Check out the recaps for SOL field hockey teams in action Monday. Wissahickon/UD photos courtesy of Kim Supko Photography. Neshaminy/CR North photos courtesy of John Gleeson, and CB East/CB West photos courtesy of Tracy Valko. Check back for galleries of all three games.
SOL Patriot
NESHAMINY 3, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 0
The Redskins scored a goal in each of the first three quarters, and their defense did the rest.
“We scored in the first two minutes of the game off a good corner,” Neshaminy coach Jamie Pinto said. “We had moments of high intensity, we had moments of good passing, but we also had things we need to improve on.
“There are some things we’re going to have to fix at practice. We have to work on stepping to the ball, recovering after we lose it and just communicating together, which are things we really haven’t had to work on so far this year. We played well and had our moments. The girls work hard.”
Two minutes into the game, Avery McGinty scored with an assist from Mia Martin to give the Redskins an early 1-0 lead. With two minutes remaining in the half, Kasey Rieger found the cage with an unassisted goal, sending the Redskins into halftime with a 2-0 lead.
Three minutes into the second half, Caitlyn Colyar turned an Olivia Roscoe pass into a goal for the 3-0 final.
Neshaminy (10-7, 10-5 SOL) – the 13th seed in the latest District One 3A power rankings – will travel to Bensalem on Wednesday. The Redskins are tied with Council Rock South for the top spot in the division standings.
“We’re having practice tomorrow, and we have a game against Bensalem when we can work on those things,” Pinto said. “We will continue to keep practicing and wait to find out what seed we are in districts.”
Council Rock North (6-11, 5-10) will host Pennsbury on Wednesday.
Council Rock North 0-0-0-0 0
Neshaminy 1-1-1-0 3
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 8, BENSALEM 0
Kerry Kaufman had a hand in five goals – scoring three and assisting on two others – as the Golden Hawks rolled to the shutout win.
“The team played well today and made good connections on their passing,” Rock South coach Collette Paprocki said. “They did a nice job adjusting to different positions and moved the ball well.”
Kaufman assisted on a Megan Rafter goal during corner play just over three minutes into the game, and then it was Kaufman converting a penalty stroke for a 2-0 lead. Kylee Hager’s unassisted goal gave the Hawks a three-goal advantage after one quarter.
Kaufman scored back-to-back goals in the second quarter – the first with a Hager assist during corner play and the second with an Elise Lindros assist, Annagrace McKinney scored on the rebound off the goalie’s pads to send the Hawks into halftime with a 6-0 advantage.
In the third quarter, Amanda Green connected on an unassisted goal, and in the fourth quarter, Clare Morgan scored with a Kaufman assist.
“Kerry Kaufman had a hand in many of the goals in today’s game,” Paprocki said. “Amanda Green and Breanna Gable have been doing a nice job in the midfield positions. Over the past several games, they have both really contributed both offensively and defensively. They generate a lot of offense down the sidelines as well as do an excellent job getting back and helping out the defense.
Bensalem did a nice job in the circle defensively and their goalie had a lot of nice saves today.”
Council Rock South (10-7, 10-5 SOL) – 19th in the latest District one 3A power rankings – will host Harry S Truman on Wednesday, and Bensalem (2-13) will host Neshaminy on Wednesday.
Bensalem 0-0-0-0 0
Council Rock South 3-3-1-1 8
PENNSBURY 7, HARRY S TRUMAN 0
(Article submitted by Pennsbury field hockey)
Pennsbury’s pre-game had a different look on this chilly Monday afternoon. Due to the shortages surrounding busing and drivers, the team was forced to arrive at Truman three hours before the starting whistle. The Truman team’s Senior Night was slated to begin at 5pm on the turf instead of the typical 3:30 start.
Curtis & Co. did not mind the early arrival and made the best of it while hanging out in a classroom that the Truman AD was so gracious to set up for them. Everyone did their own thing – while the coaches worked on the lineup, some players did homework, others hung out talking and laughing, a few took the opportunity to have a dance party, and everyone filled up on snacks.
