Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ soccer teams in action in Tuesday’s opening round of the District One 4A Tournament. CR North/Spring-Ford photos courtesy of John Gleeson. Pennridge/CR South photos courtesy of Tracy Valko. Check back for galleries of both games.
CLASS 4A
No. 9 Pennridge 1, No. 24 Council Rock South 0
Of all the teams that had a gripe about their playoff seeding, the Rams certainly could have been the loudest.
Holding the No. 8 spot and final playoff bye Friday night, the defending district and state champions were booted out of the safe zone by results around the district outside their control. Instead, getting a first round date with a Golden Hawks team very much in form. The Rams had reason to be mad.
Except, according to senior Emily Kriney, they weren’t.
“I don’t think we’re angry, if anything, I think it was a good thing for us,” the co-captain said. “It kept us in the rhythm of playing two times per week. It maybe made things a little bit harder for us, but we pushed through it.”
Kriney certainly didn’t seem to mind having to put time in on the field Tuesday, as the forward netted the game-winner early in the second half when she sprinted behind the back line, latched on to a great pass by Leah Malone and placed her chance away.
The senior put five shots on goal, with another blocked and nearly scored late in the first half if not for a save by Karissa Smedley and Kim Speiser booting the still-loose ball off the line.
“That’s what we need at this point of the season,” Rams coach Audrey Anderson said. “We need the experienced players that know what it’s like to step up and show everybody else ‘this is what you have to do to win in the postseason.’ What happened in the regular season, it doesn’t matter, it’s what we’re doing now. All that was practice to get us here.”
The Hawks ended a season that started slow playing its best soccer just to get into the postseason. CR South won seven of eight to close the regular season and coach Nick Heim lauded his whole group, especially the senior class.
“To the girls’ credit, they just plugged away the whole year and managed to make the playoffs,” Heim said. “We knew if we could get in the dance, we could give anyone a tough game. We lost to Pennridge earlier in the year 5-0 but we knew that wasn’t who we were.”
There’s a bright future for the team with a good crop of juniors and sophomores due back. but it was CR South’s seniors – Dana DeDominicis, Julia Levin, Skyler Scarborough, Maddie Deal, Kennedy Kuechler, Erin Delaney, Sophia Dingui and Kate Millevoi – who were the foundation to the team’s season-long build.
“They’ve been instrumental for us, some were the standout freshman who started four years and others the classic program kid that just does everything you ask and leads by example,” Heim said. “It’s really difficult to replace. It goes beyond wins and losses, they’re quality human beings and we’re really proud they represent our school and community.”
Pennridge’s defense collected its 13th shutout of the season, with each player in the back coming up with at least one timely intervention or stop. Just in front of the back line, sophomore Hannah Primwhere also continued her strong play as a fill-in starter at holding midfield.
“What I really, really like about her is that she doesn’t try to do too much. She knows her role, she’s not normally a holding mid, but understands the role and what she’s supposed to do,” Anderson said. “She’s usually very clean on the ball, very simple and plays a clean pass.”
Kriney and her classmates have been through pretty much every scenario there is, and the seniors who played on Tuesday certainly had a different energy to their play. It led to some mishaps, like two or three players challenging for the same ball but Kriney could live with that as long it meant her team was trying to win the game with that kind of intensity.
“Honestly, you just have to go as hard as you can as long as you’re out there. I don’t think any of us want this season to end,” Kriney said. “We want it to last as long as possible. We know what it’s like to win a state championship but also lose a state championship, the seniors, we’ve experienced almost everything
Ironically, the Rams (16-3, 13-3 SOL) get to face the team that took their spot in the top eight on Thursday when they travel to West Chester Henderson. Sure, they’d rather be back at Helman Field, but if the trade off was getting to play a meaningful match instead of going seven days between games, it’s not the worst deal Pennridge could have gotten either.
“We haven’t played since last Thursday,” Anderson said. “For us having to play today, I think it was a good thing for us. We have a postseason win under our belt and we understand it’s not going to be easy and if you’re just practicing or scrimmaging against yourself, you don’t get that same playoff feeling.”
