Check out the recaps for SOL field hockey teams in action Tuesday.
SOL Colonial Division
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 8, NORTH PENN 6
This was not your ordinary field hockey game. Far from it.
For one night, two of the Colonial Division’s top squads turned what is typically a low-scoring sport into a shootout, and it was nothing if not entertaining for players and fans alike.
For one quarter, however, it looked as though West – on the heels of its 8-0 win over Central Bucks East – was on its way to another rout.
“In the first quarter, we had momentum,” West senior captain Lily Cosner said. “We were up 4-1, and we were like, ‘Oh, this is how it’s going to go,’ and all of a sudden in the second quarter, in the third, they just kept coming back.
“We would score one, they would score two, we would score two, they would score one, and it just kept going. It was very fun, but that game was played to the end. There was never a point where any of us felt comfortable.”
Sophomore Aida Ierubino set the tone for an explosive opening quarter for the Bucks, scoring an unassisted goal 22 seconds into the contest. Three minutes later, Caleigh Sperling answered with a goal for the Knights, evening the score 1-1. West’s Ella Dougherty scored an unassisted goal at the 8:43 mark, and Mimi Duffy followed with back-to-back goals – the first with a Nina Mayro assist and the second unassisted to put the Bucks on top 4-1.
“After beating them last year 7-0, I feel like we went into it with a mindset we were going to kill them, especially when we were winning 4-1,” Ierubino said. “It clearly was not like that.”
North Penn’s Grace McGeehan (Sperling assist) scored the only goal of the second quarter, and the Bucks went into halftime with a 4-2 lead.
Mayro turned a Cosner pass into a goal midway through the third period, but McGeehan answered for the Knights. A minute later, Ierubino scored her second goal, and the Bucks took a 6-3 lead into a fourth quarter that turned out to be a wild one.
Mayro scored with a Duffy assist to put the Bucks on top 7-3, but Sperling came right back with a goal for the Knights, using a Laura Albert assist. Ierubino completed her hat trick with a goal midway through the quarter to put the Bucks on top 8-4, but the Knights refused to go away.
With 1:30 remaining, Kylie Barwis scored with a Sperling assist, and less than a minute later, it was Cara Albano finding the cage with a Barwis assist. That’s where the Knights’ comeback ended.
“It was so highly competitive,” Ierubino said. “It was the highest scoring field hockey game I’ve ever played in or watched.
“It felt like every time we were up – they would come back. It was such a great game. It was so back and forth. It was very relieving when it was over. We were never completely winning until the game finally ended.”
Through three games, the Bucks have put on quite an offensive display, scoring 20 goals.
“Our captains – Lucy (Damsker) and Lily (Cosner) – are so motivational when it comes to pregame talks and even in the game,” Ierubino said. “Coming out onto the field, we’re really explosive and dynamic, and I think that definitely plays a big role in scoring early and scoring quick.”
The Bucks – despite their lopsided late-season win over the Knights last year- knew the Knights could make this a competitive game.
“Going into it, we had played them at the OJR playday, and we only won 2-1 at the playday,” Cosner said. “We thought they’d probably be the toughest team, but after the first quarter, we were like, ‘We got this, we’re on a roll,’ and they just started coming at us relentlessly.
“We were just so happy that we held strong, we kept the lead, and we were just ready for that game to be done and us to just secure the final win.”
The Bucks held a slim edge in shots (20-17) and also had a 10-3 advantage in penalty corners.
“This evening’s match featured a full 60 minutes of end-to-end attacks and counterattacks,” West coach Dave DeAngelis said. “Both teams created opportunities but also took advantage of mistakes and finished to goal.
“We were able to jump out quickly through a series of passing connections. All lines made significant contributions throughout the match as this was a total team effort.”
North Penn goalie Kiley Moister was credited with seven saves and Sarah Heath had three.
“What a night – there was no shortage of goals and excitement,” North Penn coach Shannon McCracken said. “The Knights never gave up – played with some grit and answered late in the game to draw the game closer.
“Senior captains Caleigh Sperling and Grace McGeehan led the way offensively, combining for four goals and two assists. They are the heart of our offense and play with competitive fire. Senior captain Melissa Sessler played an excellent game defensively, coming up with big plays against a fast and dynamic CB West attack. Senior Maddie Brown and junior Laura Albert made a difference in the midfield, stopping some of West’s fast transition game and counterattack.”
The Bucks have their sights set high after seeing a share of last season’s Colonial Division title slip away as the result of a tie with Neshaminy in the final game of the regular season.
