Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ soccer teams in action. CB East/Pennridge photos courtesy of Tracy Valko. Lower Moreland/Upper Moreland photos provided courtesy of Greg Zesinger. Check back for galleries of both games. (Wissahickon/HH photos courtesy of Josh Stelzer/Wissahickon soccer)
SOL Liberty
Upper Dublin 1, Abington 0
The Cardinals know what works for them.
A goal midway through the second half from in-form junior Alex Devers was all UD’s robust defense needed to avenge a 1-0 loss to the Ghosts earlier this season. Abington had been averaging 4.3 goals per game on its 10-match win streak, but the Cardinals quieted the attack with its eighth clean sheet of the fall.
“I was impressed by the performance of Emeline Bell, Erin Seabrook, Rachel Adelman and Alaina Sanders,” UD coach Chuck Gesing said. “Bliss Brenner, Maddie Amoia and Abby O’Meara absorbed the pressure wide and were dangerous getting forward. It was a complete team win.”
Abington’s engine is its midfield, and the Cardinals were able to prevent the Ghosts central players from creating opportunities to score or set up teammates.
“They never got a look in our box,” Gesing said. “We kept them shooting at distance and Rachel handled it perfectly. They got corner kicks and we were first to them every time.”
The Ghosts took just their third loss of the season, but second in conference play to keep the Liberty table still very much open.
“Upper Dublin outworked the Ghosts and capitalized on their opportunity to take down Abington,” Ghosts coach Rick Tompkins said. “Anna Cleary and Piper McGinley played well for Abington.”
Devers netted her 10th goal of the fall and has now scored in nine different matches for Upper Dublin. The junior, who plays forward and attacking midfielder, netted the winner in the 60th minute.
“First, she has a cannon of a shot. Second, she’s running in the box when earlier in the season she was settling for shots from distance,” Gesing said. “She can do both but shots closer to goal are more likely to score.”
Abington (11-3, 10-2 SOL) hosts Wissahickon at 7 on Wednesday. Upper Dublin (9-3-3, 9-1-2) hosts Quakertown on Wednesday at 3:30.
UPPER DUBLIN 0 1 – 1
ABINGTON 0 0 – 0
Goals: UD – Alex Devers
Quakertown 2, Plymouth Whitemarsh 0
Kyla Frederick was a standout performer on Monday and it led to three points for the Panthers.
The senior scored both goals, but her impact stretched far beyond that.
“Kyla Frederick not only produced both our goals, but she defended well all night,” Quakertown assistant coach Jon Gingrich said.
Quakertown has established a successful plan this season and again executed it against the Colonials.
“We were able to get the ball down the flanks and produce shots from our wing backs,” Gingrich said. “We also defended extremely well against PW’s counterattack, especially in the second half.
“The trio of Mackenna Calabria, Angela Calvanese and Carolyn Sipprell were excellent in defense, all turning away PW opposition.”
Quakertown (6-4-2, 6-3-2 SOL) hosts Archbishop Carroll at 3:30 on Tuesday. PW (6-7, 5-7) visits Hatboro-Horsham at 7 on Wednesday.
QUAKERTOWN – 2
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH – 0
Goals; Q – Kyla Frederick 2
Wissahickon 3, Hatboro-Horsham 2
The Trojans and Hatters rarely fail to entertain when they meet on a soccer pitch.
With Hatboro-Horsham clawing out a 1-0 victory in the first meeting of the season, it was Wiss getting a measure of payback in a back-and-forth offensive display Monday. A furious flurry saw quite a few goals, but at the end, the Trojans had one more on the board.
“We were good today, we came out the open 20 minutes and played in their end pretty much the entire time,” Wiss coach Chris McDaniels said.
The scoring came in a burst in the first half, starting on a Trojans’ corner kick 17 minutes in.
“Natalie Ryan played an in-swinging ball to the near post and Anna May – our two senior captains linking up – beat the keeper to it and stuck a leg in and finished off the outside of her right boot,” McDaniels said. “It was pretty much a race to the near post and Anna beat her by a half-step to get a foot on it.”
McDaniels felt the goal was a deserved result for the start his team had but any good vibes were erased in what felt like the blink of an eye.
“We know Emily Thomas’ right foot, it’s scored way too many goals on us and we backed off her at the top of the area, she wasn’t at a great angle but she still dropped it in the top right corner,” McDaniels said. “That tied it up 1-1 and it was a little deflating. We’d worked hard and I felt deserved that one-goal lead and to see it disappear, it wasn’t even two minutes.”
