Check out the recaps for SOL boys’ soccer teams in action. Wissahickon/UD photos courtesy of Keith Clemens Photography. Springfield Twp/New Hope-Solebury photos courtesy of Karla Donohoe, and CB East/CB South photos courtesy of Tracy Valko. ALL SOS photo galleries for BOYS’ SOCCER, can be viewed by clicking HERE. (UM/Tennent photo provided courtesy of Amy Holman/UM soccer)
SOL Patriot Division
Council Rock South 4, Neshaminy 1
CR South fell behind early in Wednesday’ road game but stormed back to overtake Neshaminy and remain unbeaten through two SOL Patriot games this week.
“It was a terrific win,” said Golden Hawks coach Alan Nicholl. “I’ll tell you what, Neshaminy is a good side – a strong, physical group. Tom (Foley) and (assistant coach) Jimmy (McCourt) always do a phenomenal job getting those boys motivated to play. There’s just tremendous energy that comes out of that team every single year we play them, and they jumped on us early. We were kind of on the back foot to start the game. They swarm the ball, they get to the ball, they tackle hard. They’re such a good team.”
Josh Anderson gave Neshaminy the first-half lead in the 13th minute.
“Josh got the ball from Jon Lopez around midfield,” Foley said. “He turned their guy and kind of raced him down the field and blasted it near post past their goalkeeper. It was a really nice goal, and then we started giving things to them.”
“It was a good goal,” Nicholl said. “Josh Anderson picked up the ball at the halfway line, and 50 yards later, it was in the back of our net. I’m like ‘What the heck just happened?’ It’s just very unlike us to watch a player go that distance with the ball on his feet without putting a body on it, without closing the angle down or forcing him wide. He made it look very easy. I didn’t know if I was so impressed by him or if I was so disappointed by what we did on the defensive side of it. It was a just reward for what Neshaminy brought the opening 20 minutes of the game.”
Later in the half, CR South tied it on an own goal.
“We had a fortunate bounce to tie it up before the half on a throw-in that took a deflection into the goal,” Nicholl said. “Franky (Rafferty) did a terrific job getting his head on it, kind of knocked it back toward the goal and then took a deflection into the goal, so there was good work done on the set piece to get a touch on it.”
Foley liked some things he saw but couldn’t help wonder what might have been.
“Overall, I thought we moved the ball and did some nice things,” the Redskins’ coach said. “We missed a breakaway that would have made it 2-0. Who knows if that changes the fortune of the game? We didn’t cash that in. It’s the second time this year we’ve gone in on the goalie 1v1 and he smothered the ball. You’ve got to trust your shot, get your head up and pick a corner. If you miss you miss. I’d rather have that happen than the goalkeeper smother you on it We had opportunities. We did some nice things but didn’t get rewarded at the end.”
The second half saw the Hawks seize control, with two goals in the first seven minutes.
“Tyler Dobson won a header, knocked it on beyond the defender,” Nicholl said. “Franky (Rafferty) got in behind the guy and scored on the breakaway. It was a good finish.
“A couple minutes later – I think it was off a corner – the ball went popping back out again, and Colin Conway in the center midfield picked it up at the top of the box and slotted the ball back in behind the defense and found Everett Kurtz on the back side who slotted it home.
“Those two goals in quick succession changed the game and forced Neshaminy to go chase the game. We were able to settle in and play a little bit more composed and a little less frantic. We took a little bit of the life out of the game.”
With 15 minutes remaining, South finished the game off as Rafferty scored on a penalty kick after Alex Lose was fouled in the box.
Nicholl also gave a lot of credit to center midfielders Colin Conway and Mike Burns.
“They put in a great shift,” he said. “Neshaminy is such a strong, physical team. They’re fast, they get to the ball very quickly. They did a really good job, particularly as the game was starting to wear down.
“It was one of those games that you could kind of go into the tank, and you sort of hunker down and park the bus, and we never really got there. I have to hand it to the midfield to keep the field down the field, not collapsing in on top of our defense, so we never really hit desperation late in the game. I’ll always give it to the midfield for being able to keep the field down the field. They did a good job of seeing the game out in a very professional manner.
“It’s rare to go away to Neshaminy and come away with – on the scoreboard, it certainly looked like an easy win, but it was far from it.”
Foley credited the effort of several of his players.
