Jarrad Saffren recaps all of Tuesday’s SOL boys’ soccer action. Upper Dublin/Wissahickon photos provided courtesy of Kim Supko. Check back for a gallery of photos.
By Jarrad Saffren
It was a busy Tuesday afternoon and night in the Suburban One League. Twenty of 22 teams played league games. Ten league games is the most the SOL can have on a given day or night, since there are seven teams in the SOL National and Continental.
Four really good teams—Central Bucks West, North Penn, Hatboro-Horsham and Upper Dublin smoked league rivals, which is never easy to do. The Council Rocks—North and South—controlled the ball, scored nine combined goals and handled Bensalem and Harry S. Truman, respectively.
But of course, even though I went to journalism school, I buried the ledes (pretentious journalism spelling of the word).
Pennridge beat a rival that it hadn’t beaten since the beginning of the decade. And Plymouth Whitemarsh handed Springfield Township its first loss of 2017.
“It’s always nice to beat an unbeaten team,” said Colonials coach Jeff Heaton, laughing because he knew he was stating the obvious.
Abington and Cheltenham earned solid wins on Tuesday as well. All 10 results and recaps are below.
SOL American
Plymouth Whitemarsh 2, Springfield Township 1
I may have buried the lede (pretentious journalism spelling) in the introduction. But I won’t bury it in the body.
It is only the third week of the boys’ soccer season. Springfield was only 3-0. But one of those wins was a 4-1 knockout of Hatboro-Horsham, one of the better teams in the American. The start looked legitimate, and still might be.
So this was an impressive win for PW.
“We had a tough second half against Wissahickon (In a 3-1 loss on Sept. 8). It was good to bounce back and beat Springfield,” Heaton said. “Our game plan was possession and exert high pressure. They executed well.”
Alex Lefkowitz assisted on both PW goals.
“He has been at the center of it for the last three games for us,” Heaton said. “He does a lot of pressuring up front. We get turnovers and try to counter with those opportunities.”
Kenny Diamond and Jacobe Sandcroft capitalized on those opportunities on Tuesday, scoring both PW goals. PW goalkeeper Patrick Corpus made four saves.
But this was a team effort, and Heaton, like a true coach, stressed that after the game.
“We were missing two captains and we had a few guys pick it up,” Heaton said. “Steve Longo put in a lot of work. Andrew Stricklin and Ryan Heaton also put in a lot of work.”
Ryan Heaton is Jeff Heaton’s son, but only off and away from the soccer field.
“I’m proud of all the guys. He’s just one of the players on the field,” Heaton said, laughing.
Caedmon Curry scored Springfield’s goal. Trevor McCaffrey assisted.
PW (2-1, 2-1 SOL) plays Upper Dublin on Thursday at 3:30. Springfield (3-1, 2-1 SOL) hosts Upper Moreland on the same day and time.
Hatboro-Horsham 5, Quakertown 0
Hatboro-Horsham has bounced back from a surprising loss to Springfield on Sept. 7, beating Upper Moreland and Quakertown by a combined score of 10-0 in its last two games.
Nick Hatzenbeller, Danny Harmon and JD Mallinder again led the Hatters’ attack on Tuesday. Hatzenbeller had two goals and two assists. Harmon had a goal and an assist. And Mallinder had a goal and an assist.
The trio combined for all five H-H goals and two of three assists in the 5-0 win over Upper Moreland.
Tuesday’s explosion was sparked by a halftime adjustment. Quakertown actually played Hatboro-Horsham to a 0-0 halftime tie.
“Credit to Quakertown, they were doing a good job allowing us to shoot from distance, which we fell into, and didn’t put a lot of shots on target,” said Hatters’ coach Kyle McGrath. “I told them we were settling a lot at halftime. In the second half, we stopped settling, attacked and played balls across the grass on the ground. My guys saw the open space from 25-30 and thought they could shoot from there. Once we crashed the box, we created chances for guys to finish, and we did.”
McGrath also made a positional adjustment.
“JD was playing high central and we dropped him back into the midfield,” McGrath said. “That freed him up to get on the ball more and be creative.”
After the adjustments, Hatboro-Horsham scored all five goals between the 43rd and 52nd minutes. It is safe to say they worked.
Hatboro-Horsham (3-1-1, 2-1 SOL) battles Wissahickon on Thursday at 3:30. Quakertown (0-4, 0-3 SOL) plays Cheltenham on the same day and time.
Hatboro-Horsham 0-5 5
Quakertown 0-0 0
Upper Dublin 6, Wissahickon 3
Upper Dublin took round one in the rivalry that may decide the SOL American this season. The rivals were locked at two at halftime. But the Flying Cardinals exploded for four second-half goals.
UD’s Max Adams scored three times, his second hat trick in three games. He has seven goals in 2017. He also had an assist on Tuesday. 
