On paper, it looked like it could be a ho hum day of field hockey action in the SOL. It turned out to be anything but as several teams pulled off major upsets, most notably in a Continental Conference that appears to have no sure thing except for the fact that Central Bucks South - despite losing the nucleus of last year’s championship squad to graduation - is still the team to beat. To view action photos of the CR North/CR South game, please visit the Photo Gallery.
National Conference
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 2, COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 0
The Indians used goals by Michelle Hand (Gabby Tofig assist) and Alex Kuzma (Hannah Plappert assist) to earn a 2-0 win over their neighboring rivals.
“We knew we had to step up big today,” coach Heather Whalin said. “The girls were ready. They played a good game. It’s always a rivalry, and South played a really nice game.”
Whalin acknowledged the strong performance of Rock South goalie Kelly Schlupp, who stopped a Rock North breakaway. The Indians’ coach went on to laud the efforts of several of her own players.
“Consistently playing well is Carly Everett, our left mid,” Whalin said. “Kara Magley stepped up a lot today. We’ve been asking Kara to play a lot of different positions, and she played really well today.
“Our defense is doing a great job. They’ve really been stepping up, especially using a forward as a goalie. They have been stingy back there.”
Anchoring the Indians’ defense are Courtney Titus, Kara Le, Alyssa Mangano and Melissa Rowland. They’re playing in front of forward turned goalie Katie O’Neill. O’Neill was pressed into emergency duty in goal when - after their season-opening win over defending district champ Wissahckon - the Indians lost starting goalie Molly Doyle, who is still recuperating from a torn ACL.
“She had never played goalie before,” Whalin said of O‘Neill. “We needed somebody who was going to step up, and Katie came to our heads. She’s been doing great - she has three shutouts already.”
The Indians were coming off a 0-0 tie with Central Bucks East in a non-league contest Friday that saw them take 35 shots on goal, but they could not cash in. It was the fourth game of a long week.
“Friday was disappointing and frustrating,” Whalin said. “(East goalie) Emily Guthier played a really nice game, but we could not put it in the cage.”
The Indians (3-0) are undefeated in league play while the Golden Hawks fell to 2-2 in the league.
BENSALEM 2, ABINGTON 1 (OT)
Sophomore Morgan Buechner scored with 4:41 remaining in overtime to propel the Owls to the dramatic win.
“Everything we did in practice finally came together today,” coach Amanda Tu said. “They worked so hard, and we are so proud of them.”
Senior A.J. Ewing scored six minutes into the game to put the Owls on top 1-0, a lead that held up into halftime, but the Ghosts rallied to knot the score, setting the stage for overtime..
Tu lauded the performance of Buehler, who plays center mid, goalie Stphanie Unger and sweeper Tammy Udowenko.
“It was an awesome game,” the Owls’ coach said. “I’m so excited.”
The Owls improved to 2-3 in league play while the Ghosts (0-3-1) continue to search for their first win in SOL play.
WILLIAM TENNENT 1, NESHAMINY 1
The Redskins went on top 1-0, thanks to a goal by Jackie Koellner (Lindsay Blum assist).19 seconds into the game. The Panthers knotted the score nine minutes later, and that 1-1 score stood the rest of the way. The Redskins held a 17-11 advantage in shots while Tennent had a 16-10 edge in corners. The Panthers are 3-0-1 in league play (4-0-1 overall) while the Redskins fell to 1-1-2 in the league.
PENNSBURY 8, HARRY S TRUMAN 0
Continental Conference
QUAKERTOWN 2, NORTH PENN 1
The Panthers picked up their first win of the season on Monday, and they made it a memorable one, upsetting the Maidens under the lights in Quakertown.
“Our season wasn’t going that well,” coach Peach Draper said. “We have had a lot of injuries, and we lost our goalie.
“We have a lot of freshmen starting on varsity, so it has taken us a little while. We’ve been getting better and better, but we’re just not winning. Tonight it finally came together.”
The Panthers got on the scoreboard first at the 7:16 mark of the first half when sophomore Allie MacIntyre - who was on the left post - tipped in a rocket by teammate Courtney Heverle from the top of the circle.
“We were fighting the whole game,” Draper said. “It was back and forth. They were not dominating. It was just really good hockey.”
The Maidens scored the equalizer with two minutes remaining in the first half, but the Panthers took a lead they would not lose when freshman Taylor Bednar scored on a breakaway midway through the second half.
“Their goalie came out and stopped it, but Taylor tipped it over top of her and just followed it in the goal,” Draper said. “It was really exciting, and my girls believe now they can do it.
“It’s been hard for some of the upperclassmen. Courtney Heverle is going Division One, and she‘s playing with these freshmen. It was hard at first to adjust. Now they know they can play as a team.”
Draper also lauded the efforts of co-captain Monica Bickford.
“She had a great second half,” Draper said. “My center back - Stephanie Thompson - played solid defense, but it was a pure team effort. It was awesome.”
Panther goalie Josh Schwarz turned away six shots in the win.