Wissahickon’s attack has been very good at keeping the ball moving this fall, and it was that synergy that allowed the Trojans to poach the lead back just a few minutes later.
“Lannah Werynski, Kylie Friedman, Margaret Wilde and Emma Baker all got touches in a pretty tight space and Emma finished it off,” McDaniels said. “She put it bottom left corner, not a lot of pace on it, but enough to roll it and beat the keeper.”
A crazy series of trading goals calmed and Wiss took a 2-1 lead to halftime. McDaniels again felt good about his team holding the lead after their efforts. Again, he would lose that feeling less than two minutes into the second half.
“The ball was just bouncing around and they’re always active. (Hatter coach Kelsey Daley) plays four girls high and the wingers are always high, so there’s always bodies around the box,” McDaniels said. “Sure enough, it ends up on Thomas’ foot, she dribbles across the 18 to have a hit, we block it, but it falls right on the penalty spot.”
Waiting there was Emma Levin, and the Hatters midfielder blasted the look into the net to level the score 2-2.
In a recurring theme, all the momentum from the goal lasted about 90 seconds.
“The game-winner came from Wilde,” McDaniels said. “Wilde and Baker played a 2-v-2 and combined twice in the build-up and Baker played a really nice ball. She threaded a beautiful ball to Margaret running full speed, she received it on her left and finished on her right. There was nothing the keeper could do.”
From there, it was up to Wissahickon’s defense to quell the Hatters and prevent anything from going over the top and into space behind the back line.
“Olivia Lore made good decisions and the back four – Margo Kasenchar, Serena Harris, Natalie Ryan and Sage Stelzer did a nice job,” McDaniels said. “I thought Anna May did a good job, not only getting the goal, she was a good ball-winner for us as a holding midfielder. She was our primary tackler in the middle and did a really good job.”
Wissahickon (10-2-1, 9-1-1 SOL) travels to Abington at 7 on Wednesday. Hatboro-Horsham (8-3-1, 8-2-1) hosts Plymouth Whitemarsh on Wednesday at 7.
WISSAHICKON 2 1 – 3
HATBORO-HORSHAM 1 1 – 2
Goals: W – Anna May, Emma Baker, Margaret Wilde; HH – Emily Thomas, Emma Levin
SOL Colonial
Central Bucks East 1, Pennridge 0 (OT)
Anyone who walked away from this season’s first meeting between these two teams knew the Patriots had what it took to hang with the Rams.
East, which did little to dispel that notion through the first half of conference play and in its crossover games, proved it Monday with an overtime goal to pick up its first win over Pennridge since Oct. 1, 2015.
“This was a bit of an interesting game as it was a tale of two halves. I thought our kids had the better of the first half, Pennridge had the better in the second, but neither side created anything dangerous,” East coach Jake Nesteruk. “We have a ton of respect for what their group and staff have done over the years and knew we would have to have a strong performance defensively and produce a few chances up top, but I don’t think either of us created sustainable chances.”
Elise Duffy has been as consistent as any forward in the SOL this fall, and with the Rams trying to keep her contained, Nesteruk knew his team would need another source to step up offensively.
“I thought with their backline dialed in on Elise we were able to create a number of chances through our midfield with Elliot Forney, Brooke Roumy, Sofia Mignon, Issie Reid, and Chloe Williams,” Nesteruk said.
After being on the front foot through 40 minutes, the Patriots turned to their own defense to take charge in the second 40 of regulation.
“We spent the majority of the game in our half. Major credit goes to Courtney Curry, Liv Kalellis, Meredith Black, Chantal Van Dongeren, and our goalkeeper Skylar Gash for getting us through a very difficult second half,” Nesteruk said. “We weren’t at our best and it was one of those moments where I didn’t prepare our kids well enough for what was coming but we managed to keep the game in front of them and make the plays we needed.”
Strawn, a senior, has been one of East’s hardest working players all fall but hasn’t shown up in the scorebook. Despite that, her teammates know she’s an invaluable part of their success and she got to cash in with a timely first goal of the season in extra time on Monday.
“We decided to make a few adjustments going into overtime in terms of our shape. Nothing major but thought we had to change up our final pass, and it created a few good chances from the start,” Nesteruk said. “The goal came off a few balls bouncing inside of the 18 and Chloe just caught it perfectly.”
Duffy still played a part in getting the goal, assisting on Strawn’s finish about four minutes into the overtime session.
