Check out the recaps for SOL field hockey teams in action Wednesday. Neshaminy/CR North photos provided courtesy of John Gleeson, Upper Dublin/Wissahickon photos provided by Geanine Jamison Photography, and CB East/CB West photos provided courtesy of Tracy Valko. Check back for galleries of all three games.
SOL Patriot Division
NESHAMINY 2, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 0
The Redskins scored a goal in each half to defeat a pesky Indian squad.
“North played well – they were aggressive,” Neshaminy coach Jamie Pinto said. “From every one of these games, we just have more and more that we need to work on in practice.”
Dylan Beegal spotted the Redskins a 1-0 lead with 40 seconds remaining in the first quarter, benefitting from a Mia Martin assist. The Redskins maintained that 1-0 lead until Megan Hollenbaugh (Olivia Roscoe assist) found the cage 30 seconds into the third quarter for a goal that closed out the scoring.
“It was a pretty even game – North had some opportunities, and we had some opportunities that we didn’t finish,” Pinto said. “But they played hard.
“I think this game showed us that we need to play hard every game. We did better this game. We got more shots off, we executed our corners better, but it needs to be even better to get to where we want to be.”
The Redskins’ coach lauded the play of several players.
“Colette Schardt played well for us as a forward,” Pinto said. “She generated a lot of offense for us. She hustled through the whole game.
“Morgan Shaltens is a freshman that plays in the back, and she steps up when we need her to. She plays hard – she gets that part. It’s nice to see a freshman step up when we need people to step up. Our goalie, Riley Wert, played well.”
Wert recorded five saves in the shutout win in goal.
Neshaminy (3-0) will travel to Bensalem on Monday, and Council Rock North (2-2, 1-2 SOL) will be on the road at Pennsbury on Monday.
Neshaminy 1-0-1-0 2
Council Rock North 0-0-0-0 0
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 8, BENSALEM 2
The Golden Hawks opened up a 4-0 halftime lead on the way to their third win of the conference season.
“I thought we played hard with intensity from the start and kept up our intensity the whole game,” Rock South coach Lisa Belz said. “It was a whole team effort.”
Kerry Kaufman scored an unassisted goal with just under seven minutes remaining in the opening quarter to put the Golden Hawks on top 1-0. And then the junior capatain assisted on a goal by Brigid Morgan to give the Hawks a two-goal advantage after one period.
In the second quarter, the Golden Hawks received goals from freshman Kylee Hager and sophomore Amanda Green – Green’s with an assist from Emilia Elko – to go into halftime with a 4-0 lead.
Bensalem got on the scoreboard three-and-a-half minutes into the second quarter when Megan Kline connected. Kaufman answered with her second goal, using an Elko assist to put the Golden Hawks on top 5-1.
Rock South reeled off three straight goals in a six-minute span in the fourth quarter with sophomore Karissa Smedley (Morgan assist), Rianna Shields and Green each connecting on a goal. Bensalem’s Faith Cherry found the cage with 2:44 remaining to close out the scoring.
Council Rock South (3-2, 3-1 SOL) will travel to Neshaminy on Wednesday, and Bensalem (1-3, 0-3) will host Neshaminy on Monday.
Council Rock South 2-2-1-3 8
Bensalem 0-0-1-1 2
SOL Colonial Division
NORTH PENN 2, CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 1
With both sidelines anticipating an overtime that was imminent, Eleni Kountroubis decided she didn’t want the game to be decided in a 7v7 extra period, scoring the game-winner during corner play with three seconds remaining in regulation.
“In the fourth quarter, we really putting a lot of pressure on at the end of the game,” North Penn coach Shannon McCracken said. “With three seconds left, Eleni put one back that was just a rebound that was kind of sitting around in front of the goal. She just dribbled and put it in.
“It was exciting because at that point you’re thinking, ‘Okay, overtime – what are we thinking here,’ and you’re starting to think that way. I was really proud of my team today because I know we went 1-2 last week, but we played well. We were getting better each day, and I feel like today we put together four quarters of solid hockey where we played strong each quarter.
