Check out the recaps for SOL field hockey teams in action Thursday. Photo courtesy of Tracy Valko: https://solsports.zenfolio.com/p1034441918
SOL Patriot Division
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 3, PENNSBURY 1
The Indians remained perfect on the young season, opening up a 2-0 lead in the opening quarter on their way to their fifth win in as many outings.
“It’s always a great game against Pennsbury,” Rock North coach Jules Singer said. “I’m proud of the girls for finishing in the circle.”
Maddy Mela continued her impressive offensive production, scoring with eight minutes remaining in the opening frame to give the Indians the early advantage. Four minutes later, Charlotte Ondria connected on her first of two goals to send the Indians into halftime with a 2-0 lead.
The score stood until the closing minute of the third quarter when the Falcons got on the board, thanks to a goal by Angelina Kenney with an assist from Abby Iacona, and just like that, the Falcons were back in the game.
It remained a one-goal game until Charlotte Ondria turned a Megan Reichenbach pass into a goal with 6:12 remaining in regulation. That 3-1 score held until the final whistle.
“Cara Moriarty played a great game,” Singer said. “Our defense -Lily King, Sierra Kim, Kaitlyn McCoy and Julia Lyons – really stepped up.
“Keiley Lyons did a great job distributing the ball, and Charlotte Ondria and Maddy (Mela) had great goals.”
Final stats show the Falcons with a slight edge in shots (9-8) and penalty corners (3-2).
Council Rock North (5-0, 3-0 SOL) will travel to Central Bucks West for a crossover game Monday at 7 p.m., and Pennsbury (3-3, 2-3) will host North Penn on Monday.
(Article submitted by Pennsbury field hockey)
It was a beautiful afternoon for a field hockey game at Falcon Field Stadium. This was the third game in a row for Pennsbury, yet the Falcons came out energized from the excitement of their opening day on the new turf 24 hours earlier.
The Falcons took charge and put a lot of early pressure on the visiting North team, but it was Rock who notched the first goal halfway through the first quarter.
“We got caught ball watching and they snuck it by our goalie. Those situations will definitely be part of our practice plan tomorrow,” said coach Traci Curtis. “All we can do is recognize the moment and work to be better next time.”
Council Rock made it 2-0 four minutes later with a scramble in front of the cage.
“CR did a better job of getting their sticks in there and changing the direction of the ball inside the circle. Those first two goals were just heads up, sticks down touches that allowed them to finish,” Curtis said. “This was one of those frustrating games where the girls played extremely well, dominated for a large percentage, had great passing connections, but the perfect storm of not being able to finish in the circle and a few missed marks resulted in the loss.”
The second quarter was a tight, scoreless battle and North’s 2-0 lead carried into halftime. “
We were so proud of our girls for not letting down or giving up because of the score,” Curtis said. “They fought hard the entire way and were really creating great opportunities, using the width of the field. It paid off at the very end of the third quarter when we finally connected and made it a 2-1 game.”
Senior Mia Popovich gained control of the ball in the circle and tapped it to freshman Abby Iacona, who used a reverse stick pass to dump it toward goal and connected with junior Angelina Kenney. Kenney tapped it right by the goalie and got the Falcons on the board.
“Mia Popovich and Abby Iacona are a dynamic duo who really set everyone up for success,” Curtis said. “It’s fun to watch them play and use strong, smart skills throughout the game.”
Council Rock did not let down either and added a third goal to their book halfway through the fourth quarter. Despite out shooting, having more corners, and out possessing North, Pennsbury fell 3-1 in the end.
“North was able to capitalize early and that made it tough for us,” Curtis said. “Jules (Singer) is doing an amazing job with that program, and although we walked away with a loss, we are all still sharing a common vision and it is great to see them grow right alongside us each year.
“It’s great to have tough, close, competitive games like that. I know a handful of the girls on her team, and they are great kids who I love to watch play. We will meet again the last game of the regular season and it will be another spirited battle for sure.”
Shout out to the following players for their performance today – Ryan Burdette, Avalee Shumski, Riley Henderson, and Rylie Borgman.
Pennsbury is set to host North Penn on Monday.
Council Rock North 2-0-0-1 3
Pennsbury 0-0-0-1 1
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 9, HARRY S TRUMAN 0
The visiting Golden Hawks took a 3-0 lead into halftime and then blew the game wide open with five third-quarter goals on their way to the decisive win.
“Our offense had a slow start to this game, but after a shift in our line, we were able to break through for some goals,” Rock South coach Kelly Mason said. “Both forwards Kelly Longmore and newcomer Ava Leonetti had a hat trick.