“The people at Truman were very kind and accommodating, helping us to be comfortable inside while waiting,” said head coach Traci Curtis. “Once we hit the field for warms-ups and the senior ceremony, Truman’s hospitality continued with flowers for our seniors and the announcing of their names.”
With only a varsity game planned for the evening, the PHS coaches made plans to work in all of their players across both JV and varsity rosters, similar to how they had navigated the Conwell-Egan game on Saturday.
The starting lineup came out strong as Reagan Ward connected from the stroke mark on an endline pass from Meg McClure two minutes into the game. Five minutes later, Ward struck again with an assist by Liz Jordan. The score was 2-0 going into the second quarter. Fresh faces and feet filled almost every position in the Falcons’ second quarter lineup, and Mia Popovich added an unassisted goal ten minutes in. Jessie Martin assisted a Chelsea Todd goal with two minutes left, and the Falcons went into halftime with a 4-0 lead.
The Tigers held us scoreless in the third quarter with the help of their goalie who had an outstanding game.
“She made over 20 saves throughout the game and made us work hard for the goals that we were able to finish,” Curtis said. “It was fun to watch her play out there.”
The temperatures were dropping as the game went on, and by the fourth quarter, players, coaches, refs, and fans were all chilled to the bone, but PHS was not done yet. Reagan Ward notched a hat trick halfway into the final quarter on an assist from EB Rafferty to bring the score to 5-0.
“Ward played so confidently tonight, and she did some really nice things out there on offense,” Curtis said. “For the finale, Meg McClure landed two beautiful unassisted shots into the far corner of the goal using her signature move that really deserves to be named. She is like an entertainer on the right side of the field. McClure puts on a great show, and it’s always got us on the edge of our seats.”
Pennsbury was able to work 29 players into the 7-0 win and once again JV and varsity came together to earn the victory.
“The Truman players worked very hard and did some very nice things throughout the game,” Curtis said. “We have the utmost respect for their program and the dedication they have to getting better. Shoutout to their seniors and to their goalie who did such a great job. Best of luck to them as they finish out their season.”
Pennsbury (9-8, 7-8 SOL) will host CR North on Wednesday for their final regular season game and is keeping fingers crossed that some sort of magic happens in the standings to allow them to squeak into playoffs.
“We are not ready for it to end yet,” said Curtis. “Our story is just getting started.”
Harry S Truman (0-15, 0-14) will travel to Council Rock South on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. game.
Pennsbury 2-2-0-3 7
Harry S Truman 0-0-0-0 0
SOL Colonial
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 2, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 1 (OT)
Sophia Parker scored with 1:59 remaining in overtime, propelling the visiting Patriots to the dramatic overtime win in another classic battle between the neighboring rivals.
“The East/West game is always full of excitement and tonight was no different,” said East coach Emma Rosenthal, whose team is in sole possession of second place in the Colonial standings. “Both teams know the weight that this game always had, and we both played with an immense amount of heart.”
The Bucks took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Calista Boos in the second quarter, and the Patriots answered with with Parker’s first goal of the game on a corner as time expired at the end of the first half.
“We were caught on our heels a bit in the beginning of the game, allowing West to get up on a breakaway,” Rosenthal said. “It was key for us to capitalize on a corner right as time expired.
“That was a huge momentum shift for us that we desperately needed.”
Neither team scored in the second half, and the stage was set for overtime and Parker’s second goal of the game – this one the game-winner.
“The second half was defensive and aggressive on both ends, but we knew sending it to overtime would be a positive for us,” Rosenthal said. “We’ve proven ourselves in the 7v7 and are confident in that lineup.
“We even played down for a bit in overtime, which was definitely nerve wrecking, but we were able to pull through. Everyone fought to the bitter end tonight – big credit to Sophia Parker for putting it away in overtime with the golden goal. Grace Gidwani made six impressive saves on the night to keep us in the game. It was a complete team win and I am very proud of all of them.”
The Bucks held an edge in shots (12-10) and corners (15-13).
