Check out the results for SOL teams in action in the District One Tournament’s opening round Thursday. Check out our gallery for photos from the PW/Wissahickon, CR South/Neshaminy, and CB West/Mt.St.Joe's games.
#12 PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 2, #21 WISSAHICKON 1
BY Dave Conard for SuburbanOneSports.com
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH—Judging from the amount of time her Trojans spent in the Plymouth Whitemarsh defensive end, Wissahickon head coach Shannon Franke just may be looking forward to holding a practice tomorrow in preparation for their next PIAA District One play off opponent.
But for the 21stseeded Trojans, the scoreboard at Colonial Field told a different story Thursday night, culminating with the reigning Suburban One League American division co-champion Colonials advancing to the second round with a typical knock-down, drag-out SOL 2-1 win.
“I cannot say enough about the way my girls played tonight, we owned that field,” said Franke. “Unfortunately, it is just the way the ball bounces some times. We could not get that one goal or clear shot that we needed. We never stopped battling though, and they played every second with heart and all they had.”
Plymouth Whitemarsh (15-2-1) drew first blood when sophomore Ragan Ebersole fought off a defender and deftly headed the ball from the right side of the goal directly to an awaiting foot of sniper extraordinaire Nicole Abbott, who quickly deposited her 37thtally of the season at the 37:50 mark, giving the home team a 1-0 edge.
Despite leading on the scoreboard, the 12thranked Colonials found themselves playing almost the entire first half, and most of game for that matter, in their own end until a dangerous play call awarded junior Maddie Berman a corner kick.
On the drop, Berman ripped a laser that curved around Wissahickon goal keeper Keanna Haney, finding the twine and boosting the Colonials advantage to 2-0 with 12:46 to play in the half giving P-W some sorely needed breathing room.
“We knew what we had to do against this team,” said Nicole Abbott. “The second game we played against them when we lost 4-1 really motivated us for this game tonight. We knew they were going to keep coming at us, but we just had to make sure we took advantage of our scoring chances. This was a very big step for us and now we get to play at home again in the next round, which is great.”
After doubling the shot output of the Colonials in the first half, Wissahickon finally solved the riddle of PW keeper Morgan Jerin when sophomore Madison Elwell found Krysta Memis with a crossing pass. Memis blasted it into the net and the pressure was back squarely on the shoulders of the Colonials’ defensive captain Carly Abbott and her mates.
“Our defense played outstanding tonight, and Morgan (Jerin) is just so calm back there,” added Nicole Abbott. “We just make sure she has a clear view of any shots, and she just stops anything she sees back there, She has come up big for us all season long and tonight was no different.”
Following a scoreless second half, which featured two yellow cards and a couple of additional warnings, which is to be expected when two such rivals meet, Plymouth Whitemarsh escaped with a nerve numbing 2-1 victory and will now move on to play PAC-10 powerhouse Owen J Roberts. The Wildcats stunned number five seeded Pennridge, allowing P-W the luxury of not having to venture from the friendly confines of Colonial Field.
Meanwhile, on the heels of their 2014 district playoff elimination, the Trojans (13-4-1) are already thinking about next year with a fine nucleus of players and a coach who has some designs of her own about returning to the PIAA playoffs.
“We can't wait to hear about Wissahickon soccer next year,” said senior Anna Chiodo-Ortiz. “We are so proud to be a part of this team and know how well they are going to do in the future as we have some amazing young players.”
“We know in our hearts we played well enough to win tonight, but things like this happen,” said Wissahickon senior captain Meghan Guzewicz. “We just need that one great chance, we played with everything we had until the last seconds and no one gave up. It will be fun the hear about this team again next year.”
“My senior captains Anna, Meghan and Alyssa (Ryan) have meant so much to this team since they were freshmen,” added Franke. “I know that next year we will hit the ground running, and that the impact that these amazing girls have had will be long lasting over the next few years. I am so proud of all of them and the way they led this team.”
#14 COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 1, #19 NESHAMINY 0
Emily Wilkinson scored with 31 minutes remaining in regulation to propel the Golden Hawks to a hard-fought win in the battle of neighboring rivals. Thursday’s game was the third meeting between the two squads, who split their regular season meetings. This was the Redskins’ first loss since falling to Rock South on Sept. 19.
“It was a tough battle as expected,” said Rock South coach Kimmy Francis. “It’s never easy playing a league rival at all in the district playoffs, let alone in the first round.
“We had a rough first half, but the girls did well making the adjustments we asked them to make at halftime, and we were able to generate a lot more attack.”
Rock South goalie Allison Taub turned away nine shots in a shutout win that Francis called a team effort.
While the Redskins closed out their season with a 10-6-3 record (9-3-2 overall), the Golden Hawks (12-6-1, 7-6-1 SOL) will travel to third-seeded West Chester Rustin on Saturday.
“We are excited for the next round and looking forward to seeing West Chester Rustin again,” Francis said. “It should be another battle, for sure.”
Neshaminy 0-0 0
Council Rock South 0-1 1
#27 CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 0, #6 COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 0 (3-2 PKs)
One hundred and ten minutes could not determine a winner as the two teams battled to a scoreless tie, and it looked as if one round of a shootout might not either. But sparked by the play of sophomore goalie Taylor Marinelli, who stepped into the net for penalty kicks, and some clutch PKs, the underdog Titans eked out a 3-2 win.
“I have seen over the course of the season glimmers of this where they can play at a certain level,” coach Betsy Bullock said. “It’s just really nice to pull it together.
“I’ve seen tremendous potential. I know the paper had kind of written us off – oh, it’s going to be a long season for South. We’ve had our share of success or we wouldn’t have made the playoffs.”