“Junior captain Sarah Freeman had two goals with captain Maria Freeman having strong passes behind her. Senior captain Clare Morgan played well on both sides of the ball.”
Sarah Freeman put the Golden Hawks on the board with the only goal of the first quarter, and in the second quarter, Leonetti and Longmore each scored unassisted goals,
In the third quarter, Longmore assisted on a goal by Hannah Erickson and then connected for her second goal. Leonetti added a pair of goals – the second with a Maria Freeman assist before Longmore completed her hat trick. Sarah Freeman connected for her second goal in the fourth quarter to close out the scoring.
Council Rock South (3-2, 3-1 SOL) will travel to Central Bucks East Monday for a crossover game at 5 p.m. Harry S Truman (0-6, 0-4) will host Pennridge on Monday.
Council Rock South 1-2-5-1 9
Harry S Truman 0-0-0-0 0
NESHAMINY 5, BENSALEM 0
The visiting Redskins erupted for three first-quarter goals on their way to the shutout win over the Owls. Nine different players contributed to the scoring with Cait Colyar – who had two assists – the lone player contributing multiple goals or assists.
Just over two minutes into the opening quarter, Mia Sermarini turned a Molly Courtney pass into a goal that would stand as the game-winner, and then it was Ava Arbakov benefitting from a Colyar pass for a goal that put the Redskins on top 2-0 before the game was five minutes old.
Annie Quinn (Paige Comer assist) closed out the scoring in the first quarter, and Norah Saloky scored the only goal of the second quarter, using a Colyar assist for a goal that sent the ‘Skins into halftime with a 4-0 lead.
Hannah Stanton scored with a Kasey Rieger assist with 4:30 remaining in the third quarter for the lone goal of the second half and the 5-0 final.
Neshaminy (4-1, 3-1 SOL) will host Villa Joseph Marie on Friday in a non-league contest, and Bensalem (1-3, 1-3) will host Norristown in a non-league game Friday.
Neshaminy 3-1-1-0 5
Bensalem 0-0-0-0 0
SOL Colonial Division
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 2, PENNRIDGE 1 (OT)
Tessa Walls turned a Kaeli Vandersluis crossing pass into a goal with 4:43 remaining in overtime, propelling the Titans to the dramatic come-from-behind win.
“Perseverance sums it up day,” South coach Kelli Chioffe said. “It was amazing. They fought hard, they didn’t give up, they just kept at it, kept at it. I said, ‘You guys can do this, let’s go.’ It was pretty cool.”
The Titans needed every ounce of perseverance they could muster after falling behind five minutes into the second quarter. The Rams got on the scoreboard on a goal by Lindsey Campione with an assist from Hannah Capo during corner play with the Titans down a player for leaving early on the initial corner.
That 1-0 lead held until the fourth quarter when the Titans evened the score on a highlight reel goal.
“Kaeli Vandersluis shot a reverse chip from the left side of the goal that got tipped by Tessa Walls and then finally tapped in by Erin Kelly – it was pretty cool, so that was exciting to tie it up,” Chioffe said.
Walls’ goal set the stage for overtime and the exciting finish.
“In the second half we had chances with consistent pressure under our offensive 25 but struggled to find goal number two,” Pennridge coach Becky Spahr said. “South took advantage and was able to capitalize in the fourth quarter. Congrats to South on a hard-fought game.”
Chioffe credited the play of her veteran leaders on defense in the win.
“Sam Thomas, our center back, just kept it all together on defense, and she just led the team today,” the Titans’ coach said. “She stepped it up.
“Pennridge is a very strong team that used a different formation that was throwing us off, especially in our defensive circle. We were having trouble marking because they had an extra girl that kept coming in, so our defense had to keep switching girls. We got solid defense from Sam, Ella Haag and Peyton Ostroff. They did a really good job.”
The Titans also welcomed Avery Tyler back in the lineup.
“She’s a midfielder who was out with a concussion for three weeks, so it was nice to have her today,” Chioffe said.
South had a 7-5 edge in shots on goal while both teams had six penalty corners.
“I felt we had a slight edge, and we just weren’t getting it in the goal,” Chioffe said. “Their goalkeeper, Molly Bross, was very good.
“I kept saying, ‘Girls, you’ve got to get aggressive, keep at it. You shoot the ball, but you have to be down and ready for the next one,’ and we weren’t doing that, but finally they figured it out.”
Bross was credited with five saves while South’s Emma Craft had five.