“It was an entertaining field hockey match that included overtime – but without the end result,” West coach Dave DeAngelis said. “We played very well again tonight and were able to transition the ball and create offensive pressure and opportunity. Our team battled as much, as hard and as long as we could before losing out in OT. This loss will sting a bit as it was our last home game for our seniors.
“CB East is very well coached and have fantastic speed and stick skills. Sophia Parker was able to capitalize twice for CB East. We will prepare for our last game vs. Souderton at their pitch on Wednesday evening.”
Central Bucks East (12-5, 11-4 SOL) will host North Penn on Wednesday, and Central Bucks West (8-9, 6-9) will travel to Souderton on Wednesday (6:30 p.m.).
Central Bucks East 0-1-0-0-1 2
Central Bucks West 0-1-0-0-0 1
NORTH PENN 3, CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 3 (OT)
The Titans and Knights are seeded ninth and 10th respectively in the latest District One 3A power rankings, and Monday’s contest suggests the two teams are that evenly matched as 75 minutes could not determine a winner. If nothing changes, both would host opening round games while the top eight teams would earn byes.
“Personally, I don’t want a bye,” South coach Pat Toner said. “I’d rather have a game. Sometimes you get a bye, and it’s not the best thing for you because you’re sitting for days.
“This was a well-played, fast-paced game between two evenly matched teams. Both teams had beautiful corners, and both teams played excellent defense. I was very pleased.”
For the Titans, Monday’s game was highlighted by Erin Smith reaching the 100-point milestone. The senior forward has 21 goals and 16 assists so far in a standout season.
“Erin Smith is pretty unstoppable,” Toner said. “They did a good job on her, but she still scored and had an assist.
“She’s been on a tear this year. She had 43 points coming into the season, and especially with the kind of games we play in the league we play in, this is unbelievable. Erin said, ‘I’d like to get to a hundred,’ and she did it and not in a selfish way by any means. She’s not a selfish player at all. The number of assists she has proves that. She’s had people double teaming her and triple teaming her. It doesn’t faze her. She just keeps going. She just has a nose for the goal.”
It was the Knights who struck first with five minutes remaining in the opening quarter when Kerry O’Donnell – on the post – tipped in a corner shot by Madison Waldspurger.
“We maintained possession well in the first quarter but were only able to capitalize on one corner against a stingy and well-played CB South defense,” NP coach Shannon McCracken said.
The visiting Titans answered with a pair of goals in the second quarter.
“Sarah Cooper had a beautiful tip on a shot by her sister, Julia Cooper,” Toner said. “Later in the period, Erin Smith fed a ball into the circle, and Megan Reilly scored.”
The Titans took that 2-1 lead into halftime and still led by one goal heading into the final quarter when Riley O’Donnell scored back-to-back goals in a four-minute span – the first with a Catherine McGeehan assist. Forty-seven seconds later, Smith connected on the equalizer for the Titans.
Neither team scored in overtime with the Knights surviving two stretches when they were down a player due to yellow cards.
“I felt like I was playing our own team in some ways,” Toner said. “Shannon (McCracken) and I have similar philosophies in coaching, and she does a beautiful job – their passing is gorgeous.
“She exploited our weaknesses, and we tried to exploit their weaknesses. It was a good game. It was a little bit of a chess match. They scored on a corner that was absolutely beautiful, and then we turned around and scored on the same corner. Both of us are afraid of each other’s corners, and both of us said – ‘Don’t give up corners,’ and we both gave up corners. A lot of the scoring was very well executed corners by both teams.”
The Titans had 10 penalty corners and the Knights had eight. CB South also had an edge in shots.
“Credit to CB South’s defense for holding us to eight corners and not allowing many second and third opportunities off the pads by clearing the ball well out of the backfield,” McCracken said. “It was an impressive game for reserve goalie Mackenzie Czajkowski, who came up big for us.
“In addition, Annabelle Smink had a great game in the backfield along with Kerry O’Donnell, who played well in the midfield redefending in the transition. It was a great matchup and had a playoff feel to it between two teams that are holding at the 9/10 seeds in the district.”
