Check out the results for SOL field hockey teams in action Monday.
National Conference
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 3, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 2 (OT)
Caroline McGovern had three items on her to-do list Monday.
The Council Rock South junior took care of all three and, in the process, had herself quite a day. McGovern got her driver’s license, scored a pair of goals in her team’s dramatic come-from-behind win over archrival Rock North and then capped off her day by making a verbal commitment to take her talents to Boston College.
“It’s just been an unreal day,” McGovern said. “It’s been pretty crazy.
“I woke up this morning and thought, ‘I’m going to get three things done today, ‘ and I did. It was really exciting.
“This was a really, really good game. They always come out tough. No matter what the scores are of the game before, no matter how we’re projected to do in the season, we always end up having that rivalry.”
Things certainly didn’t look promising for the Golden Hawks when Rock North scored a pair of goals in a 30-second span late in the first half. Julianne Mangano connected on an unassisted goal with 5:01 remaining, and moments later, Devon Mela scored with a Mangano assist. The first goal came with the Golden Hawks down one player and the second with the Hawks down two players, the result of a pair of green cards for five-yard violations.
With 32 seconds remaining in the half, the Golden Hawks – showing a flare for the dramatic – cut the two-goal deficit in half when McGovern turned Tori Hall’s insert pass on a corner into a goal, making it a 2-1 game at the intermission.
“Going into the second half, it gave us a little bit of confidence,” Rock South coach Lisa Belz said. “We were definitely excited going into the second half.
“We knew we had to play better, we knew we had to connect better, we knew we had to communicate more after that whole green card incident.”
McGovern – herself a victim of a green card – admitted the Hawks had been shaken.
“We had two cards, and everyone was kind of flustered,” she said. “When they came down and scored those two goals, our team was kind of down.
“Scoring that goal, I think it pumped the whole team up, and they were kind of like, ‘’We have this. We’ve got this game,’ and that was really important.“
The Indians found themselves still clinging to a one-goal lead with time winding down when the Hawks were awarded a corner, and they made the most of it as the Wright-McGovern combination once again proved to be golden with McGovern slamming home the equalizer with no time on the clock.
“Their flier Julianne Mangano, is really fast, and the whole game she was just pressuring me,” McGovern said. “Tori had this insert that was perfect – exactly where I wanted it.
“We’ve been practicing weeks and weeks just trying to get our inserts and our connection good at the top of the circle. I don’t even know – I just hit. I knew I was going far post, and I just swung, and it went in.”
Belz credited her players for delivering under pressure.
“One of the things I said to them going into the second half was that true athletes can perform under pressure,” the Golden Hawks’ coach said. “They were able to display that.
“With no time on the clock – to be able to execute a corner and score is really hard, and they were able to do it, so I’m really proud of them for that.”
The Golden Hawks won it when Katie Rafter converted a penalty stroke at the 11:06 mark of overtime. The Hawks were awarded the stroke when – with McGovern on a breakaway – the Indians were whistled for a foul in the circle.
“The girls decided who was going to take the stroke, and Katie Rafter stepped up and took it,” Belz said. “This is a huge rivalry.
“The girls are all friendly – they all play club together. It’s a friendly rivalry, and it’s always a great game and exciting.”
In addition to the goal scorers, other players also stepped up for the Hawks.
“Julia Davis is playing outstanding,” Belz said. “She’s calm, composed and patient – exactly what you need from a sweeper. She’s doing an excellent job.
“I had a lot of younger girls with no varsity experience that are doing a good job, and a lot of the seniors are starting to step up and take a leadership role.”
Stepping up, according to Belz, were goalie Julie Pero, Katie Rafter, and Jillian Rowlands who defended Jennica Jonovich.
For McGovern – who was looking for a city school with a nursing major, her final college list came down to Boston College and Penn.
“I loved Boston, I loved the feel, and I just thought it was the best fit for me all around,” she said.
It was a good day for McGovern and the Golden Hawks, who remained in a tie with Neshaminy at the top of the conference standings. Rock South (6-1, 5-0 SOL) will host Unionville on Thursday and will be at home against Pennsbury on Friday. Council Rock North (4-3, 3-2) is off until next Tuesday when the Indians will travel to Bensalem.
Council Rock South 1-1-1 3
Council Rock North 2-0-0 2
WILLIAM TENNENT 2, ABINGTON 0
The visiting Panthers struck early in Monday’s game with Isabelle Michaud connecting just 28 seconds into the contest.
The Ghosts had five offensive corners in the first half but could not find the cage, and the Panthers led 1-0 at halftime.