“When you put him in, he doesn’t stop. He played the entire 80 minutes. He’s a hard worker. That is one of his main characteristics,” said UD coach Andy Meehan. “From beginning to end, he was sprinting and putting pressure on the defense. He deserved the three goals that he got and the acclaim that he’s getting.”
Jerry Bardol also had another big night for the Cardinals, with a goal and three assists.
“I would call them a partnership up top. They just work extremely well together. Their games complement each other. Both are very fast,” Meehan said. “Max will go over the top and Jerry receives the ball, and that can switch. And they can read each other and determine what we need at any specific time.”
UD’s Jordan Kahny and Quinn Middleton scored one goal each. Louis Hoffman had an assist.
Keeper Alex Goldenberg stoned 11 shots.
“He had a phenomenal game. He made some very difficult saves, including one of the best saves I’ve ever seen,” Meehan said. “Wissahickon has players who can shoot. He stepped up to the challenge. The three that went in, there was nothing he could do.”
Upper Dublin (3-0) has scored 18 goals in three league games.
“This team comes at you in waves. We don’t stop. I’m thankful I have the players that are up to that challenge,” Meehan said. “We only had 12 shots. We were just able to get into good scoring opportunities and finish the chances.”
Upper Dublin (3-1, 3-0 SOL) hosts PW on Thursday at 3:30. Wissahickon (3-2, 2-1 SOL) welcomes Hatboro-Horsham on the same day and time.
Upper Dublin 2-4 6
Wissahickon 2-1 3
Cheltenham 3, Upper Moreland 0
Cheltenham earned its first win of 2017. The Panthers are now 1-3 overall and 1-2 in SOL American play.
Upper Moreland fell to 0-6 and 0-3.
Cheltenham plays Quakertown on Thursday at 3:30. Upper Moreland meets Springfield on the same day and time.
SOL National
Council Rock South 6, Harry S. Truman 1
Conor Sweeney led CR South to its first league win of 2017. Sweeney recorded two goals and two assists as South turned a close game, 2-1 at halftime, into a blowout with four second-half goals.
“He’s a very busy player. He does a ton of work. He’s one of the most industrious players I’ve coached in 16 years,” said South coach Alan Nicholl. “He’s just all over the field. It’s inevitable he’s going to have his hand in something. He’s always putting pressure on the defense.”
Truman packed it in on defense on Tuesday.
“Conor’s work rate opened up pockets of space for other guys to slide into,” Nicholl said.
South’s Dan Maggio added a goal and two assists.
“Maggio has an eye for a pass and is another very, very hard worker,” Nicholl said. “He can stretch the field and get in behind defenses.”
Conor Nelms, Nick Santos and Pat Zawodniak scored South’s other three goals. Oliver Buynevich assisted on Zawodniak’s goal.
The Golden Hawks outshot Truman 19-5. South keeper Drew Bresnan stopped four shots.
“Truthfully he wasn’t asked to do much, which I’m very happy with,” Nicholl said. “Drew’s come up big for us the past couple games. We made it a priority to ease his burden. I wanted him to be bored. That means we had a good game.”
South had a great game.
“Any win you get is a big one in our league,” Nicholl said. “Dropping our first two was disappointing. So it was big getting that first one today.”
The Hawks (2-4, 1-2 SOL) host North Penn on Thursday at 3:30. The Tigers (3-2, 0-2 SOL) welcome Bensalem on the same day and time.
Council Rock South 2-4 6
Harry S. Truman 1-0 1
Council Rock North 3, Bensalem 2
CR North built a 3-0 lead behind two Vinny Colon goals and a Sean Finneyfrock (This family better own an Irish pub.) goal. Bensalem pushed the Indians with two late second half goals by German Contreras and Robbie Montero, respectively.
But North held on and improved to 3-0 in SOL National play. The Indians are three points ahead of second-place Pennsbury (2-0 in National play). The Falcons were off on Tuesday.
Bensalem fell to 0-3 in National play. The Owls did win their only nonleague game so far.
North (3-2, 3-0 SOL) travels to Abington on Thursday at 3:30. Bensalem (1-3, 0-3 SOL) plays Truman on the same day and time.
Abington 3, Neshaminy 1
Jayden Joy put Abington up 1-0 in the first half. Neshaminy tied it at one early in the second half.
But Sean Touey scored two goals in the last 10 minutes to give Abington the win.
“Sean Touey and Nevin Bair are dangerous up top. They just play off of each other and complement each other,” said Abington coach Randy Garber. “Reese Gibbs did a terrific job winning balls in the midfield.”
Garber also credited his defense.
“(Keeper) Nick Brownholtz did a nice job. He handled the work he had. The long throw ins and shots,” Garber said. “He made no mistakes but our defense played well, Dave Mazzio, Blair Barber.”
Abington (4-1, 2-1 SOL) hosts CR North on Thursday at 3:30. Neshaminy (2-1-1, 1-1 SOL) travels to Pennsbury on Thursday at 3:30.
