William Tennent 1, Council Rock North 0 (OT)
In a dramatic finish, Colleen McCabe scored with four minutes remaining in overtime, turning a pass from teammate Mia Morris into a goal to give the suddenly red hot Panthers the win. The win avenged a 1-0 loss to the Indians earlier this season.
“It was a huge win for us,” coach Kate Wyatt said. “The last time we played them it was a one-goal game. It’s a good matchup, and it was just pretty hockey tonight.
“There weren’t a whole lot of calls. It was just good field hockey by both teams.”
Interestingly, McCabe came into the game just moments before scoring the game winner.
“Mia had a pretty good breakaway and got around a few defenders,” Wyatt said. “Colleen had those fresh legs, and she just ran to the ball. Mia gave her a little pass to the left, and Colleen just put it in.
“It was a great play, and it all worked out really nicely.”
Wyatt acknowledged the strong showings of several players in the big win.
“Alison Malatesta had a great game,” the Panthers’ coach said of her center midfielder. “She was just really controlling the pace of the game and came up really big on a lot of defensive plays.
“There wasn’t a huge amount of shots for either team, but the shots that we got off and North got off were great plays. Kirsten Doherty – our goalie - had a great game, getting to a few high balls and a few wide ones.
“Mia Morris is another one of those girls that is just a great playmaker. She makes a lot of smart passes, a lot of smart plays, and that showed in overtime with her pass to Colleen.”
The win gives the Panthers a major boost as they begin a stretch of four games in five days that includes contests against Truman, Neshaminy and Pennsbury.
“We have a packed week,” Wyatt said. “We only have off on Wednesday, and hopefully, this will keep a light under us, and we can use this as momentum going into our other games. We can’t walk into any game thinking we have it. I don’t think any team can in this conference.”
Wyatt hopes that the Panthers – who downed Bensalem 6-3 on Friday – are finding their stride as they come down the home stretch of the season. After Monday’s win, the Panthers improved to 5-3-1 in conference play (6-6-1 overall).
“We have had our ups and downs, but I think we’re on the rise now,” the Panthers’ coach said. “I like the position we’re in right now.
“As long as we work as a unit and keep that fire under us and the defense has a strong game, I think we’ll be okay. Our defense this year is really stepping up and making great plays.”
The Panthers’ defense includes Doherty in goal and defensive backs Mary McGinty, Kelsey Hiltebeitel and Danielle Ciocco.“Mary McGinty is our right back, and in the last few games, she has made huge, monstrous plays with stopping and clearing the ball out of the circle,” Wyatt said. “Kelsey Hiltebeitel, our center back, is really coming up big. She has three goals and two assists, and as a back, that’s not heard of a lot.
“Our other defensive back, Danielle Ciocco, has one goal and one assist, and those three players – even though they’re playing defense in the back – they are a huge asset as far as our scoring goes as well.
“Our goalie Kirsten Doherty is having a phenomenal year. She’s had some saves that I’m not even sure how she did it. She has been working so hard.”
On Sunday, 23 members of the hockey team along with the coaching staff participated in the Susan G. Komen Walk for the Cure in Philadelphia. The team wore t-shirts with the words ‘Drive to Survive’ emblazoned on the back. It is the second year the Panthers participated in the fund raiser to find a cure for breast cancer.
Hatboro-Horsham 1, Council Rock South 0
Caroline Hagan scored midway through the second half, turning a pass from teammate Courtnee Daley into a goal that turned out to be the game winner.
“This was huge,” coach Melissa Shanley said. “You could just see in the girls’ faces and their eyes – they lit up. They were so excited.
“They played beautifully today. It was a good win. Their spirits are up, and their adrenaline was flowing. They’re pumped for tomorrow’s game against Pennridge.”
A key to the win, according to Shanley, was the standout performance of goalie Maddy Wagenfeld, who turned away nine shots. In Friday’s 1-0 loss to Souderton, the junior goalie turned away 15 shots.
“Maddy is a phenomenal player,” the Hatters’ coach said. “She goes out and gives 110 percent every game.
“In our game against Souderton, she was lunging and diving at every ball. They had so many opportunities, but they just couldn’t get the ball in the goal.
“Maddy has a lot of heart. She plays from her heart. She wants to win, and she wants to be a better player. If I told her to run 10 miles, she’d say, ‘Okay, let me get my sneakers on.’ She’s coachable, and she has a positive attitude all the time. I’ve never heard her complain once.”