Central Bucks South (2-2, 2-2 SOL) will travel to Neshaminy on Monday for a crossover game at 7 p.m., and Pennridge (1-4, 0-3) will travel to Harry S Truman.
Pennridge 0-1-0-0-0 1
Central Bucks South 0-0-0-1-1 2
NORTH PENN 4, CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 0
The Knights took a 1-0 lead into halftime and then scored three goals in the second half to seize control of Friday’s game. It was the second shutout of the week for the Knights.
North Penn’s first goal was scored on a penalty corner with Laura Albert turning a pass from Grace McGeehan into a goal less than four minutes into the game. That 1-0 score stood until McGeehan converted a penalty stroke with two minutes remaining in the third quarter.
“That goal seemed to be a pivotal moment in the game, and we used that momentum to secure two goals in the fourth quarter by Kylie Barwis and Caleigh Sperling,” NP coach Shannon McCracken said.
The Knights held an advantage in shots while East had a 10-9 edge in corners. NP goalie Kiley Moister was credited with seven saves, and Rhyan Poole had a defensive save.
“Midfielders Laura Albert and Caleigh Sperling had a big night in the middle shutting down the strong middle play from CB East,” McCracken said. “We had great possession passes tonight and transitioned well from defense to attack with speed and dynamic play.
“Kiley Moister had a big night in goal coming up with key saves.”
East goalie Audra Szymborski recorded 11 saves.
North Penn (4-1-1, 3-1-1 SOL) will travel to Pennsbury for a crossover game on Monday, and Central Bucks East (3-2, 2-2) will host Council Rock South on Monday at 5 p.m.
Central Bucks East 0-0-0-0 0
North Penn 1-0-1-2 4
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 8, SOUDERTON 2
The Bucks opened up a 3-0 lead after one quarter and never looked back, notching a win over the defending division champions and completing their first trip through the Colonial Division with a perfect 5-0 record.
Sophomore Aida Ierubino finished with a hat trick and also had a pair of assists to lead the Bucks’ potent attack.
“We knew coming in, that we needed to provide full effort for 60 minutes,” West coach Dave DeAngelis said. “Coach Sue (Casciato) teams will battle until the end, and they did. We respect the manner in which she runs the program – speed and ball movement.”
Ella Dougherty scored an unassisted goal three minutes into the contest, and goals by Lily Cosner (Aida Ierubino assist) and Ierubino in a span of less than a minute late in the quarter put the Bucks on top 3-0.
In the second quarter, Dougherty connected for her second goal, using a Mimi Duffy assist, and then it was Emily Taylor and Ierubino both scoring with Duffy assists to go into halftime on top 6-0.
Ierubino completed her hat trick with a goal late in the third quarter, and Taylor scored early in the fourth quarter with an Ierubino assist before the Indians got on the board with a pair of goals.
Julia Blair scored with an Ashley Paturzo assist during corner play, and then it was Blair assisting Paturzo, also on a corner.
“After a several weeks of harsh weather – heat and storms, it turned out to be a beautiful evening at War Memorial,” DeAngelis said. “We – the coaches/team – realize that we did not play well earlier in the week; the student-athletes responded with an outstanding effort from the entire team against Souderton.
“We felt that we moved the ball with speed and intent for a majority of the match tonight. Whether in tight quarters or in the open field – we were able to connect with multiple nice sequences. Several of our student-athletes were able to gain some valuable experience on the pitch and played well. The season is young as we are continuing to grow as a team.”
The Bucks held and advantage in shots (16-6) and penalty corners (12-6)
Central Bucks West (5-0, 4-0 SOL) will host Council Rock North in a crossover game Monday at 7 p.m., and Souderton (0-5-1, 0-3-1) will host Bensalem Monday at 6:30 p.m.
Souderton 0-0-0-2 2
Central Bucks West 3-3-1-1 8
SOL Liberty Division
WISSAHICKON 3, PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 0
Avery Mullin turned a pass from Cait Connaghan into a goal during corner play less than two minutes into the game. That score stood until the closing minutes of the third quarter as the visiting Colonials hung tough against the division’s top squad.
A goal by senior captain Faith Jampo (Audrey Walsh assist) gave the Trojans some breathing room, and Kayla Mullin put the finishing touches on the win, turning a Jampo pass into a goal for the 3-0 final.
“PW team played well and put a lot of pressure on us,” Wissahickon coach Lucy Gil said. “I thought they have some skilled players that knew how to move the ball.”
Coming up huge for the Trojans was sophomore goalie Ava Fell, who recorded 10 saves in the shutout win.