“We still are sour about that at times,” Cosner said. “We aren’t even focused on making it to districts or states right now. We’re not even looking at the bigger picture. We’re looking at the SOL.”
Ierubino added, “The whole thing how we tied Neshaminy – we really just win to win our conference and then take the next step.
“I feel like losing to Lower Dauphin (3-1) in states was really motivation for us. We all just want to improve even more than our season last year.”
Central Bucks West (3-0, 2-0 SOL) will host Central Bucks South on Thursday at 5 p.m., and North Penn will travel to Souderton Thursday for a 6:30 p.m. contest.
Central Bucks West 4-0-2-2 8
North Penn 1-1-1-3 6
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 1, CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 0
Sophia Gerken scored with a Riley Schmidt assist in the opening minutes of the second quarter, spotting the Patriots a 1-0 lead that held until the final whistle.
For the Patriots, it was a much-needed bounce back win.
“Early on in the league season, it’s fantastic to get a conference win, especially coming off an 8-0 loss to West,” East coach Emma Rosenthal said. “Mentally, we really needed a win today. They were hungry for it.
“We need to be hungry for some more goals, but it was so essential moving forward and picking up this win. My team is tough. They’re mentally ready to move on. It was such a great game with South today – with the level of play and the sportsmanship. There was so much respect on the field which was really incredible to see.”
East had a 5-4 advantage in penalty corners in the evenly played contest.
“It was such a game of pinball,” Rosenthal said. “It was back and forth the whole time and in the midfield most of the time and then breakaway, breakaway, breakaway. It was super evenly played in that regard. It just so happened we put the ball in the back of the cage early on, and our goalie, Audra Szymborski, had a stellar game.”
Szymborski turned away all 10 shots she faced, including a penalty stroke.
“They had some really nice shots – they had more corners than we did, and Audra handled those fantastically,” Rosenthal said.
Rosenthal lauded the play of her defense in the shutout win.
“Our defense of Sienna Valenti, Avery McCann and Maddie Mandia really stepped up tonight,” the Patriots’ coach said.
South coach Kelli Chioffe praised her team’s effort as well.
“We fought hard but couldn’t get one past their goalie,” the Titans’ coach said. “We had some players from jayvee fill in today due to injuries and heat illness. I’m proud of South for giving it their all.
The Titans’ coach credited the efforts of several players.
“Kate Porter, a senior midfielder, hustled to every ball and really stepped up in the midfield,” Chioffe said. “Tessa Walls, Sam Thomas and Ella Haag were solid leaders on the field today.”
In light of the conditions, the two teams were given water breaks at the 8-minute mark of each quarter.
“I had a lot of fresh legs out there tonight, and they handled the heat well,” Rosenthal said. “The air was heavy, and so were some legs. It was a slow game to get started, but as soon as that goal went in, the momentum of everybody just picked up, and it became much more fast paced in the second half.”
Central Bucks East (2-1, 1-1 SOL) will travel to Pennridge on Thursday for a 7 p.m. contest, and Central Bucks South (1-1) will be on the road at Central Bucks West Thursday for a 5 p.m. game.
Central Bucks South 0-0-0-0 0
Central Bucks East 0-1-0-0 1
SOL Liberty Division
WISSAHICKON 6, UPPER DUBIN 1
Tuesday’s first half turned in the ‘Kayla Show’ as Kayla Pak and Kayla Mullin took turns scoring goals with each scoring two to spot the Trojans a 4-0 halftime lead on their way to the road win.
Kayla Pak scored the only goal of the first quarter, finding the cage three minutes into the contest with a Faith Jampo assist.
Four minutes into the second quarter, Kayla Mullin turned a Jampo pass into a goal. Then it was Kayla Pak’s turn, this time using a Mullin assist, and with 29 seconds remaining in the half, Pak returned the favor, setting up Mullin’s second goal.
In the third quarter, Riley Bell scored with an Audrey Walsh assist, and UD got on the scoreboard with a goal from Anna Cullen (Addison Michalek assist). Jampo scored with an assist from Walsh in the game’s closing minutes for the 6-1 final.
Wissahickon goalie Ava Fell recorded 12 saves in a strong outing. UD’s Camryn Muth was credited with 17 saves.
Wissahickon (2-1, 2-0 SOL) will travel to Quakertown for a 7 p.m. contest Thursday, and Upper Dublin (1-2, 0-2) will be on the road at Abington on Thursday.