“My kids were really communicating well on the field, and what we were working on in practice the last couple of days, we put into action today, which was exciting. It was just a really great team effort today.”
Early on, Erin O’Donnell scored on a broken corner play to put the Knights on top 1-0 six minutes into the game. The Titans evened the scored in the second period when Alyssa Endrick scored with an assist from Sophia Wasyliw on a corner.
“Sophia Wasyliw passed a perfect feed to Alyssa Endrick who put the ball in the back of the cage,” South coach Pat Toner said. “Both teams had opportunities to score throughout the game, but both defenses held up.”
“They have some good corners,” McCracken said. “They’re well coached. We talked about that at halftime – we wanted to give up less corners in the second half, not to give them any opportunities.”
Deadlocked at 1-1, the stage was set for Kountroubis’ last-second heroics.
“North Penn drew a lot of corners with the most important coming with less than 30 seconds remaining in the game,” Toner said. “Although we are all disappointed in the loss, each game allows us to find our strengths and weakness and make corrections. We are hoping to eliminate some unforced errors and will work on that in preparation for our next game. North Penn is always well-coached and played very well today.”
North Penn held a 15-7 advantage in penalty corners and a 14-11 edge in shots.
“I thought we had a strong third and fourth quarter in regards to possession and time in our attacking end,” McCracken said. “We were missing the post by an inch, missing a good shot by an inch. We just could not get the ball to go in, and they made some nice plays defensively.”
North Penn goalkeeper Mallory Stowell was credited with eight saves in the win. Ali Hoffman and Bay Detweiler each had a defensive save for the Knights. South’s Gwen DiPrinzio had 12 saves.
North Penn (2-2) will be on the road at Central Bucks East on Monday, and Central Bucks South (1-2-1) will travel to Pennridge Monday for a 7 p.m. contest.
North Penn 1-0-0-1 2
Central Bucks South 0-1-0-0 1
SOUDERTON 2, PENNRIDGE 1
Pennridge, according to both coaches, had the better of play in Thursday’s game, but where it mattered most – on the scoreboard, the Indians had the advantage.
“I felt – and the stats show – that we dominated most of the play but struggled to convert in our offensive circle,” Pennridge coach Becky Spahr said. “We played tough team defense from our forward line through the backs and were able to force a lot of turnovers.”
The Rams held an advantage in both shots (13-8) and corners (14-6).
“Pennridge probably played better than we did,” Souderton coach Sue Casciato said. “We had some time in their circle, but they definitely packed a lot of defenders in the circle.
“It was a big transition game. They had some really big balls coming out of the back, so if we got stripped of the ball in the offensive circle, it went 60 or 70 yards or more before we’d catch up to it. Pennridge definitely had five or six two-on-one fast breaks against us. They were definitely beating us to the ball. I don’t know why, but we just weren’t stepping to the ball.”
The Indians took a 1-0 lead when Lauren Kenah fired a shot during corner play that was deflected into the cage by Lauren Hallman. That one-goal lead stood until halftime.
With 8:18 remaining in the third quarter, the Rams knotted the score when Emma Schlotter turned an Emily Amsden pass into a goal.
“Our goal was a full team effort getting the ball up the field, but it was finished with a spectacular diving effort from Emma Schlotter,” Spahr said.
Less than two minutes later, Ang Borisow scored the go-ahead goal for the Indians during corner play.
“It was cleared on the right side of the circle, Ang took one touch and then had a hard push into the goal cage not too far from the top of the circle,” Casciato said. “We were lucky.
That 2-1 score stood until the final whistle.
“Souderton played a strong game and was able to capitalize on their scoring chances,” Spahr said. “Lots to grow on from this game.
Jordan Michalak was credited with 12 saves in goal for the Indians in a winning effort. Pennridge’s Maia Machado recorded six saves.
Casciato praised the efforts of Borisow at center back and Autumn Hunter at right mid.
“Without the two of them, we would have been in trouble,” the Indians’ coach said. “No part of our game was in sync. I think having a couple of extra days off hurt us a little bit, and we’re still scrambling and moving our lineup around again and again.