“JoeJoe Maxwell was all over the field,” the Redskins’ coach said. “He left it all on the field, he tried his best to pick everybody up. Josh Anderson is a sophomore, and he’s really shined. we’re blessed to have him another two years. Those two guys have been our most consistent.”
Council Rock South (2-1, 2-0 SOL) will host Council Rock North on Wednesday. The Redskins (0-2 SOL) will look to get in the win column when they host Archbishop Wood on Tuesday in a non-league game at 7 p.m.
“We’re very inexperienced, very inexperienced,” Foley said. “We’re learning on the job. We’re taking our lumps. The bottom line is we have to eliminate the mistakes. We’re making too many mistakes. I like Alan (Nicholl), but I don’t want to give him that many goals. They don’t need our help getting goals.
“It’s a long season. We started 0-2 last season and we finished in second place. We have a long way to go. We’ll watch the film tomorrow, we’ll make adjustments and hopefully we’re ready for Wood on Tuesday.”
CR South 1 3 – 4
Neshaminy 1 0 – 1
Pennsbury 4, Harry S. Truman 0
Three second-half goals put this one away as Pennsbury picked up the shutout victory.
Liam Fogel scored off a Josh Rodriguez assist in the 19th minute to put the Falcons on the scoreboard. Then, in the second half, Rodriguez scored two goals of his own, including one to make it 2-0 in the 48th minute, unassisted.
Rocco Ciaccia scored off a Bryan Sanchez assist in the 60th minute, and Rodriguez from Evan Soriano closed the scoring 10 minutes later.
“I thought overall we did a good job of forcing ourselves to play a little quicker and try to find a rhythm,” said Falcons coach Tom Stoddart. “I thought we did a good job in our spacing and able to move the ball around. I was very pleased with how we performed today.”
Pennsbury (2-1, 2-0 SOL) will host Bensalem on Tuesday, and Harry S Truman (0-3, 0-2) will host Neshaminy on Wednesday.
Pennsbury 1 3 – 4
Harry S. Truman 0 0 – 0
Council Rock North 2, Bensalem 1
At Bensalem, visiting North scored twice in the first half and held on for the win. Senior central defender Chase McCaffrey scored both for the Indians, the first a head ball with an assist to Hunter Klein. The second a penalty kick all off the work of speedy forward Windsor Varady, who was taken down in the box by an Owls defender. North had the better of the play in the first half, taking the two-goal lead into halftime.
Bensalem made some adjustments in the second half and at times had North on their heels. The Indians held steady throughout the strong defensive tandem of McCaffrey and Mike Pinho. The Bensalem goal scorer was Tejas Sasan. A great game was had by Bensalem central defender Leonel Chanez who kept thwarting a number of North’s attacks in the second half.
CR North is now 2-0-0 overall and SOL, while Bensalem drops to 0-2-0 overall and SOL. North hosts Archbishop Wood Friday morning, and Bensalem hosts Archbishop Ryan Saturday evening.
Council Rock North 2-0 2
Bensalem 0-1 1
SOL Colonial Division
Central Bucks East 2, Central Bucks South 1 (2 OT)
Playing its first home night game, CB East picked up the win in double overtime when Jared Needles scored off a Michael Montabana assist.
“After a poor showing at West (on Monday), (East) responded for the first game ever under the new lights,” said Patriots coach Josh Isaacsohn. “Both teams played a strong first half with spells of possession and some shots on goal.”
CB South jumped ahead 1-0 on a Jaimin Fee goal, and the Titans maintained that lead into the second half. Then, in the 53rd minute, Montabana scored off a Brandon Epstein assist to tie it up for CB East.
“Then it became a grudge match in which I felt we had the better of play, but could not get many deliveries,” Isaacsohn said. “The game went into (OT) with both teams very tired.”
Needles broke the tie and gave the Patriots the win.
CB East (2-1, 1-1 SOL) hosts Hatboro-Horsham on Saturday morning in a nonleague game. CB South (2-1, 1-1 SOL) is off until Wednesday when it plays at home against CB West.
CB South 1 0 0 0 – 1
CB East 0 1 0 1 – 2
North Penn 1, Central Bucks West 1 (2 OT)
These Colonial Division rivals traded second half goals and then couldn’t get the game-winner the rest of the way and had to settle for a 1-1 tie.