The Panthers won’t have long to celebrate the big win. They will host Central Bucks West on Tuesday night in a night game and 24 hours later will host Central Bucks East.
“I hope we can keep the momentum and keep going,” Draper said.
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 3, HATBORO-HORSHAM 2
The Bucks sprinted to a 3-0 lead over the Hatters, who scored a pair of goals in the closing minutes for the 3-2 final. Kim Hitchock (Jenny Kamel assist) put the Bucks on the scoreboard five minutes in the game, and five minutes later, Christine Munsell scored her first of two goals to send West into halftime with a 2-0 lead. Munsell connected for an insurance goal after a flurry in front of the net with four minutes remaining before the Hatters scored a pair - the first from Caroline Hagan and the second from Colby Eldridge.
The win was the second in as many games for a Buck squad that has found its stride since co-coaches Kit Sinnamon and Alison Stone made some lineup changes.
“We had a lot of strength in the back, but then we weren’t scoring any goals,” Sinnamon said. “We actually moved Jenny Kamel up front. She’s a senior, she’s a good player, and she has more of an idea when to shoot and when to score, and she creates a lot of stuff up there. Before we were losing 3-0. On Friday, we still gave up three goals, but we scored four.”
Kamel contributed a goal and an assist in West’s 4-3 non-league win over Pennsbury on Saturday, and she added an assist in Monday’s win, and for the Bucks, their modest two-game winning streak couldn’t have come at a better time.
“It was really important to get these wins,” Sinnamon said. “Both coach Stone and I really love the group of kids we have. We couldn’t ask for more.
“They’re doing a lot of the right things, and they’re getting better every game. It’s hard to keep our spirits up as coaches, and I can only imagine how hard it was for them. It was really important to get some wins, and I hope we can get a couple more this week.”
With the win, the Bucks improved to 1-3 in the league (2-5 overall) while the Hatters fell to 2-3 in the league.
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 3, CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 0
The streaking Titans used goals by Kayla Kenney and Jess Schmidt to open up a 2-0 halftime lead. Meg Hamilton added a goal in the second half to lead the Titans to the win a battle of neighboring rivals. The win avenged a season-ending district playoff loss for South at the hands of East, but this is a vastly different South squad with the graduation of almost the entire starting lineup of last year’s Continental Conference champion squad that entered the postseason as the district’s top-seeded team.
The young and inexperienced Titans are looking anything but the part of young and inexperienced as they improved to 5-0 in league play while the Patriots fell to 3-2 in the league.
“The whole team played well,” co-coach Marie Schmucker said. “They executed unbelievably. They stuck to the game plan, and every kid played well. It was a total, total team effort.”
SOUDERTON 1, PENNRIDGE 0 (OT)
The Rams extended the Indians to overtime when - with 8:34 remaining - senior Rachel Valentine scored on a reverse stick flick to give Souderton the dramatic win.
“It was very nice,” coach Mary Ann Harris said of Valentine’s game winner. “She played well today.”
With the win, the Indians improved to 4-1 in the league while the Rams fell to 0-5.
American Conference
WISSAHICKON 7, UPPER MERION 2
The Trojans sprinted to a 6-0 halftime lead on their way to the win. Lauren Becker (Caroline Kovacs assist) put Wissahickon on the scoreboard just over a minute into the game, and two minutes later Emily Gallagher scored (Kovacs assist). A Jackie Hibbs goal (Gallagher assist) put the Trojans on top 3-0, and then it was Gallagher (Gretchen Guaglianone assist) and Guaglianone (Hibbs assist) scoring back-to-back goals midway through the half. A goal by Kelly Morolla (Melanie Fry assist) made it a 6-0 game.
The Vikings received a pair of second-half goals from Amanda McAteer and Ryan. Gallagher added a single goal for the Trojans, using a Becker assist. The Trojans are 4-0 in league play while the Vikings fell to 1-3.
UPPER DUBLIN 5, UPPER MORELAND 0
Emily Hitchings scored a pair of unassisted goals in the first half - the second with 15 seconds remaining in the half - to lead the Flying Cardinals to a 5-0 lead at the intermission. Alycia Hildebrand opened the second half with back-to-back goals, the first with a Kelly Cross assist and the second with an assist from Anna Lauer. Theresa O’Driscoll (Hitchings assist) closed out the scored with a goal at the 10:04 mark of the second half.
The Flying Cardinals - who improved to 5-0 in the SOL (6-1 overall) - had 15 shots on goals and five corners while the Golden Bears had two shots and one corner. Upper Dublin goalie Dana Russell had two saves while Saige Wenik and Bridget Meade combined for eight saves for the Golden Bears, who fell to 0-4 in league play (1-5 overall).
NORRISTOWN 6, CHELTENHAM 0
Gina Pellechio connected for the hat trick while Venessa Fosco scored a pair of goals and assisted on two others to lead the Eagles to the big win. Bevery Pate added a goal and an assist, and Samantha Kidd contributed an assist. Coach Stacie Staufenberg lauded the standout defensive effort of Kidd.
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