“We just haven’t hit on anything. We really thought we had it solved as well as we played at East, but that feeling only lasted about 24 hours. I know all the teams are in the same situation, but not having any summer league play and not having scrimmages – without any game-like situations, it’s hard based on what you see at practice to figure out what’s going to work for you in a game.”
Souderton (3-0-1) will host Central Bucks West on Monday at 3:30 p.m., and Pennridge (2-2, 1-2 SOL) will host Central Bucks South on Monday at 7 p.m.
Souderton 0-1-1-0 2
Pennridge 0-0-1-0 1
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 2, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 0
The Patriots notched the shutout win, but it was anything but easy playing a rivalry game less than 24 hours after downing another sister school, CB South.
“Going into this game was not only a physical challenge because it’s a back-to-back games, it’s a mental challenge, but mostly it’s an emotional challenge because it’s the long running rivalry that has gone back years and years and years,” East coach Meghan Spratt said. “Anything can happen. It doesn’t matter record.
“I told them, ‘You beat your sister school yesterday, and now we’re going against West. We just have to – from the very, very beginning – be mentally focused and fight through any struggles you may have initially,’ and we did.”
Kenzie Lever turned a pass from Sophia Parker on a corner into a goal that put the Patriots on top 1-0 three-and-a-half minutes into the contest.
“I said it was going to be a very important key to score first, and we did,” Spratt said.
The Patriots held onto that one-goal lead until just five minutes remained in regulation when Phia Mannino scored with a Parker assist for the 2-0 final.
“We did well against them last year, and coming in here, it was a totally different team,” Spratt said. “I think Dave DeAngelis is doing an amazing job getting them back on track with fundamentals, and just their overall game was so much cleaner, so much faster. They played very, very well – strong hockey.
“I said to Dave, ‘It’s such a nice game when both coaches care not only about the game but the game and the program.’ I’m just so proud of all that they’ve done for the program, and today you would never have known how they struggled last year. It was 1-0 game until five minutes were left. It was anyone’s game until the end.”
DeAngelis liked what he saw from his squad in Thursday’s home opener.
“Credit CB East for creating and taking advantage of their opportunities for the win,” the Bucks’ coach said. “They are very well coached and maintained good form throughout the match.
“Thus far, this has been our best end-to-end game. Our players displayed incredible tenacity and determination throughout the match. Our defense was anchored by our goalkeeper senior Brooke Golbeski, who made many important saves. Our center defender senior Claire Engebreth, played a crucial role stepping up to fend off several additional attacks. Senior Julia Bunch and senior Meg Weyer both played strong for us, helping to balance the level of play at the midfield. We will continue to make adjustments and improve as a team.”
Spratt had high praise for several players in the hard fought win.
“I thought our game itself was controlled by Paige Hussie, my junior defender, and Sophia Parker, my junior midfielder – they played tremendous hockey tonight and helped control the entire speed of the game, possession of the game, and they made great decisions,” Spratt said. “They’re both coming into their own, and it was so nice to see.
“My seniors – Phia Mannino and Kenzie Lever – are just dominant players, and they did well when girls would fall in on them. That’s when Parker would take advantage.”
Also contributing were some newcomers to the varsity lineup.
“Alli Troth, a sophomore who got some minutes today, senior Kaylie Schorn, and senior Miranda Szymborski were my forwards who did a great job, putting pressure offensively,” Spratt said. “Overall, it was just a great win for us to have back-to-back sister school victories. That’s what we went out to do this week, and we were able to do that.”
Central Bucks East (3-1) will host North Penn on Monday, and Central Bucks West (0-3) will travel to Souderton Monday.
Central Bucks East 1-0-0-1 2
Central Bucks West 0-0-0-0 0
SOL Liberty Division
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 12, ABINGTON 2
Ava Borkowski erupted for six goals while Kaleigh Missimer had a hand in five, scoring three goals and assisting on two others, to lead the Colonials to the no-doubt-about-it win.
Interestingly, PW actually trailed 2-1 early on in the contest.
“PW had a slow start today, and Abington took advantage in transition and was able to score the first goal of the game,” PW coach Charise Halteman said. “After a few goal-scoring opportunities, junior Hailey Copestick was able to find Ava Borkowski at the top of the circle. Ava found the back of the cage off a reverse shot.”
