CB South, North Penn & Neshaminy were winners in Monday’s opening round of the District 1 3A Tournament. Quakertown/Spring-Ford photos courtesy of Sharon Shipe. Check back for a gallery of photos.
#12 CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 1, #21 DOWNINGTOWN EAST 0
One tip was all it took for the Titans to earn a win in Monday’s opening round district contest.
Amy Hazell deflected a shot by Ella Marchesi into the cage during corner play. That goal – which came with under seven minutes remaining until halftime – turned out to be the game-winner in the tightly contested battle.
“I’m extremely proud of this team and how they stepped up to play tonight,” South coach Kelli Chioffe said. “It has been over four years since we have hosted a first round playoff game at Titan Stadium, and they came ready to play.”
South’s Nora McQueen turned away all nine shots she faced in a stellar outing in goal.
The win vaulted the Titans into Wednesday’s second round where they will face a familiar foe in Colonial Division Souderton. The Indians won both games, which were evenly matched battles.
Scoring summary
First quarter – No score
Second quarter
Amy Hazell (CBS) from Ella Marchesi, 6:32
Third & fourth quarters – No score
By the numbers: Shots: CBE 10, DE 10; Penalty corners: CBS 2, DE 3; Goalie saves: Nora McQueen (CBS) 9, Kaci Elinski (DE) 9. Defensive save: Sophia Kraft (CBS)
Central Bucks South coach Kelli Chioffe:
–On the game: “Scoring first was a big deal. Ella Marchesi took a shot on goal on corner play, and Amy Hazell was able to get a tip on it to chip it up over the goalie.
–Props: “Kudos to forwards Kaeli VanDerSluis, Addy Edwards, Carrie Williams and Amy Hazell and our mids – Tessa Walls and Ella Marchesi – for keeping their space and finding each other
“Midfielder Avery Tyler had a stellar game. Hailey Finn also played well, stepping up for us in our defensive midfield, stopping balls through to each other and redefending when necessary.
“The defense – Jordyn Jafe, Kelly Hemsley, Sophia Kratz and Ryann VanDer Sluis – held strong, only allowing three penalty corners. Downingtown East has some girls that had some serious lifts and reverse chips. Our goalie, Nora McQueen, saved some fantastic shots by East.”
Up next: Central Bucks South will be on the road at #5 Souderton for a second round game on Wednesday.
Downingtown East 0-0-0-0 0
Central Bucks South 0-1-0-0 1
#13 NORTH PENN 2, #20 CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 1
Postseason play is an opportunity to play new teams and see new faces.
But not always.
North Penn found itself staring across the bracket at a very familiar foe in Central Bucks East. As a matter of fact, the Knights’ opening round opponent was the SOL Colonial team they had just played in their final regular season game six days earlier.
“I wasn’t like, ‘Oh, let’s play CB East again’ – they’re an aggressive and a very talented team,” senior captain Tallie Smink said. “But it was good to play them immediately because you knew their tendencies. As I was playing, I was thinking, ‘Oh, they drive a lot.’ I feel like if we didn’t play them immediately, I would have forgotten some of their tendencies.”
The Knights won both regular season games, but both were tightly contested – the most recent a 2-1 overtime win and a 3-2 win earlier in the season. Monday’s game was no different.
“I give a lot of credit to their #25 (Brynn Bonargo), and she’s very good,” Smink said. “To go up against her three games in a row was hard because she’s very dynamic.
“It’s hard to beat a team three times, especially in our league, because our league is very competitive. I’m happy that we got the win, but I also feel like they were a very good team as well.”
NP coach Shannon McCracken echoed a similar sentiment.
“In field hockey, you play three games a week, so you move on quickly,” the Knights’ coach said. “Kids look the same, corner plays start to mesh together.
“If we were going to draw East, it was the best case scenario because they were really fresh in our minds, and we were able to make some adjustments of things we saw when we played them that really helped us today.”
The Knights got on the scoreboard in the second quarter on an penalty corner.
“The kids executed the corner beautifully,” McCracken said. “The ball went to Tallie Smink at the top from the insert. She passed it to Cissy Lewis, our freshman, and then there was a pass to senior Kylie Barwis, and she put it in. It was just a well-executed corner.”
