GIRLS LACROSSE
Upper Dublin 19, Cheltenham 8
As a senior co-captain on this year’s Upper Dublin team, Brooke Callahan is looking to do her part to help make her teammates better.
“I’m working this year on trying to get a lot of assists, helping the other players out on the team, and being involved in a lot of the plays,” said the four-year starter.
Of course, if the Flying Cardinals need Callahan to put the ball in the cage, she’s quite adept at that as well.
Callahan netted a game-high five goals – all before the break, including three in the final five minutes of the half – as Upper Dublin powered its way to a 19-8 win over American Conference opponent Cheltenham in the league opener for both teams
“That’s what we expect out of Brooke,” said coach Dee Cross. “She’s very tenacious. She’s very good at driving the crease. She can play with her right or left hand and she plays with a lot of heart and a lot of passion. She always goes 100 percent and always does a really nice job.”
Two of Callahan’s goals came on free position shots, her first giving the Flying Cardinals a 5-1 lead less than five minutes into the game. Kick-started by Kelly Cross’ goal off the opening draw and Rachel DiFrangia’s tally a minute later, the host Cardinals scored the first four goals of the game and led 6-1 before five minutes had ticked off the clock.
“We haven’t had a game this week, so we were dusting the rust off at first, but we came together and we played like the team that we are,” said Callahan, who will play lacrosse at Lafayette College next year. “We have very high hopes. We want to take it further than we did last year, but we’re not going to overlook anyone. Every team is a challenge.”
The Cardinals exploded for seven unanswered goals in the final 5:32 of the first half. Emily Hitchings kicked off the run with the second of her three on the day (she also added three assists). Callahan added three in the run, Julie Cross scored two of her three goals on the day and Taylor D’Ginto capped off the half, scoring her second of the game on a nice solo effort with 19 seconds remaining before the break.
“We started off a little bit slow, then things really started clicking,” coach Cross said. “I think they really came together and put it together in the middle of the game. We’re happy about that.
“This is our senior team. We have a good core group of seniors and they like to win. They’re physical, they play hard for the ball and they’re showing the younger girls it’s about the team, making that pass, making that double-team. We still have a lot of improvement to be made, but it’s a start. They walked off the field and they know, they know they can do better. They want to go to that next level.”
The Cardinals held the ball for much of the second half – which was played with a running clock – working the ball around the perimeter in the offensive zone and patiently setting up cuts to the cage. The Cards opened the half with three goals – Hitchings’ third, Kelly Cross’ fourth of the game off a steal in the offensive zone and a goal from Anna Trentini – but the Panthers answered with the final three of the game.
Allison Hawkins, who led Cheltenham with two goals and two assists, found the back of the net with six minutes left in the game. Sammie McManus scored her second of the game with just under two minutes left on a strong solo effort that saw her bring the ball from behind the cage, curl to the front and fire home the shot. Gabby Sopanek capped off the scoring with her second of the game with just 10 ticks remaining on the game clock.
“We talked to the girls before the game,” said Cheltenham coach Dave Burton. “We told the girls, we can’t control the opponent. We can control our effort. We told them before and during the game, no matter how frustrating it gets, you’ve got to keep pushing forward, and that’s what they did.”
The Panthers made the most of their first-half chances, scoring five goals. Just 35 seconds after Upper Dublin staked out what could have been a crushing lead at 4-0, Cheltenham answered with McManus’ first goal of the game. After spotting the Cards two more goals, the Panthers responded with two of their own, from Brittany Sopanek and Emily Leibovitz.
Allie Liss and Hawkins would find the net before the end of the half.
“We had a good stretch there in the first half, and then Upper Dublin really hit their stride,” Burton said. “But the girls never gave up. I’m happy with their effort, and in a game like that, you take away the little things, the small victories that you hope will start to add up as the season goes on.”
Burton praised the efforts of Hawkins for her efforts taking draws against Kelly Cross – one of the league’s best on draws – as well as sophomore defender Allie Graul, who played a solid game around her own cage against the experienced and dangerous Upper Dublin attackers.
