Check out the winners in SOL field hockey action Friday.
Non-league
NORTH PENN 4, OWEN J ROBERTS 3
The Knights have made scoring goals look easy, connecting for four in Friday’s win on the heels of a 6-2 win over Pennridge Tuesday.
“It’s great,” NP coach Shannon McCracken said. “In our first game against Pennridge, I thought we had a little bit of a slow start. That game was 2-2 at halftime, and we scored four in the second half.
“Today I thought we went out fast, but to score 10 goals in two games is exciting. We definitely have an attack that can go to goal fast, and we also have a deep bench, so we have a lot of flexibility, which is exciting.”
The Knights opened up a 4-1 lead after a goal by Grace McGeehan early in the third quarter, but the Wildcats staged a late rally.
“It was a really good game,” McCracken said. “Owen J Roberts is always a really good team, and I thought we were pretty evenly matched.
“If you look at the film, we probably had more possession than they did. We went up 4-1, and credit to them, they came back in the third and fourth quarter to make it 4-3, and we held on. They had more possession of the ball in our defensive end in the fourth quarter. We were back on our heels a little bit. They’re a very good team – there was a lot of back and forth. It was exciting.”
OJR’s Evie Waters put the visitors on the board early in the first quarter, but Caleigh Sperling evened the score with an unassisted goal early in the second quarter. Cara Albano scored with a McGeehan assist in the closing seconds of the quarter to send the Knights into halftime with a 2-1 lead.
Back-to-back goals by Ashleigh Barwis and McGeehan in a two-minute span early in the third quarter put the Knights on top 4-1. Maddie Tilou (Peyton Cunningham assist) scored with 4:33 remaining in the third quarter, and when Tilou scored her second goal with 10:21 remaining, things got a bit tense, but the Knights held on for the win.
“Our defense was solid when they were making a push,” McCracken said. “I loved how we went to goal today. We went to goal really fast. Our passing was key today.
“Caleigh Sperling led the way as our attacking center mid, and her and Grace McGeehan had really nice games – lots of shots. Credit to my outside mids Ashleigh Barwis and Maddie Brown. – Owen J Roberts does a lot of aerials and things like that, and they did a really nice job of cutting off balls that were coming across the field and pushing up.
“Defensive player Melissa Sessler and goalkeeper Kiley Moister led the defensive effort. The game had a playoff feel to it as both teams played quick and aggressive hockey.”
North Penn (2-0, 1-0 SOL) will host Central Bucks West on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m.
Owen J Roberts 1-0-1-1 3
North Penn 1-1-2-0 4
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 7, VILLA JOSEPH MARIE 2
The visiting Indians raced out of the gate to a 4-0 lead after one quarter on their way to the non-league win over their neighboring rival.
“We finished really well in the circle today, and Villa played a very competitive game,” Rock North coach Jules Singer said.
Maddy Mela – whose three goals and one assist led the Indians – opened the scoring with an unassisted goal. Brynn Bogle set up back-to-back goals by Charlotte Ondria and Mela, and then Bogle scored with an assist from Mela for a 4-0 Rock North lead.
Mela’s unassisted goal in the second quarter sent the Indians into halftime with a 5-0 lead. In the fourth quarter, Julie Ondria scored an unassisted goal, and Kaitlyn Smith closed out the scoring with a goal assisted by Kate Horan.
Council Rock North (2-0, 1-0) will travel to Bensalem on Tuesday.
UPPER PERKIOMEN 4, PENNRIDGE 3 (OT)
The Rams took a 3-2 lead on a goal by Leah Verespy, but the host Indians evened the score in regulation and won it in overtime.
“We improved our play this game, but still spent a lot of time in our defensive end,” Pennridge coach Becky Spahr said. “We are capitalizing on our scoring chances but need to create more opportunities in our offensive half.
“Upper Perk is strong and well coached. They stayed disciplined and were able to finish OT by capitalizing on a corner.”
Early on, Lexi Capo turned a pass from Hannah Capo into a goal and a 1-0 Pennridge lead. UP’s Ava Senserny answered, but Audrey Frentzen scored to put the Rams on top 2-1.
Upper Perk’s Burgandy Gahman evened the score, setting the stage for Verespy’s go-ahead goal. UP’s Jade Traynor knotted the score to force overtime, and Julia Traynor scored the game-winner in OT.
Molly Bross recorded 12 saves in goal for the Rams. Lindsey Campione and Ryleigh Lily each had a defensive save.
Pennridge (0-2, 0-1 SOL) will travel to Souderton Tuesday for a 4:30 p.m. game.
NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY 10, HARRY S TRUMAN 0
Ava Cozza connected on four goals to lead the Lions to the non-league win. Madie Thistlewaite and Morgan Riggione each added a pair of goals while Sophia Leonardi and Nicole Segler both had one goal.
“It was a nice team win,” coach Gwen Smith said. “It was nice to see us have better organization and communication on the field. Truman continued to battle the whole game.”
New Hope-Solebury (2-0, 1-0 SOL) will travel to Springfield Twp on Tuesday.
UNIONVILLE 5, COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 0
The Golden Hawks made the long trek to Unionville and fell to a strong Indians squad.
“Even though the score did not fall in our favor, this was a good learning experience for our team,” coach Kelly Mason said. “They were a skilled team and we needed to generate more offense.
“We had great defense from Maria Freeman, Clare Morgan and Reagan Lewis, and we figured out the best combination for our team this year. We are going to take what we learned and adjust for our upcoming league games.”
Council Rock South (1-1, 1-0 SOL) will host Neshaminy on Tuesday.
QUAKERTOWN 2, PALISADES 0
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