Some of the happenings in SOL field hockey are highlighted in a mid-season notebook.
The midway point of the season has come and gone, and favorites have been established in all three conferences.
Plymouth Whitemarsh is an odds-on favorite to capture its sixth straight SOL American Conference title. The Colonials – who have a two-game lead in the standings with four games remaining – have not lost in conference play since Sept. 16, 2015, when they fell to Wissahickon 14-0.
It’s a two-team race in the Continental with defending champion Central Bucks East holding a one-game lead over Souderton. The Patriots control their own fate, and a win over the visiting Indians in Thursday’s Senior Day showdown will go a long way toward clinching another crown.
East – vying with Perkiomen Valley for the district’s top seed – fell from the ranks of the undefeated last Saturday, dropping a 1-0 decision to Methacton.
“We did not come to play the way CB East comes to play,” coach Meghann Spratt said. “I’m expecting better results from here on out after they feel that loss.
“I told my girls after the game – this was bound to happen, and I’m so glad it happened in this part of our season than when it really, really matters and can kill our season. We’re going to take this, we’re going to learn from it, and we’re going to come back stronger.”
In the National Conference, Neshaminy is in the driver’s seat with a key game against Council Rock North on Thursday also weighing heavily in the title race.
Milestones, we’ve got milestones…
Three SOL players reached the 100-point career mark recently (if there are others, please let us know). 
CB South senior Casey Reilly was the most recent. Entering Monday’s game against Upper Dublin, the La Salle-bound senior needed three points. She got that and more, finishing with four goals and an assist in the Titans’ 9-1 win.
“In the years that I’ve had the privilege of coaching Casey, there are very few games where she doesn’t have people double teaming or triple teaming her,” South coach Pat Toner said. “She has gotten really good at letting that go and just working her hardest to get the ball through a crowd of people, and she’s been doing a good job of passing the ball off to the younger kids, and that’s allowed her to score even more.
“I’m really proud of her. She’s doing a fantastic job, and it’s going to be very hard to say good-bye to her after this season.”
Pennridge senior Sydney Borneman surpassed the 100-point mark in last Friday night’s game against Quakertown.
Pennridge senior Caitlyn Amsden reached the 100-point milestone last Wednesday in the Rams’ 6-0 win over William Tennent.
SOL’s surprise team
Topping the list of surprises this season is a Souderton squad that had not won more than nine games in a season since 2011 when the Indians were 14-5. After 11 games this season, the Indians are 10-1 and find themselves in the hunt for the Continental Conference title.
The Indians – under first-year coach Sue Casciato – have done it with a mix of young talent on offense and seasoned veterans on defense.
“Watching them play the last five or six years, I felt like they’ve had a lot of talent,” the Indians’ coach said. “I feel like we turned the corner this year because they’re playing as a team. There was a lot of individual effort. We really, really stress distributing the ball and more of a team atmosphere.
“When I took the job, I knew we had a lot of talent, and we have a ton of seniors. The last couple of years we’ve been close. They just needed to turn the corner – a little confidence and a new mindset about what our approach is, and I think that made a difference.”
A change of scenery for Abington’s Hughes
Playing in goal is nothing new for Ellie Hughes, an all-league goalie for the Ghosts’ lacrosse team, but she was
more than a little surprised when she was approached about playing that same position for the field hockey team after the graduation of a pair of the team’s goalies.
“I was honored because I have never played the sport, I never even thought about it,” Hughes said. “Coach Katie (Small) came up to me and said, ‘Will you please play goalie for me?’ I was like, ‘No way,’ but she persuaded me.
“She told me coach Janine (Larr) would get me there. Her, coach Janine, and Jamie all worked so hard to get me to a place where I feel comfortable that it made the transition easier than I thought. It really did help that my teammates were so supportive along the way.”
Hughes has been a rock in the cage for the Ghosts. The first-year goalie boasts a save rate of 84 percent with seven shutouts.
“I love it,” Hughes said. “There was a moment right before the season that I didn’t feel comfortable playing, I was nervous, and it was harder to make the transition because I’d never played the sport before. It got easier once I got to the games, but at first, it was difficult and I was second guessing myself.”
The Ghosts are the 10thseed in the latest District One 3A power rankings with an 8-4 record, and Hughes – who played indoor with the team over the winter – has played a key role in that success.
“When she came out in August, we knew she needed work, and Janine (Larr) went right into it with her,” coach Katie Small said. “Every day Janine worked on footwork, positioning and clears.
“Ellie was a natural back there and caught on extremely quick. We are so thankful Ellie chose to come out this year and sad we only get one year with her.”
Props for the Panthers
With her squad still in the hunt for a conference title, it might have been easy for Council Rock North coach Heather Whalin to focus on her team’s play in a closer-than-expected 2-1 win over William Tennent. The Indians’ coach – who admitted her team came out flat – was also quick to credit the Panthers for their play.
“They wanted it more,” Whalin said of the Panthers. “They played a really nice game. I know they’ve been frustrated, but I hope this sparks them.
“They have some nice players, and they’re trying to bring it together. (Coach) Kelsey (Hiltebeitel) has really been working hard with these kids, and she has a good attitude. They were really pumped up for this game, and they were ready.”
The Indians dominated play as evidenced by their 16-1 advantage in corners (the Panthers scored on their only corner). Tennent goalie Sophie Trozzi was instrumental in keeping the game close.
“She’s fantastic,” said Whalin, who coaches the Panthers’ goalie as well as several of her teammates on the club circuit with Mystx. “She had 14 saves in the last game (a 4-0 North win), and this game she had nine, so she really keeps them in games.
“Tennent always seems to cultivate those really good goalies, and she really had a nice game, and their whole entire defense had a phenomenal game.”
Whalin pointed to several standouts.
“Victoria Poust had a great game,” the Indians’ coach said. “Sam McDonald, who had the assist, had a very nice game, and Karly Adkins is ridiculously fast – she can take a ball and take it out of the backfield and push it up the field, and she really played well today.
“I know they’re frustrated with the way their season has gone. We had that kind of season last year. We’re 9-2-1 now, which is fantastic, but last year we were 8-10. That turnaround can happen real quickly. They have really young players and a dynamic coaching staff. They will surprise people in the upcoming years. They just need to get that confidence. They played an overtime game with Wood and then came back to play us. They came ready to play, and we did not. We were lucky to survive.”
Bullard in charge
It’s been almost two weeks since Central Bucks East defeated Downingtown West 2-0, but it still ranks up there as a high point in a season filled with high points.
“We have never beaten them as long as I’ve coached,” coach Meghann Spratt said. “They were ranked in the top 10 in the state and we were not, so it was a great win for the girls. They played so well.
“There was strong talent from Downingtown West, but we definitely held our own and came out on top which was huge.”
Playing a starring role in the win was goalie Emily Bullard, who recorded a career-high 21 saves.
“It was insane,” Spratt said. “It was probably the best career game I have ever seen her play. She played incredible.”
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