SOL District Girls’ Soccer Preview (Second Round)

Seven SOL girls’ soccer teams will be in action in the second round of the District One AAA Tournament.

District One AAA Playoffs

#16 WISSAHICKON at #1 CENTRAL BUCKS EAST

#1 Central Bucks East Patriots

17-0-1 overall
13-0-1 in league play; SOL Continental Champions
Regular season wins over #19 Upper Dublin (4-0), #6 West Chester Henderson (3-0), defending Class AA state champion Villa Joseph Marie, #24 Central Bucks South (1-0 & 1-0), #8 Pennridge (3-2 & 1-0).
Only blemish a 1-1 tie on October 21 to #25 Souderton
Last season: Lost in PIAA state semifinals to Canon-McMillan, 2-1.
Offense led by arguably the state’s best player, senior UPenn-commit Emma Loving. Bri Talbot and Paige Weiss have been solid up front as well. Hannah Zach is an underrated threat at midfield.

How they got here: First round bye

Wissahickon Trojans

13-5-1 overall
11-2-1 in league play; Second place in SOL American
Regular season wins over Springfield (Montco) (8-4) and #19 Upper Dublin (1-0)
Last season: Lost in District One AAA first round to Plymouth Whitemarsh, 2-1
Maddie Elwell, Talia Abrahams, Mady Foglia, and Krysta Memis lead the Trojans’ charge offensively
Keanna Haney has been strong in net all season.

How they got here: In Tuesday’s opening round, Wissahickon defeated 17^th-seeded Abington in penalty kicks after battling to a 1-1 double overtime tie. Mady Foglia (Jasmine Bishop assist) scored a goal in the first half to knot the score 1-1. Krysta Memis, Foglia, Maddie Elwell and Gabby Unipan connected on their PKs, propelling the Trojans to a 4-3 result. Goalie Keanna Haney recorded seven saves.

#15 RADNOR at #2 PENNSBURY
#2 Pennsbury Falcons

17-1-0 overall
13-1-0 in league play, SOL National champions
Key regular season wins over #28 Garnet Valley (5-1), #17 Abington (4-1 & 4-2) # Council Rock North (4-0), Neshaminy (6-3 & 3-0)
Only loss came against Council Rock North (2-1) on October 6.
Last season: Won District One AAA Championship; Lost in PIAA AAA quarterfinals to CB West, 2-1.
Offense led by Caroline Foley, Cara Thomas, Riley Rudd, and Kelly Amador.
Nany Santiago has been strong in net all season long.

How they got here: First round bye

#15 Radnor

10-3-5 overall
6-1-4 Central League third place
Regular season win over #18 Penncrest (2-1) and tied #20 Bishop Shanahan

How they got here: After battling to a double overtime scoreless tie, Radnor defeated 18^th-seeded Penncrest in penalty kicks (3-2) when Emily Games found the net in the seventh round of PKs. Goalie Alexa Solomon had five saves.

#24 CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH at #8 PENNRIDGE
Pennridge Rams

12-4-2 overall
8-4-2 in league play; Second place in SOL Continental
Key regular season wins over #24 CB South (4-2), #16 Wissahickon (6-1), #25 Souderton (3-0)
Last season: Lost in District One AAA first round to Owen J. Roberts, 2-1
Sisters Kennedy and Kouri Peace lead the attack up front for the Rams. Jess Milligan, Erin Stevenson, and Katie Fischer have provided valuable contributions as well.

How they got here: In Tuesday’s rematch of SOL Continental rivals, Pennridge used a goal by Kennedy Peace (Rachel Velez assist) to go into halftime with a 1-0 league. In the second half, the Rams benefitted from an own goal that was credited to Jess Milligan as well as a score from Erin Stevenson.

Central Bucks South Titans

11-6-2 overall
7-5-2 in league play; Third place in SOL Continental
Key regular season wins over #27 North Penn (4-1 & 2-1), #23 West Chester East (1-0) and 14-6-1 Archbishop Wood (1-0)
Close defeats at the hands of CB East (1-0 both times), Souderton (2-1) and Villa Joseph Marie (2-1)
Ties with #8 Pennridge on October 8 and Souderton on September 21.
Last season: Lost in District One AAA second round to Great Valley, 3-1
Offense led by Aleksa Peev (8 goals and 3 assists) and Kylie Walsh (5 goals and 7 assists)
Goalie Sophia Boggs has been clutch for the Titans in net, registering 8 shutouts.

How they got here: In Tuesday’s opening round, Central Bucks South upset ninth-seeded Downingtown East 2-1, scoring a pair of second half goals to erase a 1-0 halftime deficit. Freshman Brooke Steigerwalt (Krysta Redding assist) and freshman Mackenzie Edwards (Courtney Taylor assist) each scored a goal, and Sophia Boggs came up big in the net.

