Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ soccer teams in action Tuesday. Hatboro-Horsham/William Tennent photos provided courtesy of Jon Sklut. Check back for a gallery of photos. Pennridge/LC photo provided courtesy of Sharin Harbek.
Central Bucks East 3, West Chester Henderson 2 (2OT)
It’s safe to say the Patriots have gotten their money’s worth after two games this season.
For the second consecutive match, CB East went into double overtime against a determined opponent. But unlike Friday, where the Patriots dropped a heartbreaker to Pennsbury, they found a way to scrape out a positive result Tuesday.
Gianna Marino powered home a spectacular winner to even the Patriots’ record ahead of Wednesday’s showdown with archrival Central Bucks West.
“We established some possession in their half and a ball got played deep back to G,” East coach Jake Nesteruck said. “She was able get her head up and take a touch from about 25-30 out and hit a great ball to the right stick.”
CB East ensured it wouldn’t go scoreless again with first half goals from Olivia Portner and Emma Martin and took a 2-1 lead into the break. Unfortunately for the Patriots, they weren’t able to see that lead through 40 minutes and gave up an equalizer to force extra time.
“The team did well combining going forward. Elise Duffy did a great job being a target for us. And it was a really great moment for Gianna,” Nesteruck said. “We made it difficult for ourselves to finish the game, but glad we earned the result going into West tomorrow.”
Nesteruck credited the play of midfielder Olivia Black for winning battles in the air and helping keep the Patriots calm and settled into the match.
While the extra time certainly wasn’t the optimal circumstance, it didn’t seem to slow CB East down much.
“Two double overtime games will make you fit,” Nesteruck said. “It played to our advantage today.”
The Patriots (1-1) host Central Bucks West in their SOL Continental opener on Wednesday.
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 2 0 0 1 – 3
WEST CHESTER HENDERSON 1 1 0 0 – 2
Council Rock South 2, Downingtown East 1
After giving up an early goal for the second straight game, the Golden Hawks rallied to pick up their first win on Tuesday.
“We had a good scout on them and knew where they were dangerous. We gave one up against the run of play but to the girls credit, they focused on the game plan and didn’t panic,” CR South coach Nick Heim said. “They were able to settle down a bit and play more our style.”
The Hawks pressured Downingtown East and created enough chaos in the opposing 18-yard box that Madison McDowell pounced on to equalize. Feeling the momentum, Council Rock South kept the pressure on and found a second goal late in the opening half.
“Our second goal was a nice string of possession where Jordi Rubakh received a great pass from our back line, beat a player and drove at the heart of their defense,” Heim said. “When defenders collapsed, she found Claudia (Steinmetz) who slipped Sammy (Jones) in for a great finish.”
CR South has a large senior class this year, particularly up front and Heim said he doesn’t hesitate to step back and let the team’s leaders play it out on the field.
“With a group like this, you want to give them the chance to find the missing link. When they’re on the field, they have a much better idea of the speed of the game and split second judgments than we do on the sidelines,” Heim said. “The girls trust in us to put them in good spots and we trust in them to figure it out as a unit.”
At halftime, Heim asked his players if they needed to make any changes.
“A few seniors immediately said no, we figured it out,” Heim said.
Sydney Mandel got the win in goal as the Hawks made sure their lead held up.
“Kimmie Herrit and Dana DeDominicis had solid games centrally for us and we got deep contributions on the bench from Kate Hanlon, Hordan Sweeney, Maddie Slubowski, and Kim Speiser,” Heim said.
CR South (1-1) visits Harry S Truman to start SOL National play on Wednesday.
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 2 0 – 2
DOWNINGTOWN EAST 0 0 – 0
Council Rock North 2, Haverford 0
The Indians went to 2-0 on the back of another strong performance.
“It was a very pleasing performance today from our girls. Although we felt like we had control of the game, it took a while for us to create some real chances,” CR North coach Gavin Flannigan said. “We finally connected on a cross-field ball and Maura Ott was able to get there before the goalkeeper for our first goal.”
Not satisfied to sit on a single goal, the Indians went after a second and were able to chase it down early in the second half.
“Sammy Judge hit a great corner and somehow between the delivery and Kaleigh O’Donnell the ball ended up in the net,” Flannigan said.
CR North has balanced its senior leaders with a wealth of younger players looking to make their mark on the season. Playing with a lead, the Indians were able to go deeper into their bench and got good minutes from a multitude of players on their way to maintaining that advantage.
“I thought Maura, Julianna Lanigan, Christine Jablonsky and Morgan McCaffrey really impacted the game today when they came in,” Flannigan said. “It’s such a long season and to get impactful minutes from younger players is really valuable for us.”
The younger players have simply been following the lead of their seniors, who again came ready to go on Tuesday.
“Paige Addis, Brooke Strobel, Kaleigh O’Donnell and Alyssa Lanigan set a great example for us in doing a lot of the hard work in the middle and front end of the field,” Flannigan said. “Their pressure and intensity definitely made a difference.”
