Check out the recaps for SOL boys/girls lacrosse teams in action. Souderton/Dock girls’ lax photos courtesy of Michael Rice. Check back for a gallery: https://solsports.zenfolio.com/f1066908596
Boys
Non-league
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 8, PENNCREST 7
There’s nothing quite like heading into the spring break with a big win under your belt. The Bucks are doing just that, improving to 4-0 on the young season with Tuesday’s win over Penncrest the biggest of the four.
“We always expect to win, but nothing’s ever given, it’s always earned,” said junior Alex Greenspan, whose six-point game led the Bucks. “We had a couple of games that we won pretty handily, but this was kind of a wake-up.
“I feel like we have the ability to make a run this year, and this kind of showed it. We haven’t beaten these guys – the last time we beat them I was in seventh or eighth grade, so this was a big win. It kind of showed us that we are in contention for this thing. It’s a win against a higher-ranked team that was important for us to get.”
Greenspan led the West attack with three goals and three assists. Colton Albrecht had a pair of goals while Michael Rafalowski, James Rutenberg and Matt Jacobsen each added one goal. Jacobsen’s goal was the game-winner, and the Richmond commit also had an assist.
Jacobsen once again dominated the faceoff X, winning 15 of 18 faceoffs.
“When you start off with the ball every possession, it’s demoralizing for the other team,” Greenspan said. “You go and score, and their defense has to play defense again. It’s invaluable.
“We definitely won the possession battle, and our defense was causing a lot of turnovers. (Goalie) Kanen (Patel) played great today. He made the plays he needed to, but he didn’t see many shots because our defense was just playing so well, playing tight. Not even letting them get good shots off to even hit the cage.”
While Jacobsen was undeniably a key to the win, so was the Bucks’ stingy defense, which allowed just two goals through the first three quarters.
“Communication is always big with us,” said senior captain Garin Mangeot, who was tasked with defending Penncrest’s top offensive player, Spencer Meille. “We’ve got a lot of good guys. Our defense has been pretty locked down, and I’m happy to be a part of that. One-on-one defense – we can take all of our matchups. I think we played really well off the movement off the ball. A lot of their guys move the ball pretty quick.”
Another key to the big win was the Bucks’ ability to limit Penncrest’s quality shots.
“That’s really all of it,” Mangeot said. “I think we do a pretty good job of going out and pressuring on hands. One-on-one defense was huge for us tonight.”
The Bucks took a 6-2 lead into the final quarter only to see Penncrest score three unanswered goals to pull to within one.
“The issue was kind of the discipline,” Greenspan said. “There was a couple of turnovers on offense, a couple of mental lapses, getting penalties we didn’t need. Kudos to them – they fought back, but we held on – faceoffs from Matt, our wing play on our defense – Garin and Peter (Lucanese) were great, so we held on with that.”
“We stood strong in the end,” Mangeot said. “There were a lot of times where we just killed their plays. We had a man down for a minute or two minutes, but we played great defense – just kind of giving them shots that we know our goalie can make, shots they were spraying out wide.
“Of course, you’re going to give up shots, but make it ones that aren’t quality. That’s kind of our motto.”
And what’s been the key to the Bucks’ early season success?
“We have Matt Jacobsen, but it’s not just that,” Greenspan said. “We have a lot of young guys, and just the connection we all have really starts in August when we have our first couple of practices going on. The connection we have with the young guys and the older guys – we’re just meshing right now. It’s clicking.”
“We have a lot of good freshmen that have stepped up a lot,” Mangeot said. “Michael (Rafalowski) and Colton (Albrecht) have been playing really well. Alex’s little brother (Ben Greenspan) has been playing well. We have a new defender – Gavin (Todd) he’s been playing great. We’ve all been jelling really well as a unit.
“I wouldn’t say I was worried going into the season, but we had a playday at Haverford that was a little shaky, a scrimmage against Upper Dublin that was little shaky, but once the season started, we were firing on all cylinders. We really brought it.
“I’m proud of the guys. The start we’ve had – it’s what any captain would dream of. These guys are working so hard day in and day out. You see the amount of growth these guys have had since summer practices that go into the fall – it’s ridiculous. These guys are really putting a lot of work in, and it’s starting to pay off especially in games like this. It’s a pretty good feeling to go 4-0 against a team like that going into the break.”
Central Bucks West (4-0) will be on the road at Methacton next Tuesday for a non-league game.