Czajkowski was credited with nine saves in goal while Linsey Gilbert came up with a defensive save for the Knights.
North Penn (12-4-1, 10-4-1 SOL) will travel to Central Bucks East on Wednesday, and Central Bucks South (11-4-1, 10-4-1) will be on the road at Pennridge Wednesday for a 7 p.m. contest.
Central Bucks South 0-2-0-1-0 3
North Penn 1-0-0-2-0 3
SOUDERTON 7, PENNRIDGE 1
The Indians erupted for five first-half goals and remained perfect in conference play with their win.
Lauren Kenah scored back-to-back goals to open the scoring, connecting on a corner shot at the 12:32 mark and then scoring again with six minutes remaining to put the Indians on top 2-0. Payton Muth found the cage for the Rams during corner play with just over a minute remaining in the quarter, but junior Ava Shaw turned a Reiley Knize pass into a goal with five seconds remaining to give the Indians a 3-1 advantage after one quarter.
The second quarter belonged to Ava Jones as the freshman connected on a pair of unassisted goals midway through the quarter. In the third quarter, it was Knize’s turn to score a pair to close out the scoring. Both were unassisted.
The Indians held an edge in shots (13-8 )and penalty corners (8-6).
Souderton (15-1, 14-0 SOL) will host Central Bucks West on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. and then travel to Harry S Truman Thursday for its regular season finale. Pennridge (4-13, 3-12) will close out its season Wednesday when the Rams will host Central Bucks South at 7 p.m.
Souderton 3-2-2-0 7
Pennridge 1-0-0-0 1
SOL Liberty
ABINGTON 2, PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 0
It was quite a day for Abington field hockey as the Ghosts defeated the eight-time division champion Colonials, becoming the first Abington hockey team to defeat the perennial SOL power in 20 years.
“We’re saving our best field hockey for the end of the season,” Abington coach Katie Small said. “This is unbelievable. We’ve never played this well – this is the best I’ve ever seen them play. Everyone was on. It was a total team effort.”
And for the Ghosts, there’s no place like home.
“In this league, our turf field is definitely a slight advantage because ours is indoor quality turf, so it’s very fast, so if you’re used to a slower turf, some of your passes might be off that are normally on because you’re not ready for the speed of the ball coming at you,” Small said. “My girls just stepped into those passing lanes.
“It was an even game, but we definitely held the ball more, had more shots on goal and more corners than them. It was just unbelievable.”
Monday’s game was not for the faint of heart as the two teams battled to a scoreless tie heading into the final quarter, and it became apparent that one goal could win it.
At the 12:51 mark of the fourth quarter, Cam Stewart sent a crossing pass that Rachel Kallan – who was in the middle of the circle – redirected into the cage for a 1-0 Ghost lead. With eight minutes remaining, Maura Calladonato sent a pass to Devan DiMaria, who scored in a scramble in the circle during corner play to give the Ghosts their final margin of victory.
“We were able to capitalize,” Small said. “We had been putting so much pressure on their defense throughout the game, and we finally were able to break them down a little bit and put the ball in the net, and we were able to continue with the momentum.
“Sometimes even if you score first, you fall back on your heels, and that’s a lot of time when the opponent scores, but we were able to keep the intensity up.”
The Ghosts’ coach had plenty of praise to go around.
“Cam Stewart played out of her mind today,” Small said. “It was the most selfless hockey she has played. I can’t even say enough about how well she did.
“Tara Hughes had two defensive saves for us, and Olivia Dougherty played excellent defense, really marking out either Hailey Copestick or Molly Lynch, controlling them when they got in the middle of the field.”
Abington held a 10-7 advantage in corners with goalie Marilynn Capps recording eight saves. With the shutout win, Capps has set a program record for shutouts in a season with 10.
“It was such a fun game to watch on both sides,” Small said. “Both sides just played so well. It just all came together.
“The girls’ goal entering the season was to score a goal against PW, and once we did that, their goal was to win. They knew this would be a huge game for us to win because of their district ranking. The girls came out loose – we actually did a dance party before the game to try and get them loose and to have fun out there.