With 7:23 remaining in regulation, the Panthers tacked on an insurance goal when Jessie Betz found the back of the cage during corner play for the 2-0 final.
William Tennent (2-4, 2-3 SOL) will host Bensalem on Friday while Abington will host Souderton in a non-league contest on Thursday and then will be at home against Truman on Friday (7 p.m.).
William Tennent 1-1 2
Abington 0-0 0
NESHAMINY 4, PENNSBURY 1
The Redskins kept pace with Council Rock South in the conference standings, earning a win over the visiting Falcons in a battle of neighboring rivals.
The Falcons struck first with a goal by Olivia Mauro just over five minutes into the game, but the Redskins responded with back-to-back goals by Christen Pennington, both with assists from Maria Palmieri, to go into halftime with a 2-1 lead.
Mix Sexton (Pennington assist) upped the 'Skins advantage to three goals when she scored at the 25:19 mark of the second half. Another Sexton goal, this one with a Marlene Koellner assist, gave the Redskins their final margin of victory.
Neshaminy (6-0, 5-0 SOL) will travel to Perkiomen Valley on Thursday and then will be on the road at Truman on Friday. Pennsbury (4-3, 3-2) will travel to Council Rock South Friday.
Pennsbury 1-0 1
Neshaminy 2-2 4
Continental Conference
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 1, SOUDERTON 1 (OT)
The Indians and visiting Titans both got on the scoreboard in the opening half, but that would be the extent of the scoring for both teams.
Lauren Dougherty turned a pass from Steph Litzenberger into a goal at the 24:27 mark while Souderton received a goal from Ashlyn Catto (Erin Saybolt assist) midway through the half (14:50).
“Every game we continue to try and better our play from the game before,” Souderton coach Lauren Whiteside said. “Today we were better than yesterday. That’s a step in the right direction as we continue to improve.
“We had a decent amount of shots on goal today, but we couldn’t finish. Even into overtime, we had some quality shots. We just need to finish strong and hard.”
The Indians’ coach went on to acknowledge the strong play of several players.
“Liz O’Hara had a great game for us on the left,” Whiteside said. “She kept the ball alive and set us up for scoring opportunities.
“Julianna Borisow was vocal today for us on defense and shut down several breakaway opportunities from South.”
Souderton goalie Megan Mehaffey was credited with four saves while South goalie Sarah Zeszotarski had 12. The Indians held an 11-9 advantage in corners.
Central Bucks South (2-3-1, 2-2-1 SOL) will travel to Quakertown for a 7 p.m. game on Friday while Souderton (2-3-1, 1-3-1) will travel to Abington for a non-league game on Thursday and then will host North Penn on Friday (5:30 p.m.).
Central Bucks South 1-0-0 1
Souderton 1-0-0 1
NORTH PENN 1, PENNRIDGE 0
The Maidens received a standout performance from goalie Brynne Schoppe – who delivered a clutch save on a Lady Ram penalty stroke, and they also benefited from a second half goal from Mikayla Barrow in the 1-0 win.
Barrow broke a scoreless tie when she connected at the 24:21 mark of the second half, using a Brianna O’Donnell assist. Neither team scored the rest of the way.
Schoppe was credited with eight saves while Pennridge goalie Carley Wingate turned away 10 shots.
The Maidens held an advantage in shots (11-9) and corners (11-7).
North Penn (2-4, 2-3) will travel to Souderton on Friday for a 5:30 p.m. contest. Pennridge (2-4, 1-4) will be on the road at Hatboro-Horsham on Thursday.
Pennridge 0-0 0
North Penn 0-1 1
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 5, QUAKERTOWN 0
Riley Donnelly had a hand in all five goals as the Patriots rolled to a shutout win over the visiting Panthers. The sophomore midfielder scored two goals and assisted on the other three.
Rachel Fife put the Patriots on the scoreboard at the 23:56 mark of the opening half, and five minutes later, Riley set up senior Katelyn Stout. A goal by Donnelly (Sarah Sheehy assist) sent the Patriots into halftime with a 3-0 lead.
Abbey Butler got into the scoring column with a goal at the 24:08 mark of the second half, and Donnelly closed out the scoring with her second goal six-and-a-half minutes later, this one using a Calley Lever assist.
“Riley Donnelly was able to help out on defense while scoring twice and dishing out three assists,” East coach Michelle Finegan said. “Sarah Sheehy was also outstanding for the CB East defense.
“Katelyn Stout and Rachel Fife fought hard for the Patriots.”