“Allie had not played lacrosse before,” Burton said. “This is her first year playing, and she played the entire game. She did a really good job playing low defense. She really held her ground in those individual matchups she faced.”
The Panthers fall to 0-1 in league play, 1-2 overall. They will visit Upper Merion on Tuesday for a rare 10 a.m. game.
Upper Dublin improves to 1-0, 2-0. The Cardinals will head to Florida for spring break, where they have an April 4 date with nationally ranked Vero Beach Senior High School, a team that brought a stunning 69-game winning streak into the 2012 season.
It will require a near-perfect game and a total team effort to come away with a victory, but total team efforts are nothing new to the Cardinals.
“We’ve played together for so long, when we get in the zone, we all get in the zone,” Callahan said. “We know what we can and what we can’t do and we all know our roles on the team, and I think that’s what makes us such a strong team.”
Wissahickon 18, Plymouth Whitemarsh 10
Sophomore midfielder Lauren Frankenfield scored six goals and assisted on two others as Wissahickon jumped out to a 12-4 halftime lead and earned an 18-10 victory over American Conference foe Plymouth Whitemarsh on Thursday.
Zoe Gomez had four goals and two assists, Zoe Kale scored four and added an assist, Taylor Myers scored three and Lauren Irvine scored one and had an assist for the Trojans.
“We played a very composed game,” said first-year Wissahickon coach Chelsea Rosiek. “The girls were very careful and considerate with the ball.
“I wanted to get everybody in today. I’m excited we got our first win. We had some brilliant moments out there. Overall I’m impressed with the effort and intensity.”
Sarah Naylor led PW with five goals. Freshman Kirsten Monte scored two and Meghan McCollough, Jenna Kalman and Sami Heller each scored one.
Wissahickon improves to 1-0 in conference play, 1-1 overall. The Colonials fall to 0-1, 0-3.
Upper Merion 12, Norristown 7
Tied 4-4 at halftime, Upper Merion picked up its play in the second half to improve to 2-0 overall (1-0 American Conference) with a 12-7 victory over league foe Norristown.
“We weren’t connecting in the midfield in the first half,” said Upper Merion coach Angie Yanocha. “We’d make a nice defensive play, then we’d turn the ball over in the midfield. And Norristown has a lot of speed. They’re fast, and we weren’t tight enough in the midfield.”
Haley Fitzgerald and Dominique Gambone each scored three goals for the Vikings. Liz Botto scored two, Julia Reinert had a goal and three assists, and Natalie McGrath, Danielle SanFelice and Brooke Dubin each added one.
Ally Frymoyer made 19 saves in goal for Upper Merion.
“We came out much stronger in the second half,” Yanocha said. “I put Dominique at center and she did a real nice job on draws.
“We’re happy to be 2-0. We have to work on some things. We’ve got people playing in different positions, and we lost three defenders to graduation, so it’s going to take time to jell together. But we’re happy with where we’re at.”
Beverly Pate led Norristown (0-2, 0-1) with five goals.
Pennridge 13, Council Rock South 8
Pennridge jumped out to a 9-2 halftime lead and picked up its first victory of the season with a 13-8 non-league win over Council Rock South on Thursday.
“We played Hatboro-Horsham (Wednesday), and that was a tough game for the girls,” coach Heidi Rimmer said of the 19-7 loss to the powerful Hatters. “But we did some good things in that game, and that carried over into today’s game.”
Taylor Dachowski led Pennridge (0-1 in league play, 1-3 overall) with four goals. Aerin McHugh had a hat trick, Sarah Wiley and Maddie Maher each scored twice and Jackie Stevens and Leah Alcott each scored one goal. Goalkeeper Lynsey Babcock made seven saves in recording the win.
Gabi Rosenfeld led the Golden Hawks (0-3) with three goals. Christine Besselman scored two and Kiera McGovern, Jamie Damirgian and Patrice McFillin each added one.