Shanley also praised the efforts of several other players.
“Courtnee Daly had an amazing game,” the first-year coach said. “She was a beast on the field today. She was just everywhere. She was at every ball – she’s a hustler.
“My center midfielder Kasey Gelhaus had an amazing game as well. My center back, Carly Gallagher, really sees the field. She sees the gaps, and she has beautiful long balls and gets it right up the field.”
While the Hatters improved to 4-8, the Golden Hawks fell to 3-8-1.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 2, Upper Dublin 0 (Friday)
Friday’s win over the Flying Cardinals was exactly what the doctor ordered for a PW squad that fell to Upper Dublin 2-1 earlier this season.
“This was huge,” coach Marianne Paparone said. “We talked about not really having any quality wins, and it was time to play a 60-minute game and finish it.
“We played really well against Haverford and had a tough loss right at the end, so it was time to beat a strong team that had a winning record. We really haven’t played 60 minutes all season.”
The two teams were deadlocked at halftime, but Meg McCullough broke that scoreless tie when she connected on a corner shot (Mollie Getzfread assist) with 23 minutes remaining in regulation. Ariana Horn (Getzfread assist) added an insurance goal on a deflection with 8:47 remained.
“That second goal was huge because it was an insurance goal,” Paparone said. “Both goals were on corner plays, and that’s another thing – I think we should have stronger corners. We just don’t score enough, but to score off two corners was big.”
In addition to her three players who contributed to the scoring, Paparone also lauded the efforts of several other players in the win.
“Katie Biddle – my sweeper – had a really good game, especially in the first half,” the PW coach said. “I thought Upper Dublin had a little bit of momentum in the beginning, but she shut them down when they tried to make some runs.
“Gab Fazio plays the left back, which is a tough position, but she’s probably been my steadiest kid all year. She’s very coachable and is a hard worker. She’s someone you may not notice, but she doesn’t get beat. She’s smart and is just a grinder.
“Hannah Heritage – one of my captains who is our center back – really just played very aggressively and made a lot of pop-throughs, carrying the ball and distributing the ball.”
The win upped the Colonials’ record to 6-3 in league play (7-5-1 overall).
“I thought we would be a little stronger and a little more competitive than we’ve been this season,” Paparone said. “I think we have skills. It’s the intangibles that we’re still learning.
“Just to be more competitive – I felt that we were too passive. Just being more aggressive, being more confident, better communicators. I think my kids have plenty of skill, and they have plenty of understanding of the game. They just didn’t have some of those intangibles.”
Three of PW’s losses came in a tough week early in the season to Haverford (2-1), North Penn (5-1) and Wissahickon (2-0).
“That was hard for us – it was probably too tough a road right at the beginning,” Paparone said. “We played really tough against North Penn. I know it doesn’t sound like it, but we let them score pretty much every chance they had.
“Clearly, Wissahickon is a good team, and North Penn is a good team, but the loss against Haverford was pretty tough, and the first Upper Dublin loss was tough.”
In Friday’s win, the Colonials held a 10-5 edge in shots on goal and a 9-4 advantage in corners. PW goalie Becky Stiteler was forced to make just three saves in the shutout.
North Penn 3, Central Bucks West 0 (Friday)
The Maidens tuned up for Wednesday’s showdown against Central Bucks South with a 3-0 win over the Bucks on Friday at War Memorial Field.
“It’s huge,” senior captain Elizabeth Fedele said of facing the defending conference and district champs. “Every year, we get taken to overtime, and every year, they beat us 2-1.
“We played them this year, and it was a shame to come away with a (0-0) tie, but when we play as great as we can, we are an amazing team. Sometimes I see it in practice, but then I don’t see it in games, which is frustrating, but we are all so excited. We’re going to come out and play our best. I can’t wait.”
Wednesday’s game will also be played at War Memorial Field where the Titans will celebrate Senior Night.
“I think it’s good we got to play on this turf and feel it out,” senior Amy Coughlin said. “At the beginning of this game, we weren’t quite used to it, and we were still a little shaky, but now we’ll know what we’re in for.”
The Maidens found themselves locked in a scoreless tie at halftime but then exploded for three second half goals with Coughlin – the Maidens’ dangerous forward – connecting for the hat trick.