Wissahickon 1-3-1-1 6
Upper Dublin 0-0-1-0 1
SOL Freedom Division
NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY 1, SPRINGFIELD TWP 0 (OT)
The Lions saved their best for last.
After struggling to generate any offense in regulation that saw the Spartans hold a 12-1 advantage in penalty corners, the Lions came to life in overtime. Seven minutes into OT, Abby Varghese scored on the rebound of a goalie save during corner play, propelling the Lions to the dramatic road win.
“For us, this win is very big because we just didn’t connect during the game,” NH-S coach Gwen Smith said. “In the fourth quarter, I challenged them – what they were thinking mentally and all that kind of stuff. We had a better response in the fourth quarter, and we just had a very different mentality going into the overtime, and it showed on the field.”
Keeping the Lions in the game during regulation was goalie Caroline Berman (9 saves) and a tenacious defensive unit.
“My goalie played fantastic,” Smith said. “My defensive unit – Madie Thistlewaite, Emersyn Thistlewaite, Lauren Trenti and Olivia Conte – came up big. We had two defensive saves on one corner – one by Olivia Conte and one by Ava Cozza.”
Listening to the Lions’ coach tell it, the Lions were fortunate to survive regulation in a scoreless tie.
“From my team’s perspective, I felt like we had some nice individual efforts – we did not connect as a team,” Smith said. “We could not connect as a team offensively. They played a high-pressure defense, which we just didn’t adjust to. We just could not get any flow going offensively.
“They were beating us to 50-50 balls. I would say the first quarter was back and forth, but after that, we kind of got on our heels, and we played a much more defensive game, and they dominated play.”
The Spartans had a 12-4 advantage in corners. Spartans’ goalie Grace Bell was credited with six saves.
New Hope-Solebury (3-0, 2-0 SOL) will host Lower Moreland on Thursday at 6:30 p.m., and Springfield Township (2-1, 1-1) will be on the road at Upper Moreland on Thursday.
New Hope-Solebury 0-0-0-0-1 1
Springfield Twp 0-0-0-0-0 0
UPPER MORELAND 3, WILLIAM TENNENT 1
The Golden Bears scored a pair or second-half goals, turning a 1-1 halftime tie into the 3-1 win over the visiting Panthers.
The Bears, according to coach Pam Remmey, came out on fire playing well all over the field but could only connect for one goal in the first half.
“The first goal was scored on a picture-perfect cross pass from Kylie Convey to Maggie Morrow, who then made a great pass to Ava Bailey who lifted a shot into goal for her first varsity career goal,” the UM coach said.
William Tennent then also scored in the first half on a defensive miscue, forcing the Bears to settle for a 1-1 halftime score.
After the break, Bailey put in her second goal with another assist from Morrow.
“As the second half continued, the heat affected both teams,” Remmey said. “But the Bears’ defense led by Cambrie Richmond and Kelly Bates held strong when challenged. The defense thwarted every corner by the Panthers to allow NO shots on goal in the second half.”
With 1:51 remaining in the game, the Bears – after multiple shots – found the back of the net again with Olivia Meakim scoring off a third assist from Morrow.
“In the midfield for the Bears, Ella Gould and Melissa Torpey worked hard to block up the middle and get the ball up to the forwards,” Remmey said. “Overall, the Bears dominated and are looking to play even stronger as league play continues.”
Upper Moreland (2-2, 1-2 SOL) will host Springfield Township on Thursday, and William Tennent (0-4, 0-2) will host Cheltenham on Thursday.
William Tennent 1-0 1
Upper Moreland 1-2 3
LOWER MORELAND 6, CHELTENHAM 0
The visiting Lions turned in a team effort in their win over the Lady Panthers.
Reagan Hopkins led the scoring with three goals, and Jess Pachman once again acted as a strong playmaker with three assists and one goal. Bri Rocha and freshman Cara Torgan added to the scoring with one goal each. Goalie Meg Halpern had six saves on the day.
“We were fortunate to have a large bench today, so the heat did not really affect our players so much,” LM coach Janet Lutter said. “Kudos to Cheltenham who came ready to play and worked hard to take us out of our game.”
Cheltenham’s two goalies, Ryan Filrome and William Connell, combined for 28 saves.
Lower Moreland (3-0, 2-0 SOL will travel to New Hope-Solebury on Thursday (6:30 p.m.), and Cheltenham (1-2, 0-2) will travel to William Tennent on Thursday.
Lower Moreland 2-1-2-1 6
Cheltenham 0-0-0-0 0
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