North Penn 15, Central Bucks East 5
Brenda McDermott scored five goals and Rachel Shaw poured in four as North Penn rolled past Central Bucks East 15-5 in Thursday’s Continental Conference game.
Aubrie Stouffer and Hannah Young each scored two for the Maidens, Laura DeLongis and Kaitlin Suzuki each had a goal and an assist, and Emily Schulze added one assist.
Jenna Stover made two saves in goal, and Gabby DiDomizio played a solid game, causing five turnovers and scooping up seven ground balls.
North Penn improves to 1-0 in the league, 2-1 overall. East falls to 0-2, 2-2.
Hatboro-Horsham 20, Central Bucks South 4
Courtnee Daley sparked Hatboro-Horsham with five goals and an assist as the Hatters powered past Continental Conference opponent Central Bucks South on Thursday. Nicole Beck and Lizzy Carr each had two goals and four assists, Julie McKay had two goals and two helpers, Casey Swezey scored twice and added an assist, Rachel Rauza had a hat trick, Katie McKay chipped in with two goals and Caroline Hagan added one for the high-scoring Hatter attack.
Freshman Emily Cliggett let Central Bucks South with a pair of goals. Mackenzie Harding had a goal and an assist and Maddie DiBrino scored once.
The Hatters improve to 3-0 in league play, 4-0 overall. South drops to 0-1, 2-1.
Germantown Academy 17, Neshaminy 3
Germantown Academy jumped out to a 13-1 lead at halftime and rolled to a 17-3 win over Neshaminy in Thursday’s non-league matchup.
Shannon Fisher had a goal and an assist for Neshaminy.Cassidy DiIenno and Fran Donato each added one goal for the Redskins (0-2 overall). Frances Gentry made six saves in goal.
Souderton 20, Central Bucks West 10
Liz Mower turned in a huge performance for the Indians, contributing seven goals and three assists. Teammate Chessie Rahmer added the hat trick while Carley Kendall (two assists), Amber Lambeth, Natalie Bulgier and Alexa Schneider each added two goals. Alyssa Ziegler (one assist) and Tori Bulgier closed out the scoring with one goal each. Kaitlin Crouthamel recorded six saves in goal for the Indians.
BOYS LACROSSE
Archbishop Wood 11, Council Rock North 5
Council Rock North played gamely, taking a 4-3 lead in the third quarter, but non-league opponent Archbishop Wood pulled away down the stretch to take an 11-5 victory over the young Indians’ squad.
“The effort was there,” said North coach Jon Levine. “They gave 100 percent for all four quarters. But they’re learning a new system, a new way of looking at the game as a whole, and it takes time.
“It was a good game. Wood had a two-goal lead with four or five minutes left. We tried to take some chances and they were able to pull away. But it was a different game than the score shows.”
Levine praised the efforts of Brian Fitzpatrick on offense and the defensive unit as a whole.
“This was definitely something to build on,” Levine said, whose squad stands at 1-0 in National Conference play, 1-2 overall. “The guys know, our goal is to get better every day. We beat Truman 15-1 (on Wednesday), and we improved from that game. And then we want to be better in the second quarter than we were in the first quarter. Overall, we played better today than (Wednesday).”
Plymouth Whitemarsh 6, Upper Moreland 3
In a low-scoring affair that saw both teams’ goalies combine for 36 saves, Plymouth Whitemarsh pulled out a 6-3 victory over a young, upstart Upper Moreland squad in Thursday’s American Conference game. PW led 3-0 at halftime.
Andrew Sabia made 18 saves for PW (2-0 in league, 2-1 overall) and Riley White made one save. Matt McGlinsey turned aside 17 shots in goal for the Golden Bears (0-1, 2-1).
Nick Swift led the Colonials with two goals and an assist. Jake Brown had a goal and an assist, John Fritz, Ryan Kelly and Brandon White each scored once and Kevin Hennessy registered an assist.
Chris Flemming had a goal and two assists and Austin Sgro and Billy Costello scored one goal each for Upper Moreland.
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