“The goal was one of those high school sports moments between two good teams that you just won’t forget. It couldn’t have happened to a more deserving kid,” Nesteruk said. “She’s worked so hard for so many years and as a staff, we knew she would get on the scoreboard where and when we needed her the most.”
East is well in line for its first postseason berth under Nesteruk, but the Patriots aren’t focusing on anything beyond what’s right in front of them. There was still no denying that Monday’s result is one that they’ll remember for a long time, even if they put it off a few more weeks before doing so.
“It’s been a long time coming for our program to see a moment like this come to life, and I could not be prouder of our girls for what they did today,” Nesteruk said. “We are just taking this season a game at a time and as much as this one means to us, we are back to work tomorrow preparing for the rest of our week.”
The win was also impactful in the standings, as it moved the Patriots into a tie with the Rams atop the SOL Colonial with the crossover results factored in.
Pennridge (12-2, 10-2 SOL) hosts North Penn on Wednesday at 7. East (11-2, 10-2) visits Souderton at 6:30 on Wednesday.
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 0 0 1 – 1
PENNRIDGE 0 0 0 – 0
Goals: CBE – Chloe Strawn
Central Bucks South 1, Souderton 0
The Titans are getting well-versed in close games.
Since Sept. 24, South has played eight games, with five decided by one goal and another ending in a draw. Monday was the tiebreaker, giving South a 3-2 edge in those one-goal outcomes thanks to another gritty effort.
“I think the girls realized we are really in the final stretch of the regular season, and to be a contender for playoffs, we would need a big final push with these last few league games,” South coach Amy Moriarty said.
It’s been a large cast of contributors for the Titans, who have dealt with a swath of injuries that have asked many players to fill in and take on new roles of late.
“The team as a whole realizes it’s going to take a village to get there,” Moriarty said. “Everyone has been flexible and non-stop working to make up for the deficits, and it really showed today with a solid performance by some players who haven’t seen a ton of playing time until the last couple weeks.”
Souderton is no stranger to tight games itself, but it’s been a frustrating season in terms of finding results for the Indians.
Monday, the team’s defense continued to show its improvement with another stout effort.
“I was really pleased with the way our defense played today. Maggie Fisher has done a really great job leading from the back line both vocally and with her play,” Souderton coach Ian Smith said. “Her leadership has contributed to some of the improvements we’ve made defensively, and Ava Steidle and Abby Kolb put up solid performances as well. Avery Caroll earned her first varsity start today at outside back as well, and I thought she fit in seamlessly and contributed some valuable minutes.”
The teams dueled to a scoreless first half, and it was a combined effort from South’s midfield and defense to keep the Indians out of the net.
“Excellent defensive effort by Brooke Commins to contain their speedy forward (Avery Nogami),” Moriarty said. “Great midfield performance to win 50/50 balls and be a constant offenseive threat in both halves by Bella Smouse, Lily Black, Alison Sauers and Holly Joseph.”
On the other side, Smith felt his midfield was equally effective and managed to create a couple chances that just couldn’t find their way into the netting.
“In the midfield we were able to win the majority of 50-50 balls, which is something we have been emphasizing over the past few weeks. We were able to get a few balls in behind CB South’s back line throughout the match, but never found the finishing touch,” Smith said. “Avery Nogami had a few quality chances in behind, once that went just over the bar in the second half. Nicole Schulingkamp found some space to create some quality chances, one was saved very well by South’s keeper.”
Senior McKenna Martin scored her first of the season, finding the back of the net with about 15 minutes to go to lift the Titans to three points.
“She hit a beautiful volley to the far post off of a nice give and go combination by Colby Roach and Jules Molnar, who was returning from injury,” Moriarty said.
Sometimes, it’s just a good finish and Smith felt that was the difference in the game.
“At the end of the day, we were beat by a cross and really smart finish from CB South,” Smith said. “They found some space down the flank and sent in a cross for a one-time volley that found the corner perfectly.”
Souderton (2-10-1, 1-9-1) hosts CB East at 6:30 on Wednesday. South (5-7-1, 3-7-1) visits CB West at 7 on Wednesday.
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 0 1 – 1
SOUDERTON 0 0 – 0
Goals: CBS – McKenna Martin
Central Bucks West 1, North Penn 0
Whenever the Bucks and Knights meet, it’s guaranteed to be a spirited and intense match.
Monday night was no different as West defended its home turf and got some payback after the Knights did the same on their home field to open conference play. Scoring chances were hard to come by either way and when the Bucks got a set piece late in the second half, it proved pivotal.
