By Alex Frazier
District Tournament – Are there too many teams in the district tournament?
This is a moot point considering that the SOL will move to the fall next year, but for argument’s sake, should 16 of 24 Suburban One League teams make the playoffs? Should teams with losing records be considered in a post-season tournament?
Last year, for example, there were three teams with losing records in the tournament. Quakertown (1-12-1 SOL, 3-12-1 overall) was seeded 16th and was blown out by C.B. South 4-1. Central Bucks East was the 12th seed at 3-11, 5-11. The Patriots lost to C.B. West 3-2 in overtime. Hatboro-Horsham, the 11th seed at 3-10-1, 6-11-1, lost to Souderton 1-0.
This year there are four teams with losing records: Hatboro-Horsham (5-9 SOL, 7-11), Souderton (3-10-1, 4-12-2), Abington (4-9-1, 7-9-1) and Central Bucks East (4-7-3, 5-9-4).
Admittedly, there are instances when lower seeded teams pull off an upset such as No. 14 Wissahickon knocking out Council Rock South in the first round last year, but even the Trojans had a winning record (8-5-1, 9-7-1).
Are inferior teams given seeds just to fill out a bracket? Or is it some kind of reward for a season of frustration?
District games to watch – There are some interesting first-round matchups. No. 8 North Penn has been playing fairly consistently all year, while No. 9 Pennsbury, after a red-hot streak, appears to have cooled off a bit with losses to William Tennent and Neshaminy.
The Council Rock North (No. 10)-Neshaminy (No. 7) matchup is also one to watch. The two teams split during the season with the Redskins winning the first 3-1 and the Indians taking the second 4-2.
Upper Dublin (No. 6) hasn’t had particularly great success in the post-season. The Cardinals (seeded seventh last year) bowed out to No. 10 Council Rock North 5-3 in the first round.
This year they face No. 11 Central Bucks East, one of those teams with a losing record, but also a dangerous team as the Patriots played a big role in the final standings in the Continental Conference.
And the four state qualifiers? Council Rock South, Pennridge, Central Bucks South, Central Bucks West.
The Golden Hawks will meet West in the semifinals and avenge their season opening 1-0 loss to the Lady Bucks.
In the bottom half of the bracket, Pennridge and C.B. South will replay last year’s district final with the same result.
Council Rock South will claim the district title, while C.B. South will edge West for third place.
Wild finale in the Continental – The Continental Conference, which many consider to be the strongest of the three this year, finished with a wild flurry. It seemed that none of the top teams wanted to win it.
Central Bucks South, Pennridge and Central Bucks West were all in position to claim the title.
When C.B. South beat C.B. West 1-0 on May 6, the Titans seemed poised to defend their championship. However, the Titans then tied North Penn (2-2) and C.B. East (0-0) and had to settle for second, just one point shy of Pennridge, which locked up the championship by beating North Penn 1-0.
That was a good thing because C.B. West took advantage of a potential letdown by beating the Lady Rams 1-0 in the last game of the season.
Unfortunately for West, the Bucks had already taken themselves out of the mix with a 4-2 loss to Hatboro-Horsham.
In an incredibly close finish, each of the top three teams was separated by just one point.
Panthers roar — As predicted by coach James Barry, the William Tennent girls came together at the end of the season to finish in second place in the National Conference. Tennent finished strong with wins over Pennsbury (4-3) and Neshaminy (2-1). They could do some damage in the playoffs.
Race for third — Upper Dublin had a lock on first place in the American Conference while Wissahickon settled easily into second. The big race was for third place and a playoff spot.
Cheltenham edged out both Springfield and Plymouth Whitemarsh by a single point. PW made a strong run at the end, defeating Cheltenham 3-0 and Springfield 2-1, but still came up short.
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