In the shootout, Marinelli, called up from the jayvee when the Titans’ starting keeper was sidelined with a concussion, came up with some huge stops.
“She’s very tall and athletic, so we brought her in for the PKs,” said Bullock. “In practices, she was stopping all of them, so we thought we ought to put her in.”
Emily Andrusko, Mackenzie Ehrsmann and Jess Volm buried their shots, allowing the Titans to rally from deficits of 1-0 and 2-1 in the shootout. It was Volm delivering the goal that turned out to be the game winner, and the Indians came up short on their final PK attempt for the tie.
“This contest could have gone either way,” Bullock said. “We played our very best. They played extremely well. It’s a shame it has to end like that.”
Kelliann Bolash was credited with the shutout in goal for the Titans.
“She had a lot of saves,” Bullock said. “This kid has filled in. She was in goal when we beat Pennridge (1-0). She has just stepped up.
“Can you imagine being on the bench and all of a sudden you’re asked to play in some of the most difficult games of the season. She’s such a great kid.”
The Titans’ coach went on to credit her defense for coming up big.
“Our two center midfielders – Jess Volm and Courtney Taylor – really contained Michaela Finneyfrock, and that was a key to the game,” Bullock said. “All of our defenders were very, very solid.”
South’s defenders included Krista Reading, Mackenzie Ehrssman, Taylor Prezelski, Kirsten Taylor and Margo Centofanti.
“I think whoever had the wind at their back had the advantage, so in the halves and the overtime, when you had the wind with you, you tended to be more in your offensive third, so there was more pressure on the defenders,” Bullock said. “It was a seesaw game.
“My girls played really well. That is a very, very accomplished team, so it’s a great victory for them.”
The Indians closed out a successful season with a 13-5-1 record (9-4-1 SOL). The Titans (9-6-3, 6-5-3 SOL) will travel to Great Valley to take on the 22nd-seeded Patriots, who upset 11th-seeded Garnet Valley, 1-0.
Central Bucks South 0-0-0-0 0
Council Rock North 0-0-0-0 0
#13 CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 3, #20 MOUNT ST. JOSEPH 0
Don’t be fooled by the final score. The Bucks – sparked by a pair of Shae McCarty goals – had to work hard to earn Thursday’s opening round win over the Magic.
“I thought their team came in very well organized,” coach Jorge Rodriguez said. “They were a tough team. I don’t think the score was indicative of the game.”
McCarty (Kelly Creamer assist) scored 15 minutes into the opening half, and the Bucks took that 1-0 lead into halftime. McCarty’s second goal – this one with an Ellie Manca assist six minutes into the second half made it a 2-0 game. Creamer closed out the scoring, using a Taylor Burke assist, for the 3-0 final.
“The wind was definitely a factor for us. We weren’t able to play out of the back like we wanted to,” Rodriguez said. “The first half I thought they had a lot of good chances. They had a lot of decent shots. When Shae scored against the run of play, it really took some of the pressure off some of our players, and I thought we started to really compete.
“In the second half, we had the wind at our backs, and I thought that definitely helped us. It made it tougher for them to play out. Once we scored that second goal, they really started to come back at us.”
Rodriguez credited several players for their efforts.
“I thought Sophie McKnight played great, and she’s been doing it consistently,” he said. “She’s covering at center back, a position she hasn’t played for us for too long. She’s just been outstanding.
“Carmen Telesco is playing well at both ends of the ball, and she did it today – attacking and putting pressure on the other team with her dribbling. She played very, very well, and obviously, Shae McCarty.
“And Grace (Benton) – the thing about Grace is you never notice her until the end of the game, and you look back and realize she came up with seven or eight saves and two of them were pretty tough. She had a good game in the back.
“Kelly Creamer had an outstanding game. She was the player that stood out to me in the game as someone who not only scored and had an assist but really stuck to the game plan. She really prepared well for what we did. I was very impressed.”
The Rams (13-5-1, 9-4-1 SOL) will travel to Boyertown on Saturday to face the fourth-seeded Bears.
Mount St. Joseph 0-0 0
Central Bucks West 1-2 3
#28 OWEN J ROBERTS 2, #5 PENNRIDGE 1
The Rams came into the week expecting to have an opening round bye as the tournament’s fourth seed. When the revamped bracket was released Tuesday, the Lady Rams had fallen to the fifth seed and lost their first round bye.
In Thursday’s opening round, things looked promising when the Rams got on the scoreboard, thanks to an early goal by Katie Fisher. They took that 1-0 lead into halftime only to watch the Wildcats answer with a pair of second half goals, bringing an end to the Rams’ season.
Pennridge closed out its season with a 14-2-3 record (11-1-2 overall).
Owen J Roberts 0-2 2
Pennridge 0-0 0
#8 SPRING-FORD 1, #25 WILLIAM TENNENT
The Panthers – looking anything but the part of the 25th seed – hung with the eighth-seeded Rams but lost a heartbreaker when Spring-Ford’s Gabby Kane scored with 1.5 seconds remaining in regulation.
The Panthers closed out their season with an 11-7-1 record (8-5-1 SOL).
William Tennent 0-0 0
Spring-Ford 0-1 1
#7 PHOENIXVILLE 5, #27 UPPER DUBLIN 2
Class AA
#4 POPE JOHN PAUL II 3, SPRINGFIELD 1
The Golden Panthers opened up a 3-0 halftime lead on their way to the win. Jewell Ringgold scored in the 47th minute for the 3-1 final. The Spartans closed out the year with a 9-9-1 record (8-5-1 SOL).
Springfield 0-1 1
Pope John Paul II 3-0 3
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