Abington 1-2 3
Neshaminy 0-1 1
SOL Continental
Pennridge 1, Central Bucks East 0 OT
Pennridge beat Central Bucks East for the first time since 2010.
“It’s funny, I got a call after from (former CB East coach Mike) Gorni, and he doesn’t remember those types of games cause of all the district and state wins they had,” said Pennridge coach Pete Valimont. “But it was big for us. This a big win, too, but it’s only one. We have to do the same thing at their place.”
With 5:30 left in overtime, Sebastian Perkowski charged a bouncing ball and blasted it into the net. The play started with a throw-in, then a kick into the box and then a 50-50 ball. Matt Stevenson corralled the 50-50 ball and kicked it on net.
CB East’s keeper grabbed the ball for a second until Marco Grenda headed it out of his hands, toward Perkowski. The goalie and defender Will Eisold fell, but Eisold still blocked the first shot. He just couldn’t block the second.
“Sebastian buried it,” Valimont said. “It was a scrum goal. We were on the wrong side of many of those last year. So to be on the right side of it was a good feeling.”
“Credit their striker for being in the right place at the right time,” said East coach Jeremiah White.
CB East “dominated the first half,” Valimont said. But Pennridge keeper Ryan Mayhew, making his first varsity start, kept the Patriots off the board. Mayhew stoned 13 shots, 11 in regulation, two in overtime.
“He played very well. He was in the right spot at the right time. If he had been in the wrong spot, they may have gotten more rebounds,” Valimont said. “He was very composed for his first start. Our other guy was in the other day and he played fine. We wanted to give Ryan a shot. At the half we thought about splitting it but I rolled the dice, stuck with him and it worked out.”
“It wasn’t the prettiest game,” White said. “We had a header that was stopped on the goal line and a couple other opportunities that we just didn’t finish.”
Pennridge created some chances, including Grenda’s shot off the crossbar with 5:00 left in regulation. But until the “scrum goal,” East’s defense mostly contained the Rams.
“Will Eisold and Gabe Gomez and Luke Schloffel might be stronger than our defense last year,” White said. “You’d think you’d have a down year after losing Stephen Sheehan. But Gabe has been a great addition and Luke has really improved. But the name of the game is to score goals.”
East is now 1-3, 1-2 in the league. The Patriots have been shut out in all three losses.
“It will take us a little time to address the issues we have that are getting in the way a little,” White said. “We have a really, really strong defense again. We are just not putting the ball in the net at the rate we would like.”
Pennridge (2-1, 1-1 SOL) plays Souderton on Thursday night at 6:30. CB East battles CB West on Monday night at seven.
Pennridge 0-0-1 1
Central Bucks East 0-0-0 0
Central Bucks West 5, Central Bucks South 1
CB West senior Tarin Morris continued his torrid start, scoring three goals and assisting on another to lead the Bucks to a resounding win.
“He was just excellent today. He looked assertive, confident and happy, and really, really dangerous today,” said West coach Stefan Szygiel. “We played well as a team, and Tarin is spearheading it in the offensive third right now. He’s finding the back of the net and we are feeding him.”
Morris has eight goals and two assists in six games. “He’s a four-year varsity guy, he’s a captain, this is his year. He deserves this,” Szygiel said. “He has always been asked to be more of a facilitator. This year we gave him full freedom to take the ball and attack and do what he wants to do. He’s giving the guys around him confidence.”
It seems like new Bucks contribute every game. Alan Zlotin (one goal, two assists) and Kyle Holt (one goal, one assist) became household names on Tuesday.
“Alan is a sophomore. He has done a nice job at that natural forward spot. He provides us with a big physical body. The fact that he has also gotten assists shows his soccer acumen,” Szygiel said. “We’ve loved Kyle since he was a freshman. He’s in a role player role, but every time he steps on the field he gets a goal or an assist.”
West’s Luke Fehrman added an assist on Tuesday. West keeper Dylan Smith made two saves. His backup—Brendan Gibbons—made one.
CB West (6-0, 3-0 SOL) hosts CB East on Monday night at seven. Central Bucks South plays William Tennent on Thursday at 3:30.
Central Bucks West 3-2 5
Central Bucks South 1-0 1
North Penn 3, William Tennent 0
Aidan Jerome scored twice to lead North Penn to a 3-0 win over William Tennent.
“Aidan has been steady. He plays on the flank outside midfield and he’s a clever player,” said North Penn coach Paul Duddy. “He’s smart. He sees where to go, shows up at the far post, stuff a good player knows how to do. That’s what he did on tonight’s goals.”
Jerome leads North Penn with three goals in 2017. Carter Houlihan and Luke McMahon assisted on Jerome’s goals on Tuesday.
North Penn keeper Joe Lindsay made six saves.
“Tennent was good,” Duddy said. “It was a good game, back and forth.”
North Penn (2-1, 2-1 SOL) plays CR South on Thursday at 3:30. William Tennent (1-2, 0-2 SOL) welcomes CB South on the same day and time.
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