“It’s a great group – they’re all friends, they enjoy being around each other, and it’s nice to watch. They were ecstatic.”
Abington (11-6, 10-5 SOL) – 18th in the latest District One 3A power rankings – will host Quakertown on Wednesday in its regular season finale, and Plymouth Whitemarsh (12-3-1, 12-2-1) – 12th in the power rankings – will host Wissahickon on Wednesday.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 0-0-0-0 0
Abington 0-0-0-2 2
WISSAHICKON 3, UPPER DUBLIN 0
Sparked by a pair of goals from senior Brynne Miller, the Trojans celebrated Senior Night with a win that clinched the program’s first division title since 2012, breaking a string of eight straight division titles by Plymouth Whitemarsh.
“This is always a goal, of course, but really, I don’t think they looked past beating PW – that was their goal,” Wissahickon coach Lucy Gil said. “A nice thing that happens when you beat PW, you have a better chance of winning the league. I think they had it in the back of their mind, but I don’t know if they thought we could do it.
“We don’t have any superstars. Last year we had Aidan (Drabick), and the year before that, we had three kids that actually went D-1. This year we have a couple of D-1 people, but everybody is doing their part, and it’s really nice to see. Someone might be able to get by the first person, but they’re not going to get by the second kind of thing. Personally, I think that’s one big reason we’ve been successful.”
The other reason for the team’s success, according to Gil, is the leadership of her four senior captains – Miller, Julia Schools, Kate Lovensheimer and Alli Wood.
“Our captains have just taken the team and been amazing, and that’s so important,” Gil said. “Julia Schools has really blossomed as a leader. I don’t even know how to explain it, but when the kids need something, they look right at Julia. She tells people where to go on the press because she’s our center back, so she sees everything from the back. The things she 
says are very constructive. We never hear her yell at somebody. She’s always saying something constructive, which I think is important.
“Kate Lovensheimer is our right mid, and her stick skills speak for themselves. She’s a very quiet individual, but the way she carries the ball – she’s one of our strongest dribblers. Brynne Miller is our center midfielder, and she has 14 goals and 15 assists on the season. She’s our go-to person on corners and everything. Her shot is incredibly hard. Then we have Alli Wood, our goalie and anchor. We have this core group of really great leaders and then we have really strong players in every position.”
Danielle Ciliberto (right back), Yesenia Kearns (left back), Jillian Pileggi (goalie) and Julianna Thomas (goalie) round out the Trojans’ senior class.
Miller’s first goal came with an Ella Hummel assist and put the Trojans on the scoreboard with 2:04 remaining in the first half.
That 1-0 lead stood until midway through the fourth quarter when Riley Ball scored with a Caroline Kirkpatric assist, and with one second on the scoreboard clock. Miller scored with a Schools assist for the 3-0 final.
“Even though we don’t have any superstars and we probably won’t make any giant headlines, but day after day, they go out and work really hard,” Gil said. “It was nice to celebrate our eight seniors tonight.”
Thomas recorded four saves in the shutout win Monday.
Dara Fishman had another busy day in goal for the Flying Cardinals, recording 12 saves.
“Erin Muth was a brick wall on corners,” UD coach Emily Town said. “We battled against a really physical team and, unfortunately, didn’t score. We held them off, but eventually, the physicality broke us down, but we made them fight for (the win).”
Wissahickon (16-1, 15-0 SOL), the fourth seed in the latest District One 3A power rankings, will close out its regular season at Plymouth Whitemarsh on Wednesday. Upper Dublin (7-8) will host Hatboro-Horsham on Wednesday. The Flying Cardinals are 10th in the Class 2A power rankings.
Upper Dublin 0-0-0-0 0
Wissahickon 0-1-0-2 3
QUAKERTOWN 2, HATBORO-HORSHAM 0
The Panthers celebrated Senior Night with a shutout win, and if ever a group of seniors had reason to celebrate, these seven certainly did. Prior to this season, Quakertown had not won a game in league play in three years and had managed just four wins in 42 games in that span.
