Ryan, Radnor, La Salle, Haverford School, Shipley, W.C. Henderson, Bartram, West Chester East.
PSCA/Angelo's Soccer Corner State Rankings
(Week of Sept 21)
1. Downingtown West (1), previous rank1
2. Redland (3), 5
3. Lower Merion (1), 8
4. Mt. Lebanon (7), 10
5. Father Judge (12), 2
6. Central Bucks East (1), 4
7. Bethlehem Freedom (11), 3
8. Franklin Regional (7), 6
9. Central Dauphin (3), 7
10. Manheim Township (3), 9
Honorable Mention: Abington (1), Council Rock North (1), Elizabethtown (3), Emmaus (11), Ephrata (3), Erie Cathedral Prep (10), Nazareth (11), Norwin (7), Twin Valley (3) Warwick (3), Wyoming Valley West (2).
NSCAA/adidas® Region III National Rankings
(Sept. 23)
1. St. Benedicts Prep (Newark, N.J.) 5-0-0
2. Downingtown West (Downingtown, Pa.) 8-0-0
3. Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.) 4-0-0
4. Seton Hall Prep (West Orange, N.J.) 3-0-0
5. Redland (Lewisberry, Pa.) 8-1- 0
6. Ramapo (Franklin Lakes, N.J.) 2-0-0
7. Mount Lebanon (Pittsburgh, Pa.) 10-0-0
8. Harrison (N.J.) 2-0-0
9. Father Judge (Philadelphia, Pa.) 7-0-1
10. Central Bucks East (Doylestown, Pa.) 7-1-0
11. The Pingry School (Martinsville, N.J.) 3-0-1
12. Lower Merion (Merion, Pa.) 8-0-0
13. Delbarton School (Morristown, N.J.) 1-1-0
14. Columbia (Maplewood, N.J.) 4-0-0
15. Rancocas Valley (Mt. Holly, N.J.) 3-0-1
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