Check out the recaps for SOL boys’ soccer teams in action Thursday. CR North/CR South photos provided courtesy of John Gleeson. Check back for a gallery of photos. (Hatboro-Horsham photo provided by Francesca Rossillo/Hatboro-Horsham soccer)
National Conference
Pennsbury 1, Neshaminy 0
Pennsbury ended a 10-year drought by edging host Neshaminy 1-0 to capture the program’s first conference crown since 2009.
“In that 10-year period since then, we’ve never finished worse than third, so it’s either been second or third every year and more seconds than not, and we’ve always been in it until the end and just fell a little short,” Pennsbury coach Tom Stoddart said. “Obviously, we got off to the great start to the season, but this league is tough, so we knew the second time around would be tough. It proved out to be, but we had to show a lot of resolve to get it done tonight.”
Both teams came out pumped up and flying only to see the Redskins suffer an immediate and unexpected setback.
“Neshaminy was really fired up, and right off the bat, we caught them off guard, and Nyles Cayemitte basically turned their kid and had a breakaway, and the kid tackled him from behind and held onto him,” Stoddart said. “Neshaminy took a red card 37 seconds into the game and had to play a man down.
“It really wasn’t a well-played soccer match. It’s a super tough place to play, and the wind made it especially tough. My kids did a good job. They kept their composure. They got one scoring opportunity and made it count and battened down the hatches from there. We’ll take it.”
The Falcons received all the offense they would need near the midway portion of the second half when Evan Reichard headed home the game-winner.
“We did a nice job to get it to him on the back post – it really looked like it was going to be a quick tap-in, and the keeper did a great job and got his hand on it, but then Evan was able to follow up the rebound and knock it in with his head,” Stoddart said.
Both teams have also earned berths in the upcoming PIAA District One Class 4A tournament, but the Falcons can claim the conference crown, thanks to their win over their neighboring archrival.
“One of the things about being a Pennsbury player – as weird of a place as it is to play in Neshaminy’s stadium, I played there on the same ground, my assistant coach (Mike Lindemann) played there on the same ground – you always remember your night game at Neshaminy,” Stoddart said. “Especially your senior year, it’s always a big deal. Obviously, it doesn’t get any bigger than a head-to-head match, winning 1-0 and taking home a league title. I’m really happy for the boys.”
The Falcons’ coach lauded the efforts of his defense.
“Our back four – Josh Panero, Trevor Hart, Colby Goldschmidt and Zach Summer – kept everything calm and everything in front of them,” Stoddart said. “We were able to wear Neshaminy down since they were down a player. We got the goal we needed. They didn’t have many attacks at all, nor did we. It was just one of those games where no one really had much control over what was going on. They did a good job when they needed to.
“Obviously, (goalkeeper) Peter (Beidler) came up huge with another shutout. He kept things calm in the back, he was always able to pick up loose ball and keep things organized in front of him. It was a great win in a great season for Peter Beidler.”
Despite his team’s early setback, Neshaminy coach Tom Foley was pleased with the effort his team put forth.
“We played a man down the whole game,” Foley said. “Of all the scenarios I could imagine for a game, that was not one of them. My guys fought the whole 80 minutes, carried the play for good stretches but could not get the equalizer. We are really proud of the kids for the way they faced this adversity, they really showed grit and determination tonight.
“We honored our seniors tonight – Alex Daeche, Brandon Barron, Brandon Mayer, Drew Isgan and Vlad Mikhailouski all gave us quality minutes when they got in tonight. Congratulations to Pennsbury on their win and championship.”
As of Thursday night, Pennsbury (12-4-2, 9-2-1 SOL) is the 11th seed in the District One 4A power rankings, and Neshaminy (12-6, 8-4) is eighth and would receive a first round bye if those rankings held until Sunday’s seeding meeting.
Pennsbury 0 1 – 1
Neshaminy 0 0 – 0
Council Rock North 1, Council Rock South 0
Louis Bloechl’s goal midway through the second half gave visiting Council Rock North a 1-0 win over rival Council Rock South and also secured the Unity Cup for the Indians for another season.
Council Rock North goalie Jeremy Berman turned away three shots to earn the shutout.
In addition to winning the Unity Cup, the Indians – winners of five of seven games to close out the regular season – further cemented their place in the upcoming PIAA District One Class 4A tournament.
Council Rock North closed out the regular season with a 10-6-2 record. They were 7-4-1 in the SOL, tied for third place. The Golden Hawks finished the season with a 5-12-1 mark (2-9-1 SOL).