Council Rock South closed out its season with a 10-7-1 record.
Pennridge 0 1 – 1
Council Rock South 0 0 – 0
Goal: P – Emily Kriney
No. 16 Neshaminy 3, No. 17 Methacton 2
It came down to the final seconds, but a long clearing kick off the foot of keeper Hannah Labadie secured a first round win for Neshaminy that had a little bit of everything.
Tuesday’s weather forced Neshaminy off its home grass field and over to Council Rock North’s turf surface. After the host Indians got done with their match, the Redskins and Warriors played 40 minutes of scoreless soccer.
Then things got crazy.
“We thought we had it under control, but we had a couple lapses on the defensive end and let them back in,” Neshaminy coach Renny Papendick said. “They had a plan to be physical with us but we had a good crew of referees that kept control of the game.”
Neshaminy was just a beat too slow in the first half, with midfielders trying to keep possession a touch or two longer than needed, and Methacton’s size and physical play kept the Redskins confined to the middle parts of the field.
At the half, the team talked things over and got back to what has made it effective: getting the ball wide and generating set pieces.
“We had three straight corners we scored in the second half,” Papendick said. “We got the ball wide, got the end line and got corners.
“I told the girls at half, we have to play one-two touch soccer so we don’t get kicked. (Methacton) was coming in hard, tackling hard, nothing dirty, just hard tackles so we had to win the ball, one or two touches and get rid of it.”
Alexis Ocasio, a center back, was the star of the night offensively with three assists off her consistently excellent corner kick service.
“She plays very calm and has a lot of poise,” Papendick said. “She puts in the work. At training, she hits a lot of balls and a lot of set pieces and she’s consistent. We know where that ball is going and we go attack it.”
Neshaminy scored twice inside the first four minutes of the second half to go up 2-0 thanks to a pair of finishes by senior captain Kira Bradley, the second a thumping header for the defender.
Methacton sliced the lead in half on a Ruby Murray goal with 27 minutes remaining, but the Redskins responded just minutes later.
“We had a little bit of a lapse but came right back to get another corner,” Papendick said. “Alexis hit a beautiful ball in and Carly Fox had a monster head ball to score it.”
Fox really upped her game in the second half and didn’t back down from some of the bigger Methacton players while Abby Collins, one of three freshmen in the Neshaminy starting lineup, thrived in the faster pace.
“She was our physical center mid,” Papendick said. “Carly tried to do a little too much early but adapted to playing simple and did a great job of connecting passes.”
The other freshmen – twins Kylie and Taylor Maxwell – were also key players in the second half without getting on the scoresheet. Kylie at striker and Taylor at outside mid were able to put pressure on Methacton’s defense and connect with the passes into space.
Aubrey Beaugard made it an interesting finish when she pocketed a goal with eight minutes to go, cutting the Neshaminy lead to 3-2 and forcing the SOL Patriot co-champions to grind it out to the final seconds.
The leadership of captains Bradley, Jordyn Fregia, Mercedez Paino and Fox was instrumental in seeing the final minutes out and every player who saw time for Neshaminy contributed to the win. Papendick also thanked the administrations at Neshaminy and CR North for facilitating the change in venue and allowing the game to be played on Tuesday.
Next up for Neshaminy (15-4, 12-4 SOL) is a trip to top-seeded Lower Merion on Thursday afternoon. They may be the lower seed on paper, but the Redskins are ready for the long drive believing they can shake up the bracket going into the weekend.
“We’re excited and we’re up for the challenge,” Papendick said. “We don’t feel like we’re underdogs, we’re going to go at them and see what happens.”
NESHAMINY 0 3 – 3
METHACTON 0 2 – 2
Goals: N – Kira Bradley 2, Carly Fox
No. 22 Hatboro-Horsham 4, No. 11 Upper Dublin 1
Twice during the regular season, the Hatters saw chance after chance thwarted by Upper Dublin.
As it turned out on Tuesday, the third time was the charm. A pair of goals on each side of the half sparked by a strong game by Mia Malofiy earned H-H some redemption and a rubber match with another SOL Liberty rival on Thursday.
