PW and CB West were winners in SOL field hockey action Wednesday.
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 2, WISSAHICKON 1
It would be easy to understand if the Colonials needed some time to adjust when they took the field against their archrivals on Wednesday. After all, since settling for a 2-2 tie with Pennsbury in a non-league game on Sept. 17, the Colonials have rolled to four straight wins, outscoring their opponents by a combined 31-0 score.
“Our history with Wissahickon – it’s very rare for both of our teams that we’re able to win both of our games in a season. Usually, it’s 1-1,” said PW coach Charise Young, whose squad defeated Wissahickon 3-1 in the early season meeting. “It’s always a competitive game with them. That’s kind of what I expected, and it turned out to be the case.
“We needed the challenge. I have been saying to my kids – ‘Look, I don’t think our defense is playing as well as we need to play to win tough games,’ but that doesn’t really sink in until you have a game where you’ve been challenged.”
The two teams exchanged goals in the first half. Frankie O’Brien converted a penalty stroke into a goal to give PW a 1-0 lead, but the Trojans responded. Hannah Havrilla tipped a drive from Julianna Sutow into the cage to knot the score.
“I think my team was a little frustrated with themselves (at halftime) and knew they weren’t quite playing up to their potential,” Halteman said. “I said to them – this is really good for us, and I believed we could come out and win, but this was an opportunity to change some things at halftime and go out and play a little differently in the second half. I think we did do that.”
The Colonials scored the only goal of the second half when O’Brien once again connected on a penalty stroke.
“Wissahickon played a really nice first half,” Halteman said. “They moved the ball well. Their center mid, Jess Waite, does a really nice job of distributing and one-timing passes out to the sidelines. We really struggled with that transition because they were moving the ball quickly in the first half.
“We made some good adjustments on our defensive press where we forced them to go to their outside backs, and we were able to intercept and trap on the sidelines. We were able to sustain higher pressure on them in the second half.
“We were hitting pretty hard cross balls into the circle, but we just weren’t able to control them to make anything happen on cage. I would have liked to see us possess it more into the circle and create a little more.
“Relying on strokes to win a game is not really an ideal situation. It’s rare to get one, but to get one in each half is extremely rare. Obviously, Frankie (O’Brien) is a great player, and we’re confident she can step up and score on them, but I have a lot of great attackers this season, and it’s kind of frustrating when we can’t rely on our corners and shots on goal.”
For the Trojans, the game came on the heels of a night game at Quakertown less than 24 hours earlier and was their third contest in three days.
“We knew today’s game was going to be a tough game,” coach Leah Angstadt said. “We came out strong in the first half and dominated possession.
“Our fatigue set in the second half, and we had a lot more trouble outletting the ball from our defensive end.”
Halteman lauded the strong play of junior midfielder Sophie Kolkka.
“She played a great game at center mid with some key defensive plays and interceptions, providing the lift we needed,” the Colonials’ coach said.
PW goalkeeper Katherine Houghton had three saves.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (10-0-1, 9-0 SOL) is off until next Wednesday when it will host Springfield Township. Wissahickon (6-5, 6-3) will travel to Norristown for a non-league game Friday.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 1-1 2
Wissahickon 1-0 1
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 3, AGNES IRWIN 0
Team chemistry – there’s quite possibly nothing more important in the world of competitive sports, and the Bucks may have found it, shutting out Agnes Irwin in a non-league contest on the heels of a win over Mount St. Joseph Academy on Monday night.
“I continue to be really pleased with how we’re coming together as a team,” said coach Courtney Lepping, whose squad was once again without senior standout Cadera Smith. “My forwards are working really well off each other.
“We’re really playing very team oriented. Each one of them is gaining confidence in their position. I continue to be proud of how we’re playing. It’s just pretty hockey right now.”
Agnes Irwin is without its big gun – Julianna Tornetta – who is training with the U21 National Team, but it was still a good win for the Bucks, who received a pair of goals from Bryn Boylan – the first off a corner midway through the opening half with an assist from Ryan Murray. The Bucks took that 1-0 lead into halftime.
Just over 10 minutes into the second half, Boylan scored after a strong individual effort from the top of the circle.
“Bryn is controlling the field, choosing the good moments to go in and shoot,” Lepping said. “She has really stepped up.”
With 11:08 remaining, Ryan Murray finished off the scoring with a deflection off a pass around the Agnes Irwin goalie by Eva Altadonna.
The Bucks, who held a 17-4 advantage in shots, played tough defensively. Goalie Peyton Fisher collected a pair of saves in the shutout.
Central Bucks West (8-2-1, 4-1-1 SOL) is back in action on Thursday night at North Penn (7 p.m.).
Agnes Irwin 0-0 0
Central Bucks West 1-2 3
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