Central Bucks West 2-2-2-2 8
Penncrest 1-0-1-5 7
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 15, ABINGTON 4
Council Rock South secured its third consecutive victory with a win over Abington, finishing with a score line of 15-4.
Notably, sixteen players from the Golden Hawks contributed significantly to the ground game, showcasing a well-rounded team effort. Captains Wes Waninger and Thomas Gallagher led the way with four and three respectively.
The game saw CR South take control early, establishing a 3-1 lead in the first quarter. The defense further asserted its dominance in the second quarter, limiting the Ghosts to just one goal, allowing CR South to enter halftime with a comfortable 7-2 lead. Notably, Ben McNulty, starting his first varsity game as a defenseman, made valuable contributions with a ground ball and several successful clears.
Offensively, CR South had seven players making their mark on the score sheet. Owen Dillon emerged as a standout performer, netting an impressive six goals. Conor McCaffery contributed significantly with four goals and two assists, while Joey Smith displayed a balanced performance with two goals and two assists. TJ Shores added two goals with a dodging effort from X, while MJ Feeney, Wes Waninger, and Jake Baniewicz each contributed to the scoring with a goal or an assist.
Despite the convincing win, there is no time for rest for Council Rock South (3-1) as the Hawks are set to host Plymouth Whitemarsh tomorrow night. The Abington Ghosts will have a short break before their upcoming match against Hatboro-Horsham scheduled for next Tuesday.
Abington 1-1-0-2 4
Council Rock South 3-4-3-5 15
Girls
Non-league
PENNSBURY 12, ABINGTON 6
Grace Holmes turned in a glittering seven-goal effort to lead the Falcons’ attack. She also had 10 draw controls in a contest the Falcons led 7-4 at halftime.
Mia Popovich added a hat trick and two draw controls while Riley Borgman had a pair of goals. Lily Abraham added a pair of assists, and Angelina Kenney contributed one assist and one draw control.
Pennsbury goalie Kema Brown was credited with 17 saves.
Pennsbury (2-2) will travel to Council Rock North on Wednesday, April 3.
Pennsbury 7-5 12
Abington 4-2 6
SOUDERTON 23, DOCK MENNONITE ACADEMY 9
Tatum Andrews, Avery Farina and Caroline Kelcy were an all but unstoppable trio, combining for 17 goals and five assists in Souderton’s non-league win Tuesday.
Andrews led the Indians’ potent attack with eight goals and two assists. She also had five draw controls. Kelcy and Farina both had six-point games with Kelcy scoring five goals and assisting on another and Farina contributing six goals and two assists.
Carly Gavetti also had a big game, leading the Indians with 10 draw controls and adding two goals and one assist. Anah Petrovich and Ella Longacre both had one goal and one assist, and Abby Quinn contributed a goal and two draw controls. Savannah Smith added one goal, and Chloe Detweiler chipped in an assist to round out the scoring for the Indians.
Souderton goalie Nicole Kleckner had five saves.
For Dock, Abby Mellinger, Jenna Detweiler and Sophie Veltre each had three goals. Ava Dunn was credited with four saves.
Souderton (3-0) will travel to Central Bucks West for its league open Wednesday, April 3.
Dock Mennonite 6-1 7
Souderton 11-12 23
Monday, March 25
UPPER MORELAND 14, DELAWARE CHRISTIAN ACADEMY 4
The Golden Bears used a balanced attack in Monday’s non-league win.
“Today’s game had eight different players that had a part of our 14 goals,” UM coach Kim Frantz said. “We celebrate Madeline Cox who scored her first high school goal.
“Kaylee Keegan did a nice job getting her first couple varsity minutes in goal. Our defense is starting to gel and come together. Out of the 14 goals we scored nine were assisted which is always great to see. Delaware County Christian Academy did a nice job with the draw, and once we adjusted, we were able to win more draws as the game went on.”
Willow Taylor scored four goals and assisted on another. Annalise Messina’s six-point game led the Bears. She finished with two goals, four assists and five draw controls. Molly Meakim had two goals and one assist while Keira Hess had two goals and four draw controls. Olivia Meakim had a four-point game, scoring once and assisting on three. Adding one goal each were Maggie Morrow, Ella Gould and Madeline Cox.
Addi Hurley (3 saves) and Kaylee Keegan (3 saves) shared time in goal.
Upper Moreland (2-1) will host Neshaminy on Wednesday.
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