The Indians (2-0) pay a visit to Pennsbury on Wednesday to begin SOL National play.
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 1 1 – 2
HAVERFORD 0 0 – 0
Hatboro-Horsham 3, William Tennent 0
The Hatters got their 2019 season off to a good start with an SOL crossover win over a veteran Panthers squad.
“With a strong core of starters from last year and a couple new additions, the Lady Hatters are excited for this season,” Hatters coach Kelsey Daley said.
The sides dueled for a half with neither able to put one in the net. After halftime, the Hatters were able to strike first and continue building on the advantage.
“It was a well-played match by both teams; the Hatters hit the back of the net in the second half by a goal from Emily Thomas and an assist from Cam Ryan,” Daley said. “Minutes later Maggie O’Neill added a goal that Emily Thomas assisted.”
Freshman Caroline Shegogue had a nice debut, netting her first varsity goal off an assist from Lydia Nolin to finish the scoring.
“The whole entire team really stepped up and had a great game,” Daley said.
Hatboro-Horsham (1-0) will open SOL American play at Upper Dublin on Wednesday. William Tennent (0-1) begins SOL National play at Bensalem on Friday.
HATBORO-HORSHAM 0 3 – 3
WILLIAM TENNENT 0 0 – 0
Pennridge 5, Lansdale Catholic 0
Five different Rams found the back of the net as they topped the defending Philadelphia Catholic League champions.
Leah Malone opened the account by pushing home her own rebound on a third-chance shot and Lindsey DeHaven made it 2-0 by heading in a Chance Hendricks free kick. Maddie Anderson struck on a long-range rocket and Abby Brown tapped home a short-range finish to give Pennridge a 4-0 edge at the half.
“It’s easy to defend a team with one scorer so our hope is to have multiple scorers throughout the season,” Rams coach Audrey Anderson said. “We talked about preparing for certain games and making sure we’re shooting from everywhere on the field and getting those early crosses in. I thought the movement on the ball was really good and we had good movement off the ball as well, so I was pretty happy.”
LC was much stronger in the second half and put a couple serious threats on the Rams’ goal. Senior keeper Meghan Kriney had to make five saves to pick up her first shutout of the year, several of them on well-hit balls to the upper part of the frame.
“Kriney plays with a lot of pride,” Anderson said. “Whatever she can do to keep that ball from going in the net, she’s going to do it.”
Maddie Angelo capped the scoring with a superb shot, ripping a ball far on the right wing that sailed into the upper 90 on the far post with a few minutes left in the match.
Pennridge (2-0) hosts Quakertown on Friday in the Rams’ SOL Continental opener.
PENNRIDGE 4 1 – 5
LANSDALE CATHOLIC 0 0 – 0
Souderton 5, Archbishop John Carroll 0
The Indians hit the road for the first time this fall and got a nice effort from their forwards.
“Souderton looked strong in their second consecutive non league match as they took down Archbishop Carroll to start the season 2-0,” Indians assistant coach Ian Smith said. “Souderton put out a dominant performance, outshooting their opponents 24-4, while maintaining a clean sheet.”
Hannah Alderfer opened the scoring, then for the second straight game, set up Averie Doughty for a tally. Leah Mowery, Katie Pazdziorko and Ly Yu also found the back of the net as Souderton mixed up its scoring.
“The team prepares to close out the week strong with back to back games against conference opponents on Thursday (North Penn) and Friday (CB West),” Smith said.
SOUDERTON 2 3 – 5
ARCHBISHOP CARROLL 0 0 – 0
Cheltenham 9, New Foundations Charter 1
The Panthers got their season started with a scoring outburst on Tuesday.
Five players got a goal for Cheltenham, with four of them each recording a multi-goal game. Cheltenham led 3-1 at the half, then kept it rolling for double that amount of goals in the second half.
Lola Jahss, Donya Baxter, Ava Klebanoff and Lily Crocker all notched a brace for the Panthers while Mimi Williamson also found the back of the net.
Cheltenham begins SOL American play against Upper Moreland on Wednesday.
CHELTENHAM 3 6 – 9
NEW FOUNDATIONS CHARTER 1 0 – 1
Wilson 4, North Penn 3
The Knights made a late push but for the second straight season fell to the District 3 power.
Emily Varilla carried off her torrid start with an early goal following connecting passes by Emily Schurr and Tia Sheehy just three minutes in. Wilson followed with a pair of goals to go ahead and forced the Knights to chase the rest of the match.
Grace Sacchetti sprang Riley Saxman for an equalizer but Wilson again bagged two goals in response.
Sacchetti drew a foul in the box with about five minutes left and Sheehy converted the PK to cut the lead to one, but North Penn was unable to find another goal.
The Knights (1-1) visit Souderton in their SOL Continental opener on Thursday.
WILSON 2 2 – 4
NORTH PENN 1 2 – 3
Goals: NP – Emily Varilla, Riley Saxman, Tia Sheehy
New Hope-Solebury 5, Springfield Township 3
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