Finegan also lauded the strong play of Hillary Scott, Becky Gerhart and Emma McLaughlin for the shorthanded Panthers, who have lost four players to injuries as well a jayvee player who had been moved up to fill in for a sidelined player.
East’s win set the stage for Thursday’s showdown against Central Bucks West in a battle of the conference’s lone unbeaten squad.
Central Bucks East (7-0, 5-0 SOL) will battle the Bucks in a 5 p.m. contest at War Memorial Field. Quakertown (3-5, 1-4) will host Central Bucks South in a 7 p.m. contest on Friday.
Quakertown 0-0 0
Central Bucks East 3-2 5
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 9, HATBORO-HORSHAM 0
Cadera Smith connected for the hat trick, and Bryn Boylan and Taylor Mason both added a pair of goals for a West squad that has scored 40 goals in six games.
Taylor Mason opened up the scoring at the 28:30 mark off a rebound. Smith scored two goals within four minutes of each other – the first, according to coach Courtney Lepping, on a beautiful reverse chip. Boylan scored on a shot from the top of the circle at the 14:01 mark, and the final goal of the half came from Ryan Murray off the rebound, sending the Bucks into the intermission with a 5-0 lead.
Boylan ignited West in the second half with a beautiful shot from the top at the 17:05 mark. Smith completed the hat trick at the 8:22 mark as she pulled around several defenders and shot. Mason had another goal off the rebound with 2:40 left in the game, and Eva Altadonna rounded out the scoring with 1:20 left, pouncing on a rebound off the goalie’s pads.
“This was a great response to our game we had played the week before versus Souderton,” said Lepping of a game the Bucks led 4-0 only to watch the Indians make it close with a late surge before winning 6-4. “The team was driven to play an entire 60 minutes with no let up. They went out and did just that and showed what they were capable of with some incredible passing sequences.
“Chloe Miller-Russo was a defensive sub that had the stop of the game with about five minutes left to keep the shutout.”
Macella Molenari had seven saves to earn the win in goal for the Bucks.
Central Bucks West (6-0, 5-0 SOL) will host Central Bucks East on Thursday (5:00) in a battle for conference supremacy. Hatboro-Horsham (3-4, 2-3) will host Pennridge on Thursday.
Hatboro-Horsham 0-0 0
Central Bucks West 5-4 9
American Conference
UPPER MORELAND 5, CHELTENHAM 2
The Golden Bears find themselves in an unfamiliar position this season.
After a 2-12 season two short years ago, the Bears took a giant leap last season, finishing in a tie for second with Wissahickon and behind only conference champion Plymouth Whitemarsh. The team also made its first postseason appearance since 2008.
If they surprised teams last year, those days are officially over, and if the Golden Bears needed a wake-up call, they got it when they dropped their first three games of the season. Monday’s win was their third in a row since that time, a winning streak that began with a 6-2 win over Upper Dublin.
“We were all really frustrated, and even the Upper Dublin game – in the first half, it was just 1-0, and then they scored (early in the second half),” senior Delaney Smith said. “We all talked and said, ‘This isn’t Upper Moreland. This is not us,’ so right after they scored, 19 seconds later we went back in and scored. From there, we’ve been going up higher and higher.”
“I feel like we had to build our confidence back up,” Emily Zanine added. “And after our Upper Dublin win, we all felt so much better, and the confidence is back now.”
It was a confident Golden Bear squad that controlled play in Monday’s game at Cheltenham, but the Panthers – who received a glittering 22-save effort from goalie Tegan Dorley – did not make things easy for them.
“She’s staying really focused on the ball,” Cheltenham coach Elaine McGoldrick said of her goalie. “She’s taking a lot of rebound shots, which is the hard part of being a goalie. If the defenders don’t clear it out or you don’t get a good clear, then it’s just coming right back at you.
“She did everything she could – there’s nothing you could do about that. I think my defense needs to work better (in the circle).”
The Panthers got on the scoreboard with 12:06 remaining in the opening half when Smith (Emily Jeinnings assist) connected. A goal by Noelle Woodman (Maddie Mull assist) made it a 2-0 game two minutes later, but a goal by Cheltenham’s Hailey Wilken with 6:32 remaining cut that lead in half heading into halftime.
“Our idea was to go out there and take the lead and get a couple of goals,” McGoldrick said. “I wasn’t expecting a slow start at all.
“At the very start, they (the Golden Bears) were really just showing their skill, and we took a little bit longer to warm up. It started to even up a little in that regard. They have some good passing and girls that can really dribble well. It wasn’t our best effort overall.”
