Central Bucks South advanced to Tuesday’s PIAA Class 4A semifinal while Pennridge saw its season come to a heartbreaking end.
#1-4 CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 2, #3-3 HEMPFIELD 1
For those wondering what an upstart CB South squad that advanced to the state quarterfinals last season would do for an encore, wonder no more.
The Titans trumped last year’s storybook postseason run, thanks to their win over Hempfield in Saturday’s quarterfinal contest at Governor Mifflin High School. With the win, South earned a spot in Tuesday’s PIAA Class 4A semifinals.
“We couldn’t be more excited and more thrilled,” coach Betsy Bullock said. “We have a lot of seniors (12), so this is very, very meaningful to them.”
The Titans got on the scoreboard in the third minute when Maddie Koch turned Courtney Taylor’s throw-in into a goal.
“We scored early, which for us – we’re not usually a high-scoring team,” Bullock said. “We usually play defense and work for that one or two goals.
“We came out with a lot of intensity, and in the first three minutes, we had a lot of pressure in the offensive third. We had a throw, and it kind of pinged around the box. Maddie Koch, the center mid, finished it.”
Any momentum the Titans had early in the first half goal swung to Hempfield after the Black Knights scored off a corner in the 23rd minute. The two teams went into halftime deadlocked 1-1.
“In the beginning, I was very pleased with our play,” Bullock said. “We were really dominating. We had the possession, and I thought, ‘This team is a lot easier than I expected,’ but then we settled back a little bit, and I saw them for what they were.
“They’re a very strong team. They had a lot of speed, they were aggressive, and they passed well, so they also had some possession. In the middle of the second half, there was definitely a momentum switch, and we were on our heels. Honestly, the momentum had really switched over to them. I’m looking at the clock thinking, ‘It can’t wind down fast enough.’”
The Titans used halftime to regroup.
“I changed a couple of positions of people around just a little bit, we tweaked it a little bit, and we seemed to get a lot more offense from that,” Bullock said.
Four minutes into the second half, Corinne McDonald (Aleksa Peev assist) scored a goal that proved to be the game winner.
“Aleksa Peev was playing outside mid, and she dribbled around a couple of people and slotted a beautiful ball across the goal mouth that Corinne McDonald finished,” Bullock said. “We really did apply a lot more pressure in the second half, and we had an opportunity for a third goal later in the half.
“My team was so much stronger in the second half. They didn’t have any real opportunities that I was worried about in the second half, but the first half – yes.”
Bullock credited the performances of several players in the win.
“Brooke Steigerwalt was just amazing,” the Titans’ coach said. “She really held the middle for us, she moved forward, and she’s just so tenacious. She was all over the place.
“Alexa Peev is always good, but she really stepped up her game. She made a difference today, and Courtney Taylor in the back.”
Bullock also pointed to the play of senior Nicole Wills as significant.
“She plays center ‘D’ next to Courtney (Taylor), and she is so solid,” the Titans’ coach said. “She rarely makes a mistake.
“She will dispossess someone twice her size. She’s such a smart, smart player. Because of the position she plays, she doesn’t get a lot of attention, but she’s very, very good.”
Central Bucks South (18-5-1, 9-2-1 SOL) will face District 3 runner-up Manheim Township in Tuesday’s state semifinal contest.
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 1 1 – 2
HEMPFIELD 1 0 – 1
#3-1 CUMBERLAND VALLEY 1, #1-2 PENNRIDGE 0
A lot can happen in a single second.
One second was all that separated Pennridge from going into overtime with Cumberland Valley Saturday night. One second the Rams didn't get.
A goal by CV's Devan Knoll, assisted by their all-state forward Rachael Dorwart, with 79:59 expired from the game clock ended Pennridge's season in the cruelest of manners at Exeter Township High School in the PIAA quarterfinals. The Rams had stood toe-to-toe with the favored Eagles, challenging them, making them work, possibly making them fear for the entire game, only to have to come crashing down in an instant.
"The girls played hard, the hardest thing as a coach is to see the disappointment on your players' faces after everything that they've in accomplished in a season," Pennridge coach Audrey Anderson said. "For it to come down to seconds and to know there are 11 seniors leaving without reaching their goal, it's heartbreaking."
Every Pennridge player who took the pitch left what they had on it. They weren't all flawless, and some of the younger players called upon to spell starters let their nerves get the better of them a few times, but the effort was enough to overcome it.
The Rams' back line of seniors Dani Meenan, Rachel Velez and Olivia Fernandez, plus junior Courtney Supp, was outstanding, marking and making life tough for Dorwart, who has already pledged to play at North Carolina. Supp and Fernandez, the center backs, had to tangle with the skilled forward most often and held their own.
"Our goal was to keep ourselves tight, not get split and keep them from shooting," Anderson sad. "We strive on being as perfect as possible, and for my backs to give up such a low amount of shots to such a great team, I couldn't have asked for anything more. We talk about life lessons every day in soccer and we talk about it coming down to seconds and how everything can change like that."
Just before the winning sequence, CV's Kellyanna Hendricks had fired a shot wide, one of a couple close calls the Eagles put into the Rams. But it was the seconds before Dorwart won the ball off a punt and played in Knoll that bugged Anderson most.
"Coaching error, really, it comes down to 12 seconds on the clock and I'm not screaming for our keeper to hold onto the ball," Anderson said.
Pennridge took it to CV at the start of each half. Sophomore Kouri Peace was dangerous in the second half, using her speed to try and get the ball into the Eagles' box. Senior Piper Zimmerman turned in a strong effort, Melissa Lyon played with her usual high energy and the senior midfield trio of Savanna Harrison, Katie Fischer and Erin Stevenson did what they always do.
As Knoll buried the winner, Anderson and assistant coach Stevi Parker sunk to the ground as their players were overcome by the moment. Not a single Pennridge player left the field with dry eyes and Anderson was still fighting off tears as she talked about the contest.
"What can I tell them? There's no secret to how long they're going to hurt or how long until it's going to be better," Anderson said. "The hardest part is seeing that disappointment on their faces again. It's something I didn't want to have to see. I was hoping for a happier ending."
Much like Parker's senior season in 2011 was the inspiration for so many current Rams, they know they can have that same kind of impact on all the youth players who have been at their games.
"As a team, we always know there are little kids here watching us so it's our job to make sure we're good role models for them on the field," Stevenson said. "If we play well and they see us playing good on the field, they're going to want to get here and play just like us."
Stevenson said she felt the game was even until the last second and she planned, as a captain, to make sure her teammates knew that and that, while it would be a tough loss to get over, they should do it knowing they had nothing to regret.
"That's what Pennridge is about, there's so much pride on this team," Anderson said. "They don't play for themselves, they play for the community, for the name on their shirts and for each other. As a coach, what more could you ask for?
"The girls need a little time, I need a little time. We'll meet up again next week and talk about the season and have some laughs. We had hoped to see CB South in the championship game, but continued good luck to them, we love when our SOL Continental teams are excelling and doing well in the playoffs."
CUMBERLAND VALLEY 0 1 – 1
PENNRIDGE 0 0 – 0
Goals: CV - Devan Knoll (Rachael Dorwart) 79'
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