“We’re still figuring out who we are and we’re not connecting passes in the final third like we should,” said NP coach Chris DePeppe. “But overall, the effort and the commitment was there tonight so we can build on this performance.
“West is a good side with solid center backs and hardworking midfielders so a road point is a decent result.”
North Penn opened the scoring early in the second half, as Caden Myers headed one in off of a free kick by Nate Kim.
CB West tied it up on a Harrison Brownlow goal.
“We kept pressing in the second half and we had them on the ropes but just couldn’t deliver the knockout,” said Bucks coach Cooper Moyer. “We did a really nice job again in the second half creating a lot of chances and had a couple solid defensive stands. North Penn’s goalie made a few incredible saves to keep them in it late in the game and through overtime.
“Ben Sterling, Chase Naso and Richie Newell did a great job applying pressure to their back line all night and forcing them into uncomfortable situations. Eddie Rafalowski and Joey Dowd controlled the tempo in the midfield for us and did a nice job keeping the North Penn attack at bay. Our entire back line was really solid and played so well I couldn’t take any of them off the field – they all went 100 minutes tonight which is a tough feat.
“I’m so happy with the boys’ effort and buy-in so far this season. This group just wants to get better one day at a time and it’s showing. The support from our fans and all of the guys on our bench was amazing. We need to keep doing all the small things the right way and the goals will come.”
Troy Nine made three great saves in goal for North Penn, and DePeppe also credited defenders Brian Scott and Hayden Wagner.
North Penn (1-1-1, 0-1-1 SOL) has a nonleague game at La Salle on Friday. CB West (1-0-1, 1-0-1 SOL) plays at Father Judge Saturday morning.
North Penn 0 1 0 0 – 1
CB West 0 1 0 0 – 1
Pennridge 3, Souderton 1
Two Colonial Division games, two wins for Pennridge. Both at home and both over archrivals, so Week 1 went about as well as could be expected for the Rams.
“Those are two huge games to start off with North Penn and Souderton,” said Pennridge coach Pete Valimont. “Especially the first time around, having them at home was a plus for us obviously.”
Junior Ayoob Herzi came off the bench to open the scoring, giving the Rams the 1-0 lead with 8:36 left in the first half.
“It was kind of a scrum in front of the goal, and Shane Velez was able to tap it over to him, and he was able to bury it,” Valimont said.
The second half saw Velez score twice, starting with one at the 35:45 mark to make it 2-0.
“Shane got a ball from Andrew Parlee, and he just cut up two or three defenders, danced around and literally like a 2×2-foot box right to the left side of the goal in front of the goal and he was able to drag it across by the goalie and still be able to finish,” Valimont said. “Most kids would have either fallen or tripped or missed the goal completely. What he did was pretty impressive, that’s for sure. It was fantastic.”
Guiseppe Sirchia scored for Souderton in the 53rd minute, off a Ty Quintois assist, to cut the lead to 2-1.
“He scored off a ball from the right side that came across our box,” Valimont said. “He one-timed it in the back of the net. It was a really good goal. That made it a little bit interesting, but we came right back.”
Valez then scored off a Parlee assist for the final goal, to finish it off for the home team.
“Andrew Parlee again was able to run down the sideline, cut a ball across,” Valimont said. “Shane was trailing the play. He just absolutely buried it.”
The Rams’ coach went on to credit the performances of several players who won’t show up in the box score.
“Pat Fannon did a fantastic job in the middle along with Jack Bruno,” Valimont said. “Our center back, Tommy McKinney, did a really nice job, and (goalie)
“CJ Dimmick stood on his head a couple of times, played really smart at the end with game management. The goals that he’s let in the past two games (are) no fault of his. They were just goals the other teams have been able to finish. CJ has kept us in games and made a lot of saves that most goalies aren’t able to make. He’s done fantastic.”
Pennridge (2-0, 2-0 SOL) has a nonleague game Friday night against Faith Christian. Souderton (1-2, 1-2 SOL) is off until Wednesday when it plays at North Penn.
Souderton 0 1 – 1
Pennridge 1 2 – 3
SOL Liberty Division
Plymouth Whitemarsh 6, Quakertown 2
On the road Wednesday night, PW wasted no time taking control of this game, with two goals in the first six minutes on the way to the decisive victory.