I think my goalkeeper played really well,” Gill said. “She came up big on a one-on-one with one of their players.
“My center midfielder Faith Jampo also played a great game, both offense and defense.”
PW coach Charise Halteman had good things to say about her team’s effort.
“Wissahickon scored a quick goal off of a corner in the first two minutes of the game putting us in a hole,” the PW coach said. “We played strong the rest of the first half, earning six corners and putting eight shots on cage but could not find the back of the cage.
“The third quarter saw some back-and-forth action and an untimely injury for PW’s defender Hadley Blake, who was having a great defensive game.”
Wissahickon (4-1, 4-0 SOL) will host William Tennent in a crossover game on Monday, and Plymouth Whitemarsh (1-4, 1-2) will be on the road at Cheltenham Monday.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 0-0-0-0 0
Wissahickon 1-0-1-1 3
QUAKERTOWN 4, ABINGTON 0
Cassidy Landis had herself a day.
The freshman center forward connected for a hat trick to lead the Panthers to the big road win.
“This game is always a quick game because of Abington’s quick field,” Quakertown coach MacKenzie Moser said. “Today we were stepped up with speed. The whole team had great ball movement from defense all the way up to offense.”
Landis was on the receiving end of some of that ball movement, putting the Panthers on the board off a short dish from Leah Schwalm. Kiera Gallagher made it 2-0 when she connected on a hard shot later in the frame.
With 23 seconds remaining in the half, Landis picked up her second goal, redirecting a pass from Gallagher into the cage to send the Panthers into halftime with a 3-0 lead.
That score stood until Landis connected for her third goal of a productive day.
“Paige Longacre gave the pass with Cassidy receiving it and showing a strong finish into the cage,” Moser said. “The game consisted of lots of smooth passes that were intentionally passed to teammates.
“We have been moving the ball and communicating well leading to successful game completion.”
Quakertown (4-1, 3-0 SOL) will host Lower Moreland in a crossover game on Monday at 7 p.m., and Abington (1-4, 0-4) will travel to Upper Moreland on Monday.
Quakertown 2-1-0-1 4
Abington 0-0-0-0 0
UPPER DUBLIN 1, HATBORO-HORSHAM 0
Addison Michalek turned a pass from Olivia Vitella into a goal during corner play, breaking a scoreless tie in the third quarter. That goal turned out to be enough as the Cardinals held on for the win.
The final score doesn’t reflect the fact that the Cardinals were awarded 16 penalty corners and did not allow the Hatters a shot on goal.
Upper Dublin (4-2, 3-2 SOL) will host Springfield Twp on Tuesday, and Hatboro-Horsham (0-4, 0-3) will be on the road at New Hope-Solebury on Monday.
Hatboro-Horsham 0-0-0-0 0
Upper Dublin 0-0-1-0 1
SOL Freedom Division
LOWER MORELAND 5, WILLIAM TENNENT 1
The Lions put on a strong showing, scoring in every quarter on their way to the hard-fought win.
Kylie Hopkins opened the scoring in the first quarter with the assist from Haley Keller. Senior Mia Peng had two goals and freshman Cara Torgan added another.
“Jess Pachman scored a beauty off of a corner,” LM coach Janet Lutter said.
Pachman also contributed her eighth assist of the season.
“Goalie Meg Halpern had another stellar game,” Lutter said. “It’s great to see some of the younger players gain confidence and make an impact.
“Junior Mia Torgan is one of those players who flies under the radar but is always at the right place at the right time. Her strong but silent presence on the field has helped this team be successful.:
Lower Moreland (4-2, 3-2 SOL) will begin crossover play with a road game at Quakertown (7 p.m.) William Tennent (1-7, 1-5) will be on the road at Wissahickon Monday.
William Tennent 0-0-0-1 1
Lower Moreland 1-1-1-2 5
SPRINGFIELD TWP 8, CHELTENHAM 1
Emma Yoder had a hand in five goals, connecting for a hat trick and assisting on two others. Angela Eder added a pair of first-half goals. Jen Rex scored the game’s first goal, and adding one goal each were Sophie Evans and Paige Pizzica.
Norah Conlin and Bella Navo were facilitators with both contributing a pair of assists.
Cheltenham scored its goal on a penalty stroke. The Spartans also had a penalty stroke.
The Spartans had 22 shots and 14 penalty corners.
Springfield Township (6-1, 4-1 SOL) will travel to Upper Dublin on Tuesday, and Cheltenham (1-5, 0-5) will host Plymouth Whitemarsh on Monday.
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