Council Rock North 0 1 – 1
Council Rock South 0 0 – 0
Continental Conference
North Penn 1, Pennridge 0
The conference champion Knights secured the top seed in the upcoming PIAA District One Class 4A playoffs thanks to a 1-0 win over host Pennridge.
“It was a difficult day for both teams,” coach Paul Duddy said. “We actually had the wind the first half, but Pennridge defended us very well.
“We were against it the second half, but we still had some chances. They had some great chances too, but (goalkeeper) Sawyer Meade made a couple of great saves for us today. It was an even game.”
The difference was a converted penalty kick by North Penn’s Carter Houliah near the midway point of the second half.
“Carter received a great ball from Josh Jones, dribbled into the box and he was taken down,” Duddy said. “Pennridge played great. As always, it was just a really tough conference game.”
The Knights’ coach lauded the play of Jones in the win.
“He played so well, and on a windy day like that, he’s still so good in the air that he just keeps things going in the right direction for us,” Duddy said.
North Penn (11-1 SOL) head to the playoffs with a 17-1 mark. The Rams finished the regular season 10-7-1 (4-7-1 SOL) were 19th after Thursday’s contest.
North Penn 0 1 – 1
Pennridge 0 0 – 0
Souderton 5, Quakertown 1
Souderton capped off a superb turnaround season by topping host Quakertown 5-1.
The Indians, who were 3-13-2 a year ago, ended up 8-8-2 this season and nearly qualified for the PIAA District One Class 4A tournament.
“We had quite a few players come back to play this year with lots of experience from a year ago,” Souderton coach Matt Benner said. “The boys played a good amount together in the off-season and we know that we have a lot more work to do for next year.”
The Indians (4-7-1 SOL) scored all five of their goals in the first 19 minutes of the opening half.
Ethan Lacher (from T.J. Hibsman) opened the scoring just two minutes in before Anthony Palonis netted the next two goals to make it 3-0 with just 15 minutes elapsed.
Levi Gross and Brandon Fornwall finished off the scoring for the Indians.
Ty Quintois, Conor Kellough, Tom Quintois and Dillon Barbieri all had assists for Souderton.
Goalie Riley Finger made five saves for the Indians.
The Panthers finished the season at 3-15.
Souderton 5 0 – 5
Quakertown 0 1 – 1
Central Bucks West 1, Central Bucks South 1 (2 OTs)
Central Bucks West and host Central Bucks South played to a 1-1 tie that leaves the Titans right on the edge of qualifying for the upcoming PIAA District One Class 4A tournament.
According to the District One website’s power points, the Titans are currently No. 25 and one spot out of qualifying for the tournament although after all of the results are tallied that could change.
“I hope they get in because they deserve to – it’s an extremely talented group of players, and it’s a team that I think definitely could make noise in districts,” Central Bucks West coach Stefan Szygiel said. “It looks like they’re hovering right around that spot. It’s going to come down to how the table moves and is finalized by Sunday.”
Alan Zlotin (Kanishk Nazareth assist) put the Bucks on the scoreboard early in the first half. The Titans notched the equalizer midway through the second half. Neither team scored the rest of the way.
“Honestly, it looked like a late season game, a bunch of high school players who knew a lot was on the line – I don’t think either team was anything close to their best,” Szygiel said. “It was barely an above average game for both teams. There was really no rhythm.
“You combine that with a windy night, and the ball spent a lot of time in favor of the team who had the wind. They definitely had more of the ball than we did. We were able to get one on them. It wasn’t an overly exciting game.”
West goalkeeper Ryan Van Pelt recorded four saves.
The Titans finished the regular season 9-6-3 while the Bucks, who have a non-league game on Saturday (2:30 p.m.) at Downingtown West, are 7-5-5. Both teams finished conference play with identical 5-4-3 records.
Central Bucks West 1 0 0 0 – 1
Central Bucks South 0 1 0 0 – 1
American Conference
Upper Dublin 1, Springfield Township 0
Upper Dublin picked up a crucial 1-0 victory over host Springfield Township that should secure a PIAA District One Class 4A playoff berth for the Cardinals in the upcoming tournament.
The Cardinals – 6-0-1 in their last seven games – were 22nd in the power rankings after Thursday’s win,
Upper Dublin picked up all of the offense it would need when junior Sam Moss headed home a free kick from sophomore Zach Berman in the first half.