The Panthers took a 3-1 lead when Jessica Flanagan (Jenna Getz assist) scored seven minutes into the second half, but again the Panthers answered, and again, it was Wilken, a former soccer player who has been a welcome addition to the squad.
“She’s playing for the first time,” McGoldrick said. “She knows to cut in front of someone, and she plays aggressively. She gets that.
“She had two goals today on deflections. The other day she even deflected her own deflection. She’s our bright spot right now. I wish I had her for four years.”
That 3-2 score stood until the Golden Bears connected for a pair of goals in the final 3:12 with Zanine (Flanagan assist) and Smith both finding the back of the cage.
“They could drive – they had some girls that would slam the ball, so that was challenging,” UM senior Maura O’Leary said. “They were a good team, they were strong, and they were aggressive. It was a good game.”
Upper Moreland (3-3, 2-3 SOL) will host Norristown on Thursday while Cheltenham (3-4, 3-3) will travel to Plymouth Whitemarsh on Friday.
Upper Moreland 2-3 5
Cheltenham 1-1 2
UPPER DUBLIN 4, UPPER MERION 0
For close to 54 minutes – 53 minutes and 58 seconds, to be exact, the Vikings and visiting Flying Cardinals battled to a scoreless tie. Anna Geouveia scored an unassisted goal with 6:02 remaining in the second half, and suddenly, the floodgates were opened.
The Cardinals scored all four of their goals in the final six minutes of the game with Molly Lunney (Gouveia assist) adding a single goal and Sarah Blatt scoring a pair in the final 1:49 – the first with a Gouveia assist.
The Flying Cardinals had a decided advantage in shots (25-3) and corners (14-1). UM keeper Kate Foy had 19 saves to keep the Vikings in it while Marlowe Gardner had three saves in the shutout win.
Upper Dublin coach Heather Boyer credited the strong midfield performances of Marlee Siegel, Maddie Templeton and Allie DeMichele as well as the strong defensive efforts of Kristen Jones, Megan Connelly and Alex Thompson.
Upper Dublin (2-4, 2-3 SOL) will travel to Wissahickon on Friday while Upper Merion (1-6, 0-5) will host Bensalem on Thursday in a non-league contest. The Vikings will host Upper Moreland next Tuesday.
Upper Dublin 0-4 4
Upper Merion0-0 0
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 4, SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP 0
The Colonials responded to their disappointing loss to Wissahickon last Wednesday with a pair of no-doubt-about-it wins, outscoring their opponents 10-1 in the last two games.
Frankie O’Brien led the PW attack on Monday, connecting for a pair of goals – the second with an assist from Jess Dixon. Kennedy Reardon (Sophie Kolkka assist) and Kolkka each added single goals in a contest that saw PW open up a 2-0 halftime lead in a game it dominated from start to finish.
The Colonials held a lopsided advantage in shots (23-1) and corners (21-1).
“I was very pleased with the amount of attack we created today,” PW coach Marianne Paparone said. “I would like to see us capitalize on more opportunities, but we kept a lot of pressure on the Springfield defense the entire game.
“This game overall was a step in the right direction for us. The team played much more cohesively today with many nice connecting passes. The defense also played well as a unit and really limited Springfield’s scoring opportunities. We also cut down on our fouls and our turnovers. It was a strong team effort, and I am looking forward to our continued improvement.”
Springfield goalie Isabelle Boles was credited with 13 saves in the win.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (4-2, 4-1 SOL) will host Cheltenham on Friday. Springfield will host New Hope-Solebury in a non-league game on Monday and then return to SOL action on Tuesday at Upper Dublin.
Springfield 0-0 0
Plymouth Whitemarsh 2-2 4
WISSAHICKON 5, NORRISTOWN 0
The visiting Trojans opened up a 2-0 halftime lead on their way to the shutout win.
Kara Miles scored her first of two goals at the 15:45 mark of the first half, using an assist from Sammi Pak. Seven minutes later, it was Pak connecting with a Marie Dickson assist to give the Trojans a 2-0 advantage.
Miles (Dickson assist) opened the second half with a goal, and once again, Pak followed her lead, this time using a Sam Scoma assist. Scoma scored with 13:20 remaining – using a Pak assist – for the 5-0 final.
Wissahickon goalie Claire Tarzia was credited with two saves in the shutout win. Lauren Whitley turned away 13 shots in goal for the Eagles.
Wissahickon (5-2, 5-0 SOL) will host Upper Dublin on Friday, and Norristown (1-6, 1-4) will play a non-league game at Pope John Paul II Tuesday and then will be on the road at Upper Moreland on Thursday.
Wissahickon 2-3 5
Norristown 0-0 0
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