Coughlin tried to explain her uncanny ability to find the cage.
“I just keep on cutting and making sure I’m open,” the Maidens’ senior forward said. “I just try to be open for the pass. I try and position myself in the right spot.”
If it were half as easy as Coughlin made it sound, everyone would be scoring goals in bunches, but it’s much harder than that. Her second goal was a testament to just how difficult scoring can be. It came when Coughlin – to the left of the cage – appeared out of nowhere to deflect a laser crossing pass by Fedele into the cage.
Fedele’s trademark pass made it through a throng of players from both sides – who swung and hit nothing but air – before Coughlin re-directed it into the cage.
“I don’t know what you do, but it’s awesome,” Fedele told her teammate. “She’s just always there.
“You think it’s going out, but no, she’s on the line, pulls it back. She’s so fast. We always joke that Amy is like a deer. She’s the most graceful person I’ve ever seen, and on the field, she makes these beautiful cuts, and she knows what to do with the ball. I love watching Amy.”
Earlier in the half, Coughlin pounced on the rebound of a save by a defender on the goal line and converted it into a goal. Her final goal came when she deftly took a beautiful lead pass from Carly Pickford in stride and banged it home for the 3-0 final.
“She’s got a great touch, and she’s really, really fast – deceptively fast,” coach Carrie Jankowski said of Coughlin. “Even when she wasn’t getting tons of varsity time, she’s always known where to be on the field. She has great game sense.”
The Maidens are 7-1-1 in league play (10-1-1 overall).
NOTES: Fedele, who was sidelined after suffering a concussion in the Central Bucks South game on Sept. 22, received the okay to return to action at 3:41 p.m. last Wednesday. The UNC-bound senior midfielder saw some action in the Maidens' win over Pennridge that day and found her stride on Friday. "I feel so much better," Fedele said. "I took the time that I needed. If I had come back any earlier, it could have been really dangerous. I passed the concussion test twice."
Upper Dublin 1, Central Bucks West 0
Emily Hitchings scored with 24:05 remaining in the first half, and that goal stood for the remainder of the game.
Coach Heather Boyer lauded the solid play of midfielder Megan Rock in the win.
Both teams took eight shots on goal. The Bucks held a 5-4 edge in corners. While West goalie Jessica Meisinger-MacDonald had seven saves, UD’s Dana Russell turned away all eight shots she faced.
Upper Merion 4, Cheltenham 2 (Friday)
The Vikings received a pair of goals from both Sophia Liu and Dallas Stevens. Madi DiBella had a pair of assists while Amanda McAteer and Dominique Gambone each added an assist.
Gabby Szczepanek scored both goals for the Panthers.
Norristown 3, Upper Moreland 2 (Friday)
Gina Pellechio connected for the hat trick to lead the Eagles to the win. Sammi Kidd had a pair of assists.
Central Bucks East 3, Pennridge 0 (Friday)
Brittany Meyer scored all three of East’s goals while Marissa Glatt had a pair of assists and Jamie Schloterer had one assist. Goalie Emily Guthier had seven saves for the Patriots.
Souderton 1, Hatboro-Horsham 0 (Friday)
Souderton used a first-half goal by junior Alayna Brown to down the Hatters.
Council Rock North 3, Harry S Truman 1 (Friday)
Becky Ely and Melissa Rowland each scored a first-half goal as the Indians opened up a 2-1 lead over the Tigers, who received their lone goal from Charlotte Coutilier. Gabby Tofig added an insurance goal for the Indians in the second half.
Central Bucks South 3, Quakertown 0 (Friday)
Maddy Harding, Casey Haegele and Alexa Schreiber each scored goals for the Titans.
William Tennent 6, Bensalem 3 (Friday)
The Owls received a pair of goals from Danielle Dea while Haley Geller added a pair of assists. Amanda Morton also scored for the Owls, who trailed 3-2 at halftime. Taylor Pritchett scored the hat trick for the Panthers.
Wissahickon 3, Christopher Dock 2 (Friday)
Gretchen Guaglianone and Jackie Hibbs both contributed a goal and an assist while teammate Emily Gallagher added a single goal. Lauren Becker contributed an assist.
Neshaminy 2, Council Rock South 1 (Friday)
Pennsbury 3, Abington 2 (Friday)
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