The Knights added an insurance goal three minutes into the fourth quarter.
“It was kind of interesting,” McCracken said. “In the third quarter, we had more corners, I thought we had more time of possession in the attack, and we couldn’t execute and get it in.
“I was like – I hope this doesn’t haunt us because we had those opportunities in the third quarter, and it was great that we scored on a corner – it was a deflection. It went up and over our goalie, so it was kind of like a fluke and over the goalie. It was hard to defend.”
That 2-0 lead held until East broke up the Knights’ shutout bid with a goal by Brynn Bonargo with 3:44 remaining in regulation.
Scoring summary
First quarter – No score
Second quarter
Kylie Barwis (NP) from Cissy Lewis, 5:37
Third quarter – No score
Fourth quarter
Cissy Lewis (NP) from Paige Shearer, 12:41
Brynn Bonargo (CBE) 3:44
By the numbers: Shots NP 15, CBE 10; Penalty corners: NP 9, CBE 4; Goalkeeper saves: Kiley Moister (NP) 9, Camryn Puhalla (CBE) 12. Defensive Saves: CBE – Katie Szcypiorski
North Penn coach Shannon McCracken:
–On the game: “Honestly, it was a really great team effort. The kids just played really well together – their passing, their movement off the ball, working with each other – going to goal together, making sure we’re getting back in the transition because we held them to four corners, which was great.”
–Props: “Tallie Smith played really well at the center back position tonight. She shut down one of their top kids, #25 (Brynn Bonargo). They really try and find her in the attacking end, and Tallie was able to contain her really well.
“Kylie Barwis, our attacking center mid, is kind of like the quarterback of the team. When she plays fast and she plays hard, then the rest of the team really rises to the occasion around her, so she sets a good tone for team. She played really well.
“On the forward line, Cara Albano and Cissy Lewis played great. We had some key transitions where we went to goal really fast, and that’s because of the two of them and their speed and their stickwork.
“Another midfielder, Devon Crowley, was our DCM (defensive center mid). She’s not a flashy player, but she’s just had such a steady, consistent player, kind of like an unsung hero. She just plays hard, and she doesn’t give up on the field, so she’s really good at redefending in the center and she does a good job distributing the ball .”
North Penn senior captain Tallie Smink on key to the win: “Everyone was so excited for the game, and our team chemistry is really good. Our biggest thing was keeping possession.
“In our last game against (CB East), they scored a late goal, and we went into overtime. It was just like the team chemistry and playing together really helped us win tonight.”
Up next: North Penn will travel to #4 Methacton on Wednesday for a second round game.
Central Bucks East 0-0-0-1 1
North Penn 1-0-0-1 2
#14 NESHAMINY 3, #19 HAVERFORD 2 (2 OT)
With time winding down in the second overtime, players on both sides were reaching the point of exhaustion – nearly 20 minutes of 7v7 will do that to even the fittest of athletes.
“It’s really tough, but thankfully our coach – coach Pinto – really prepares us for this,” said Neshaminy junior Mia Brooks. “We practice 7v7 all the time, so going into it, we knew what our plan was, so we felt really confident because we practice it so much
“Obviously, it was exhausting, but we were able to get it done, which was great.”
With just 2:49 remaining in the second OT and both teams on the brink of going to 1v1s to determine the outcome, a shot by Brooks was tipped into the cage by teammate Maci Fox, giving the Redskins the dramatic and emotional win.
“I was like, ‘We need to score right now – I do not want to go into shootouts,’” Brooks said. “We were already in our second overtime – we needed to score now. We’ve got to get this done.
“It was really exciting. I was really happy we were able to pull this game off and work together. We’ve been working hard in the offseason, and it felt great to see everything come together and all our hard work pay off, but it was the longest game ever.”
“When it was over, Neshaminy coach Jamie Pinto paid tribute to her players who never left the field during the grueling double OT.
“The six players that were in that overtime – Mia Brooks, Maci Fox, Chloe Brison, Ellie Miller
Reese Merrill, Taylor Tenaglia (and goalie Lexi Tarapchak – I know they were tired, but they just kept pushing through, playing together.