“Quakertown’s boys battled and defended very well, both of their center backs were very tough and played well,” said Colonials coach Rich Kessler.
Mason Clatterbuck scored three goals and added an assist to lead PW. Sam Cohen scored two goals and Myles Kane had a goal, as well.
PW (1-1-1, 1-1 SOL) plays at Hatboro-Horsham on Wednesday. Quakertown (0-2, 0-2 SOL) plays at Wissahickon Wednesday.
PW 6
Quakertown 2
Upper Dublin 1, Wissahickon 0
Leedens Noel scored off a cross from Christopher McNeil and that second-half goal was the only score of the game, as Upper Dublin picked up the rivalry-game win over the Trojans.
“It was a team goal,” said Flying Cardinals coach Noah Johnson. “I can say that with a smile on my face. The boys finally started applying what we worked on in training for a couple weeks – passing the ball, move the ball around, do what we need to do.”
Gabe Copley picked up his second clean sheet in goal in as many games, and he received a lot of help. Johnson credit outside back Rohan Bryan and center back Miles Bondi with solid games.
UD (2-0, 2-0 SOL) has a nonleague game Friday at Methacton. Wissahickon (1-2, 0-2 SOL) is off until a Wednesday home game against Quakertown.
UD 0 1 – 1
Wissahickon 0 0 – 0
Abington 2, Hatboro-Horsham 1
Drew Paxson and Jose Rosario-Martinez scored goals as Abington won its second straight one-goal Liberty Division game this week. Luke O’Donnell assisted on both games.
Abington (2-1, 2-0 SOL) has a nonleague game Friday night at Archbishop Ryan.
H-H (1-1, 1-1 SOL) plays at CB East on Saturday morning.
Hatboro-Horsham 0 1 – 1
Abington 0 2 – 2
SOL Freedom Division
Upper Moreland 3, William Tennent 1
A second half-goal by Mike Scollon helped put this one away, as Upper Moreland bounced back from its first loss with a solid 3-1 win over Tennent.
The Golden Bears led this one almost from start to finish, as Max Gerlach scored off a Logan Holman restart in the fourth minute. Chris Heron made it 2-0 in the 18th minute, after a Jackson Costello restart.
Tennent cut the lead to 2-1 before halftime, but UM reasserted control in the second half when Scollon found the back of the net and picked up the league win.
UM (2-1, 1-1 SOL) is off until Wednesday when it plays at Springfield. Tennent (0-2, 0-2 SOL) has a nonleague game Friday against Roman Catholic
Upper Moreland 2 1 – 3
Tennent 1 0 – 1
Lower Moreland 2, Cheltenham 0
Aiden Moffitt scored 20 minutes into the second half to break a scoreless tie, and Lower Moreland was able to pull away from Cheltenham in a Freedom Division game Wednesday.
“I felt like after that, the guys were calmed down and settled into the rest of the game,” said LM coach Bob Barnhart. “We added a second five minutes later.
“Cheltenham played a physical game and were ready from the opening whistle. I credit Bill (Tonkin) and his staff with preparing them for the game today. I think that was the best Cheltenham team i have seen since we came back into Suburban One.”
The Lions had chances in the first half but couldn’t capitalize.
“Bill had his squad locked in from the start and we were not,” Barnhart said. “We had nine shots in the first half but only four on net. We hit the post a handful of times throughout the entire game. At halftime, I told our guys that if we let them get the first one, we would be spending the rest of the game trying to break them down.”
LM (2-0, 2-0 SOL) is back in action Wednesday at home against New Hope-Solebury. Cheltenham (0-2, 0-2 SOL) hosts william Tennent on Wednesday.
Lower Moreland 0 2 – 2
Cheltenham 0 0 – 0
Springfield Township 3, New Hope-Solebury 0
Two second-half goals broke open a close game, as Springfield remained unbeaten with a Freedom Division win over the Lions.
Riley Martin, Ben Hubley and Nick Marino scored goals for the Spartans, who led 1-0 at halftime. Nick Hanushchak added an assist.
Springfield (2-0, 2-0 SOL) is back at it Thursday with a nonleague game against Collegium Charter. New Hope (1-2, 1-1 SOL) is off until Wednesday when it plays at Lower Moreland.
Springfield 1 2 – 3
New Hope 0 0 – 0
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