#14 COUNCIL ROCK NORTH at #3 WEST CHESTER RUSTIN

Council Rock North Indians

13-4-3 overall
9-3-2 in league play; third place in SOL National
Key regular season wins over #17 Abington (1-0 twice), #2 Pennsbury (1-0), and #21 Mount St. Joseph (8-1)
Ties to Neshaminy (1-1) on October 13, Council Rock South (0-0) on October 15, and Haverford (0-0) on October 17
Last season: Lost in District One AAA first round to CB South in PKs.
Goalie Jeri Belardo has registered 10 shutouts on the season
Offense led by Becca Margolis (7 goals and 4 assists), Tori Hill (4 goals and 16 assists), Mia Scalamandre (4 goals), and Kayla Robinson (17 goals and 5 assists)

How they got here: Council Rock North defeated 19^th-seeded Upper Dublin 5-1, scoring four second half goals to blow the game wide open. Kayla Robinson led the Indians with the hat trick. Becca Margolis and Sydney Allen added single goals. Lauren D’Amelia, Mia Scalamandre, Tori Hill and Caitlin Duffy contributed assists. Jeri Belardo had six saves in net.

West Chester Rustin

16-2 overall
12-1 Ches-Mont American Division champions
12 shutouts during the regular season
Wins over #6 West Chester Henderson (1-0), #7 Strath Haven (2-1), #11 Neshaminy (1-0) and #20 Bishop Shanhan (2-0)
Lost to #4 Spring-Ford (3-1) and West Chester East (1-0)
Allowed more than one goal just once this season – in a 3-1 loss to Spring-Ford

How they got here: First round bye

#11 NESHAMINY at #6 WEST CHESTER HENDERSON
Neshaminy Redskins

13-5-2 overall
10-3-1 in league play, second place in SOL National
Key regular season wins over #17 Abington (6-0), #14 Council Rock North (1-0), #10 Downingtown West (2-0)
Last season: Lost in District One AAA first round to Council Rock South, 1-0
Playmakers abound on the Neshaminy offense. Led by senior Gabby Farrell (25 goals and 7 assists), freshman Brooke Mullin (12 goals and 5 assists), sophomore Jackie Ziegler (7 goals and 9 assists), and junior Maggie Daeche (6 goals and 3 assists).
Defense headed by sophomore Nicole Palmer and senior Dani McGlynn

How they got here: In Neshaminy’s opening round 4-0 win over 22^nd-seeded Phoenixville, Gabby Farrell scored all four goals. Alyssa Tobin assisted on two while Riley Nyhus and Jackie Ziegler each had one assist.

West Chester Henderson

16-3-0 overall
12-1-0 in league play; Ches-Mont League National Division champions
Key regular season wins over #23 West Chester East (1-0), #9 Downingtown East (2-0), and #10 Downingtown West (2-0)
Last season: Lost in District One AAA first round to Strath Haven, 3-2.
Lost to top-seeded Central Bucks East 3-0

How they got here: West Chester Henderson defeated North Penn 3-1 in an opening round game. Addy Zandi scored a pair of goals, and Sydney Zandi added one.

District One AA Playoffs
Both AA teams in the SOL will be represented in the District One AA playoffs. Upper Moreland and Springfield both grabbed the final spots in the postseason. Both teams will play first round games on Friday. If the Bears and Spartans can get by their respective opponents, the familiar foes will face each other in the second round.

#7 Upper Moreland at #2 Gwynedd Mercy – Friday, Oct. 30 (3 p.m.)
Upper Moreland Bears When we talk about battle-tested teams when it’s playoff time, it’s hard to forget about Upper Moreland. The Bears compete in the SOL American, playing against mostly AAA—bigger schools. The only exception is, of course, Springfield (Montco), which is also playing in the AA playoffs. Keep that in mind, as Upper Moreland takes on GMA in the first round.

8-7-3 overall
6-6-2 in league play; fifth place in SOL American
Key regular season wins over Springfield (Montco) (1-0), Cheltenham (1-0 & 3-1) and a 1-1 tie against Plymouth Whitemarsh
Offense led by Brianna Byard (7 goals), Samantha Cancel, and Maggie Finn
Goalie Kim Benge has registered four shutouts on the season.

Gwynedd Mercy Monarachs

9-3-0 overall
Key regular season wins over Wissahickon (4-1), Villa Joseph Marie (3-2 OT) and Archbishop Wood (2-1)

#6 Springfield (Montco) at #3 Lower Moreland – Friday, Oct. 30 (3 p.m.)
Springfield (Montco) Spartans Springfield will look to right the ship against Lower Moreland. On October 5, the Lions handed the Spartans a 5-0 defeat. Three weeks have past since then, and hopefully for Springfield, coach Suzette Wolf will bring a different game plan as her team looks to avenge that loss. Springfield’s experience against solid AAA opponents should help them get ready.

8-7-1 overall
8-5-1 in league play; third place in SOL American
Key regular season wins over Plymouth Whitemarsh (2-0), Wissahickon (1-0) and #7 Upper Moreland (3-0)
Lost to Lower Moreland 5-0 on October 5.
Led on the field by sweeper Lindsey Smith

Lower Moreland Lions