Malofiy scored twice and assisted on another as the Hatters got their first win of the year against UD after 1-0 and 3-2 losses in the regular season. The win also snapped a three-match skid for the Hatters, including that 3-2 setback to the Cardinals on Oct. 21.
The forward opened scoring with a long rip off the right side 14 minutes into the match and 13 minutes later, made a marauding run down the flank and crossed in to Ali Hewish, who was able to poke in the goal.
Down 2-0 at half, Upper Dublin found some life when Lili Kleiman buried a laser from near midfield with 28 to play.
That’s as close as the Cardinals got as Malofiy stuck the dagger shortly after. The speedy sophomore pressured a back-pass, blocking the attempt at a clear and taking advantage to slip a ball home with the keeper up off the line.
Emma Levin iced the win with a well-struck free kick from about 30 yards out to the top corner.
The loss ended a resurgent season for a Cardinals squad that won just once last fall. While the team loses a strong senior class including four-year starting keeper Rachel Adelman, Bliss Brenner, Maddie Amoia, Katie English, Ava Costanzo, Grace McManus, Geena Sarnoski and Berkley Harmon, their impact should continue to be felt.
“We had a fantastic group of seniors. I said at the end of the game their leadership is the blueprint to success moving forward. They got over any differences between them and forged a bond across the classes,” UD coach Chuck Gesing said. “Every single one of them contributed this season. To endure our 1-8-1 COVID season and then bounce back the way we did this year is a credit to the team as a whole, led by this senior class.”
Hatboro-Horsham (11-7-1, 10-5-1 SOL) will travel to No. 6 Wissahickon on Thursday. The Hatters beat Wiss 1-0 in the first meeting but the Trojans took the second 3-2 and only Thursday’s winner will get to continue their season.
HATBORO-HORSHAM 2 2 – 4
UPPER DUBLIN 0 1 – 1
Goals: HH – Mia Malofiy 2, Emma Levin, Ali Hewish; UD – Lili Kleiman
No. 12 Central Bucks West 1, No. 21 Quakertown 0
West coach Mike Moyer and Quakertown coach Mike Koch have known each other for a long time and have great respect for one another.
It’s safe to say neither of them were especially happy to go against each other on Tuesday with their seasons on the line.
“I think Mike Koch is one of the best guys in soccer. It’s always bittersweet for me to win one of those games because I’ve rooted for him and Quakertown all year,” Moyer said. “He’s just an outstanding guy on and off the field. It just stinks when you go up against a friend of yours.”
Koch, a former assistant coach at West, shared the same sentiment.
“I’d like to congratulate Mike Moyer and West,” Koch said. “They’re a great team. I don’t like to lose but if I have to lose, at least it’s to a quality team and a quality coach.”
The Bucks played their first game in four years without all-state forward Taylor Moyer, who was sidelined with a knee injury. Just as Moyer has picked up when her teammates have been out this fall, the other Bucks did the same for their senior captain.
“I thought Shea Lubin honestly was the player of the match. She was so dynamic, and she knew we needed someone to step up because Taylor wasn’t there. Shea did everything tonight but score. I don’t know how many shots she had. I’d guess 8-10 and just working her butt off up top and creating chances,” Mike Moyer said. “We were going against the wind in the first half, and I think we had most of the play on our side. The halftime talk was – just get that first one. However we needed to get it, we just wanted to get the first one.”
Quakertown has been rigid defensively all season and Tuesday was no different, taking the Bucks to the half 0-0.
West’s defense has been superb of late, allowing just one goal in its final seven matches of the regular season but Tuesday, it also provided the offense. Without Taylor Moyer, who is adept at scoring in the run of play and through set pieces, the Bucks would take what they could get from whoever was willing to give it.
“About halfway through the second half, the ball came out after a little scrum in the box, and Mariella Neri, my outside right back, hit one from about 25 out. I think the goalie thought Shea was going to touch it past her, and Shea didn’t touch it and it just froze the goalie for that half second and went in,” Mike Moyer said. “After that, we saw the game out, took our 1-0 lead and we’re on our way to the next.”