A few minutes later, Abington earned a corner and scored again to go on top 2-1.
“PW responded immediately off the pushback when senior Kaleigh Missimer found Ava Borkowski up the middle with space to dribble. Ava again finished a reverse shot from the top of the circle.”
Borkowski completed her hat trick to give PW a 3-2 lead entering the second quarter. The Colonials never looked back, executing on numerous corner plays to take a commanding lead.
Junior Molly Lynch scored back-to-back goals on corners. Borkowski and Missimer scored three goals each, and senior Regan Gehman added one to close out the scoring.
Copestick finished with three assists while Alex DeLucca and Carly McGee each had one helper.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (4-0) will celebrate Senior Night when it hosts Wissahickon on Monday at 7 p.m. in a battle of undefeated squads. Abington (1-3) will host Quakertown on Monday.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 8-4 12
Abington 2-0 2
WISSAHICKON 6, UPPER DUBLIN 0
The Trojans upped their record to an impressive 5-0 two weeks into the shortened season with shutouts in four of those wins.
Caroline Kirkpatrick scored her first of two goals with five minutes remaining in the opening period, using an assist from Sophia Havrilla. That 1-0 lead stood until Havrilla scored back-to-back goals in a three-minute span in the second period – the first with a Brynne Miller assist and the second with an assist from Caroline Kirkpatrick.
“Scoring came slow but stead against a good UD defense, but Wissahickon stuck to their game plan,” Wissahickon coach Lucy Gil said.
The Trojans closed out the scoring with three third-period goals. Kirpatrick scored just over a minute into the quarter with an assist from Ella Hummel. Kendall Crowley’s goal with a Kate Lovensheimer assist was followed by a goal from Aiden Drabiak (Crowley assist).
Alli Wood was credited with five saves in goal in the shutout win for the Trojans. Morgan Tabas (six saves) and Dara Fishman (eight saves) combined for 14 saves for the Flying Cardinals.
Wissahickon held an advantage in corners (16-4) and shots (20-5).
Wissahickon (5-0, 4-0 SOL) will be on the road at Plymouth Whitemarsh Monday for a battle of the SOL’s undefeated squads. Upper Dublin (2-2) will travel to Hatboro-Horsham on Monday.
Wissahickon 1-2-3-0 6
Upper Dublin 0-0-0-0 0
QUAKERTOWN 0, HATBORO-HORSHAM 0 (OT)
An overtime could not determine a winner in Quakertown’s Senior Night game, and the Panthers and visiting Hatters – both looking for their first win – were forced to settle for a scoreless tie.
Before the game, the Panthers honored their four seniors – Kaylee Brulliea, Stephanie Friel, Lauren Junker and Megan Myers.
“Quakertown played with intensity the entire 75 minutes but was just unable to find the back of the net,” Quakertown coach Kate Kemp said. “Kylie Lerch posted her first shutout of the season. Overall, a great game played by both teams.”
Lerch recorded five saves in the shutout.
Quakertown (0-4-1, 0-3-1 SOL) will travel to Abington Monday for a 4 p.m. game. Hatboro-Horsham (0-3-1) will host Upper Dublin Monday at 4 p.m.
Hatboro-Horsham 0-0-0-0-0 0
Quakertown 0-0-0-0-0 0
SOL Freedom Division
WILLIAM TENNENT 1, UPPER MORELAND 0
The Panthers just might have given new meaning to the phrase ‘bounce-back win,’ rebounding from a 16-0 rout at the hands of New Hope-Solebury to earn their first win of the season 24 hours later.
Leila Doran scored the game-winner with 9:24 remaining in the third period, benefitting from a Kirstien Konia assist.
UM goalkeeper Emma Hurley recorded seven saves while Tennent’s Emily Witter had three.
William Tennent (1-3, 1-2 SOL) will host Lower Moreland on Monday, and Upper Moreland (1-3, 1-2) will host New Hope-Solebury.
Upper Moreland 0-0-0-0 0
William Tennent 0-0-1-0 1
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