“Our back line of Oliver Berman, Zach Berman, Ciaran Sutherland and Ethan Hill did an awesome job of shutting down their forwards tonight,” UD coach Andy Meehan said.
Jordan Skversky and Spencer Beidner combined for the shutout in goal.
The win moved the Cardinals (10-3-1 SOL) to 11-7 at the end of the regular season. The Spartans (6-11, 3-11 SOL) will host The Christian Academy in a non-league game Friday.
Upper Dublin 1 0 – 1
Springfield Township 0 0 – 0
Abington 5, Cheltenham 1
Host Abington prepped for the upcoming PIAA District One Class 4A tournament with a 5-1 win over rival Cheltenham.
The Ghosts finished the regular season 14-3-1 and in second place in the conference behind Hatboro-Horsham with an 11-2-1 conference mark. They head to districts as the No. 9 seed.
They took a 3-0 lead by halftime on goals from Reese Gibbs, Thomas Santangelo and Bryce Lexow. Lexow and Michael Burnstein added goals in the second half for Abington.
The Panthers finished the season 4-14 (1-13 SOL).
Cheltenham 0 1 – 1
Abington 3 2 – 5
Wissahickon 3, Upper Moreland 0
Wissahickon used three second-half goals to net a 3-0 win over visiting Upper Moreland.
The loss left the Golden Bears one spot shy of claiming a berth in the upcoming PIAA District One Class 3A tournament.
“It was a sad way to end our season,” Upper Moreland coach Matt Duffey said. “We needed the win to make the playoffs, but it just wasn’t our day.”
Christian Vorchheimer and Jack Quinn had the goals for Wissahickon, which also received an own goal to account for the final margin.
Wissahickon goalie Hunter Graefe made two saves while Greg Wiley had seven saves in net for Upper Moreland.
The Golden Bearss (4-8-2 SOL) ended the season with a 7-8-2 mark while the Trojans finished 6-10 (7-7 SOL).
Upper Moreland 0 0 – 0
Wissahickon 0 3 – 3
Hatboro-Horsham 1, Plymouth Whitemarsh 0
It took a while, but Michael Cordero’s goal with three minutes left in regulation lifted Hatboro-Horsham to a 1-0 win over host Plymouth Whitemarsh.
The victory clinched sole possession of the conference title for the Hatters, their second crown in the last three seasons.
“We talked after the game Monday that it was great to beat Abington and clinch a share of the title, but it’s a little bit more special if you win it outright,” Hatboro-Horsham coach Kyle McGrath said. “The guys were focused at practice yesterday, everybody came ready to play today, and we got the job done.”
Cordero’s game winner came on a restart.
“The ball got played into the box, it bounced around a little bit, they blocked a shot, and it fell to Mikey Cordero – he just half-volleyed it home for the game-winner,” McGrath said. “It was tough – the conditions were brutal. The wind was definitely a factor.
“It was PW’s Senior Night, so they came out fired up and wanted to have success. They made it very difficult for us, but my guys persevered, and when we got the ball down on the ground and tried to play to feet, we were very good. Fortunately, we were able to knock one in at the end of regulation to win the league.”
McGrath also praised the play of his back line: Vince Buccafuri, Caleb Hudson, Jake Weiss and Zach Joachim.
“It’s their 13th shutout of the season – they’ve only allowed nine goals in 18 games,” McGrath said. “Scott Katherine in goal did a great job with the conditions and made a couple of real big saves for us.
“JD Mallinder, my center midfielder, and Matty Harmon and Vince Buccafuri – all three of my captains just did a great job today.”
Hatboro-Horsham (12-1-1 SOL) closed out its regular season with a 15-2-1 record. The Hatters, who will received an opening round bye, were sixth in the District One 4A power rankings after Thursday’s win. Plymouth Whitemarsh (5-8-1 SOL) closed out its season with a 5-11-1 record.
Hatboro-Horsham 0 1 – 1
Plymouth Whitemarsh 0 0 – 0
Non-League
Bensalem 4, Downingtown East 3
(Additional information will be added when it is received.)
Bensalem rallied to notch a 4-3 non-league win over visiting Downingtown East.
The Owls (11-6-1, 7-4-1 SOL), who saw their 11-game unbeaten streak end with a 3-0 loss to Council Rock North on Tuesday, trailed 2-1 in this one before roaring back for the victory.
Up next for Bensalem will be the PIAA District One Class 4A tournament. The Owls were seeded 16th after Thursday’s win.
About the Author