Quakertown had a strong surge in the latter half of the season to earn a playoff bid and showed every bit of that resolve and fight all 80 minutes Tuesday as it tried to extend the campaign one more match.
The Panthers’ six seniors – Madelyn LaBonge, Madison Peacher, Kyla Frederick, Hannah Hensel, Trinity Lucas and Jade Williams – all went out with a fantastic effort in their last time wearing the Quakertown uniform.
“Good seasons generally end with a loss and their season ended competing to the final whistle,” Koch said. “The future bodes well for us, and we got better throughout the course of the year. That’s a testament to all our kids and how hard they played and worked.”
The Bucks again got a thorough team effort and a needed one to keep their season alive.
“I thought Eva Wierzbowski was fantastic tonight. My entire back line – I thought Kate Weyer was fantastic. It was a good win,” Moyer said. “We tried to figure out how to do it without Taylor. We played a good game.”
West (15-4, 12-4 SOL) meets No. 5 Central Bucks East on Thursday. It is the third meeting of the two teams this season after splitting the regular season series with two one-goal games.
Thanks to the format of the district playoff, it’s also a win-or-go-home for both sides, who have proven to be among the best in District 1 through their body of work this fall.
“Something needs to be done. I’m not sure how this can happen but it’s happening,” Moyer said. “(East coach Jake Nesteruk) is a good friend of mine, and we’re both in a bad spot. We’re going to go there on Thursday at four o’clock and have another East-West game. We’re looking forward to it. It’s always a good time, I just wish it wasn’t under these lose and go home circumstances.”
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 0 1 – 1
QUAKERTOWN 0 0 – 0
Goals: CBW – Mariella Neri
No. 14 Council Rock North 1, No. 19 Spring-Ford 0
The Indians are getting used to one-goal wins, even if Tuesday’s chill and wind were new factors to deal with.
“It has been a season of games like tonight and I can’t praise the girls enough for coming through another tough test,” North coach Gavin Flannigan said. “The weather played a factor in many ways, and it took a real team effort and one outstanding moment to get us the win.”
The visiting Rams, led by Wisconsin recruit Liv Curry, were district runner-up last fall but found themselves on the defensive much of the evening thanks to an Indians roster that’s only gotten stronger in recent weeks. Spring-Ford would settle into the match, taking North’s early surge in stride, but the host’s defense was able to hold ground to the half.
“Since the start of the season we have preached our strength in depth, how each game is different and now that the playoffs are here it only takes one good moment to win a game and advance,” Flannigan said.
Senior Shannon Liedl had such a moment ready for Tuesday’s must-win contest.
“She came off the bench in the second half to hit a left footed bomb from about 30 yards that evaded the Spring Ford keeper,” Flannigan said. “Shannon is a great example of a team mindset, she is a senior player that maybe doesn’t always get the minutes she wants, but her commitment to the program, the team and her effort when called upon is never in doubt. She deserved that moment tonight.”
The Rams pushed hard for an equalizer but the North defense and combined efforts of keepers Danielle Eden and Molly Sheehy were enough to push them away.
Midfielders Marlena Ries, Ella Needham and Taylor Brennan applied constant pressure on the ball while holding mids Riley Hamilton and Morgan McCaffery covered behind and took care of anyone that got through the initial press.
“Playoff soccer is much different than the regular season, and for our group tonight there were a lot of girls experiencing that for the first time,” Flannigan said. “We are happy to advance, and we will get back to work tomorrow in preparation for Thursday.”
CR North (14-5, 12-4 SOL) travels to No. 3 Conestoga in the second round.
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 0 1 – 1
SPRING-FORD 0 0 – 0
Goals: CRN – Shannon Liedl
No. 20 Ridley at No. 13 Abington – ppd
Tuesday’s weather forced a postponement of this first round match. The contest will be played Wednesday at 3:45
The winner moves on to face No. 4 Downingtown East on Thursday.
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