With Monday’s win, the Panthers are 8-8 overall and 7-7 in league play, a remarkable turnaround for a program that has struggled.
“Tonight we celebrated our seven seniors with a good win,” Quakertown coach Kate Kemp said. “These seven young ladies have had a tough four years here at Quakertown, so it was nice to send them off with a win tonight.”
Daniella Burns turned a pass from Kiera Gallagher into a goal with 8:45 remaining in the second quarter. The Panthers added an insurance goal just over a minute into the third quarter when Gallagher scored with an Alexis Mowrer assist.
“Hatboro-Horsham played well tonight,” Kemp said. “Those players deserve a lot of credit. They played hard for 60 minutes.
“We wish their seniors and the rest of the team luck as they finish out their season.”
Quakertown – ranked 23rd in the latest District One 3A rankings – will travel to Springfield Township on Tuesday, and the Panthers will close out their regular season at Abington on Wednesday. Hatboro-Horsham (1-14-1, 1-13-1) will be on the road at Upper Dublin on Wednesday.
Hatboro-Horsham 0-0-0-0 0
Quakertown 0-1-1-0 2
SOL Freedom
SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP 1, LOWER MORELAND 0
Sheila Nelson scored with an assist from Annie Coll in the second quarter to give the visiting Spartans a 1-0 lead, and that lead stood until the final whistle.
“It was a battle under the lights,” LM coach Janet Lutter said. “Springfield came out on top, but the Lady Lions fought hard until the final buzzer.
“We were able to come out strong and spend a lot of the first quarter on our offensive end but knew Springfield would come out fighting in the second, scoring the lone goal of the game.”
The Lions held a 7-3 edge in shots in a contest that saw both teams draw three penalty corners.
“As a team, we played one of our best and most consistent 60 minutes of the season on all sides of the ball,” Lutter said.
Springfield Township (11-5, 10-4 SOL) will host Quakertown on Tuesday, and Lower Moreland (8-9, 6-9) will travel to William Tennent on Wednesday.
Springfield Township 0-1-0-0 1
Lower Moreland 0-0-0-0 0
WILLIAM TENNENT 3, UPPER MORELAND 0
Leila Doran connected for a hat trick, scoring all three goals in the third quarter to propel the Panthers to the win.
Emma Hurley kept the visiting Golden Bears in the game, turning away 27 shots. Teammates Kelly Bates, Cayden Weist, Lia Liou and Jenna Piantieri all were credited with a defensive save.
“Emma Hurley had a great game in goal and came up with some amazing saves,” UM coach Marissa Elizardo said. “Kelly Bates did a great job stepping up defensively.
“We played a good first half and then let up in the third quarter. William Tennent capitalized and made the most of their opportunities.”
William Tennent (2-10-1 SOL) will host Lower Moreland on Wednesday, and Upper Moreland (4-13, 3-12) will host New Hope-Solebury on Wednesday.
Upper Moreland 0-0-0-0 0
William Tennent 0-0-3-0 3
NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY 10, CHELTENHAM 0
Six minutes into Monday’s contest, Sophia Cozza used a Maddie Thistlewaite assist to score a goal. It was the first of three goals for Cozza, and this one turned out to be the game winner. Five minutes later Thistlewaite scored, and the division champion Lions were on their way.
In the second quarter, the Lions received goals from Mia Gomolinski (Sophia Cozza assist), Laura Genovey (Avery Mendola assist) and Sophia Cozza (Gomolinski assist) to go into halftime with a 5-0 lead.
Mendola (Madie Thistlewaite assist) and Gomolinski each scored a goal in the third period, and in the fourth quarter, Madie Thistlewaite (Ava Cozza assist), Kat Thistlewaite (Sophia Cozza assist) and Sophia Cozza (Morgan Riggione assist) each scored a goal.
New Hope-Solebury (13-2-1, 12-2-1 SOL) will travel to Upper Moreland on Wednesday, and Cheltenham (0-13) will travel to Springfield Township on Wednesday.
Cheltenham 0-0-0-0 0
New Hope-Solebury 2-3-2-3 10
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