“In regulation, they all played well, but the girls that played in double overtime – that was awesome. They were exhausted. They were playing well enough that I didn’t need to take them out. I was confident enough in them to let them finish it. They played really well. It was cool to see.”
Twice in regulation, the Redskins took the lead, and both times, the visiting Fords had an answer. Brooks – who had a hand in all three goals -scored an unassisted goal in the first quarter and – in the fourth quarter – turned a pass from Taylor Tenaglia into a goal.
“The whole game was back and forth, and the overtime was too,” Pinto said. “Our team and Haverford were very evenly matched, and it was a very good game. We played really well today. It was a physical game, and we did everything we needed to do.”
Scoring summary
First quarter
Mia Brooks (N) 7:41
Haverford goal, 6:19
Second & third quarters – No score
Fourth quarter
Mia Brooks (N) from Taylor Tenaglia, 13:23
Haverford goal, 6:37
First overtime – No score
Second overtime
Maci Fox (N) from Mia Brooks, 2:49
By the numbers: Shots: N 13, H 15; Penalty corners: H 5, N 3.
Neshaminy coach Jamie Pinto:
“It was a well-matched game. They came out strong, and the first five minutes we started really strong. After we scored our first goal, Haverford picked it up, and we had to pick it up even more.
“This group has really been working since the summer on their own – the captains organizing things, working hard on their own, and it paid off today. All the hard work in the preseason and the regular season and all of our games – they played really well. They left it all out on the field today.”
–Props: “Defensively, Taylor Tenaglia played well throughout the whole game. The same with Reese Merrill – she played great defense. I thought the second half in overtime – my girls were still ready. I didn’t sub, I had the same six players in, and they played so hard the whole time. The second half of the overtime – we could still keep running, and that’s how we won. We just kept putting constant pressure on.
“In overtime, our goalie, Lexi Tarapchak, made some great saves, coming out strong and aggressive. They had a couple of breakaways that Lexi stopped.
“Taylor Tenaglia was doing a great job in the back, stepping up, sending through balls and finding passes, playing great defense. The second goal in regulation time was from Taylor carrying all the way to the back, finding Mia on a through ball, and Mia going around the goalie and finishing a great shot.
“Mia Brooks – the whole game – led the offense. She was involved in all three goals. Defensively, throughout the whole game – Hailey Wert played really well in the back. Ellie Miller played well. Taylor, Reese and Lexi, our goalie – defensively, they really kept us in the game.”
Up next: Neshaminy will travel to #3 Central Bucks West for a second round game Wednesday.
Haverford 1-0-0-1-0 2
Neshaminy 1-0-0-1-1 3
#16 RIDLEY 3, #17 PENNSBURY 1
(Article submitted by Pennsbury field hockey)
The 17th ranked Pennsbury Falcons were on the move again, settling in for a long bus ride to Ridley for the first round of playoffs. Despite missing the home field advantage by a fraction of a percentage point, PHS was proud to jump three spots higher in the rankings compared to last year. Finishing the regular season at 13-5 overall and 8-2 in the Patriot Division, PHS was ready for the next step and focused on preparing both mentally and physically for the rigor of “the third season” (pre, regular, post).
There is no denying the higher stakes in a playoff game as teams work to hold onto the 2025 season with a tight grip. And as the starting whistle blew, there was no turning back and the battle began. Ridley came out strong as expected, while Pennsbury got caught on their heels defensively as they worked to adjust to the style and pace of play being shown on the other side of the ball. Almost exactly halfway through the first quarter after several Ridley attacks, the Raiders connected to go up 1-0 on a diving goal by Samantha Flemming.
“We got beat on the left side and they snuck the ball through into the circle and their player dove to get the shot off and was able to finish with strength,” said Pennsbury head coach Traci Curtis. “You could see the heart and determination in that first goal, and it set the tone for them. It was taking us too long to settle in and get comfortable with our own game and that goal shook us harder than it should have.”
Two minutes later, Ridley shook the Falcons even harder by scoring on the first of their 14 penalty corners to make it a 2-0 game.
“They moved the ball well in the circle on the corner play and our defense being numbers down in the moment did not get to the spaces quick enough to take away the scoring opportunity,” Curtis said. “Addison Hartfuss connected on a cross ball with a reverse one time shot, beating defenders and our goalie in seconds.”
The Falcons had experience being down in a game and there was plenty of time left, so it was just a matter of digging in and doing the work. And they did do the work necessary to get several corner opportunities in the last few minutes before the quarter came to an end but, unfortunately, could not execute to perfection to light up the scoreboard quite yet.
It was a 2-0 game going into the second quarter. The Falcons showed some fight in the second quarter with good pushes into the Raiders’ red zone and connecting on passing combinations that were missing in the first fifteen minutes. The pressure was a welcome shift in their play, but Ridley had answers and put another goal in off a penalty corner halfway through the second quarter. The 3-0 deficit was looming large but not enough to send PHS home packing. They knew how to fight and had plenty of time to show it.
The five-minute half time was a great chance for the Falcons to take a collective breath and talk strategy – mental strategy and game strategy.
“Playoffs is where the will to win is what puts a team at an advantage along with believing in yourselves,” said Curtis. “The field hockey is there – the skills, the ability, the talent – but it’s the will that makes the magic happen.
“We needed to find the will inside each of us and put it together on the field in the second half.”
Pennsbury found their way onto the scoreboard four minutes into the third quarter, using their tried and true style of play to connect up the field and finish.
“Mallory Harrison took a free hit sending it inside to Joley Hohman who put it up to Ryan Burdette in the center,” Curtis said. “Burdette tossed it to Regan Rodriguez on the right and Rodriguez sent it back to Burdette as they entered the circle and Burdette capitalized on catching the goalie off balance.
“The passing and movement were what we were looking for in the first half,” Curtis said. “That is our style of hockey and it was nice to see it coming alive in the third quarter. It’s never too late and we were proud of that effort and push in that moment.”
It was a 3-1 game with a ton of hockey left to play. The Raiders fought back hard with a barrage of corners throughout the quarter. Pennsbury played down due to green cards multiple times but held strong disallowing any additional goals keeping it a 3-1 game going into the final quarter.
“Our goalie, Abby McCole, was having a great game and really navigating the cage well,” Curtis said. “The three goals may not tell the right story about her performance, but she did a great job back there. Our defense was stepping up much better in the second half and making some great stops.”
Five minutes into the final quarter Ridley earned a penalty stroke on a chaotic play in front of the goal. Pennsbury’s goalie, Abby McCole, stuffed the attempt, defending her cage and keeping the Falcons within two.
“It was a great moment for sure,” said Curtis. “McCole was locked in and I’m so glad that she had that spectacular save as a senior playing in this game.”
The remaining minutes of the game were a bit back and forth with Pennsbury attacking more often than earlier in the game and Ridley answering with return force. When the final buzzer rang across the turf, it was a 3-1 victory for the Raiders and the sound of a season coming to an end for the Falcons.
“They are a strong, fast team with a great attack down the right side – their defense had strong sticks and they were able to stifle our chances,” said Curtis. “Unfortunately, we didn’t put our best foot forward tonight and it took us too long to show up to play. It was great that we put one on the board and held them scoreless in the entire second half. Those are small victories that we will take with us for sure.
“Senior, Abby Hicks, played a great game with a defensive save and many strong steps to the ball to shut them down. Senior, Abby McCole, was great in the goal and had a season highlight with a save on the stroke. Senior, Abby Anderer contributed in multiple places on both attack and defense for us tonight and did a great job handling it all with confidence and poise. Seniors, Danielle Morgan and Caelan Henderson were supportive contributors who consistently help us to be our best. We wish our five seniors the best as they move on and leave their legacies behind.”
Pennsbury closed out its season with a 13-7 record (8-2 SOL).
Pennsbury 0-0-1-0 1
Ridley 2-1-0-0 3
#18 SPRING-FORD 5, #15 QUAKERTOWN 1
#9 GARNET VALLEY 7, #24 COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 0
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