“We got a free kick from around the 50, and Taylor (Moyer) played a beautiful ball that Ava Longo ran onto. It was just a beautiful head goal,, and it was one that we definitely needed,” West coach Mike Moyer said. “I give credit to North Penn. Their goalie came up big, and their defenders were really good. We had relentless pressure in the first half, but we just couldn’t score.”
Moyer said his team controlled possession in the first half and kept the ball in the Knights half most of the time, but just couldn’t get past their resolute defending.
The Bucks looked to keep the press on in the second half, hoping to tire out North Penn a little more, but it opened up some chances for the Knights to counter. For the hosts, fortunately their back line was also up to task.
“My back line was awesome tonight, and so was my goalie – Jules Broskey – getting another clean sheet, especially against North Penn,” Moyer said. “They’re just playing really good in the back right now. I’m really pleased with them.”
Much like they have all season, the Bucks had plenty of contributors in Monday’s winning effort.
“Kate Weyer is not at 100 percent, and she played all 80 minutes and was just a warrior. AC (Alexis Castro) and Eva Wierzbowski were really good and tough in the middle,” Moyer said. “Between Taylor (Moyer), Shea (Lubin) and Riley (Corona) – all three are playing really, really good right now and just giving constant pressure to the other team. It was a good league win, one we really wanted to win tonight.”
North Penn (5-6-1, 5-5-1 SOL) visits Pennridge on Wednesday at 7. West (9-4 7-4) hosts CB South at 7 on Wednesday.
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 0 1 – 1
NORTH PENN 0 0 – 0
Goals: CBW – Ava Longo
SOL Patriot
Council Rock North 9, Harry S Truman 1
Mia Cairone’s brace led the Indians to their fifth straight win.
Maya Raghunandanan, Julianna Lanigan, Sydney Linus, Jayne Bogle, Madison Poe, Ember Wenitsky-Stone and Alyssa Tyler also scored for North.
“A nice win against a determined Truman team. Our starters gave us an early lead, while other players got some varsity minutes for the first time in the second half,” Indians coach Gavin Flannigan said. “Truman battled hard and caused us some problems especially on set pieces and were unfortunate not to score more.”
Isabella Dias had the goal for the Tigers while keeper Carmela St. Hilaire made 12 saves in goal.
CR North (10-4, 9-3 SOL) faces Council Rock South on Tuesday at 5. Truman (0-14, 0-13) visits Bensalem on Wednesday at 7.
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH – 9
HARRY S TRUMAN – 1
Council Rock South 1, Neshaminy 0
The Golden Hawks hoped their strong finish in crossover play would carry into the second leg of SOL Patriot play.
Monday night was a good start as CR South evened the season series against Neshaminy with each side winning on the other’s home field. A 4-1 loss to Neshaminy still weighed on the Hawks as they took the field under the lights.
“The girls had a bit of a sour taste in their mouth after the first matchup because we knew the score did not reflect our potential,” CR South coach Nick Heim said. “We knew coming in it would be a battle physically and we stressed matching their energy from the first whistle. I thought we did a really good job of that.”
CR South has gone through a lot of changes since that first game and due to injuries and players out of the lineup, has built up some depth. The Hawks needed it to clash with a Neshaminy team that always fights to the end and creates scoring through its physicality.
“Reghan Mudie, Kathryn O’Kane, Kylee Bamberger, Kate Millevoi and Zoe Brossman were instrumental in winning battles in the midfield,” Heim said. “Our back line was organized and compact, and Emily Davis and Dana DeDominicis did a great job of dealing with direct service, with Jenna Waterman and Kim Speiser covering well but also building the attack; we wanted to work the ball when they pressed and our backs did a solid job of initiating that.”
Cam Blatz has worked hard to establish herself as a scorer for the Hawks and Heim said she showed a lot of persistence on Monday, fighting through a couple missed chances to find the game-winner midway through the second half. O’Kane was able to thread a ball through to Blatz, who did the rest and put it away.
“We knew Neshaminy wouldn’t quit, and they had a few looks that Karissa Smedley came up massive on,” Heim said. “We got solid contributions from a good number of girls on the roster tonight.”
The schedule hasn’t been friendly to South most of the season, and the Hawks have little time to revel in Monday’s result with their archrival on deck on a quick turnaround.
“It’s a tough stretch still with us kicking off against North less than 20 hours after this ended, so we don’t have much time to enjoy the win before continuing the second half of league play,” Heim said.
CR South (5-5-1 SOL) faces CR North on Tuesday at 5. Neshaminy (9-3, 8-3) hosts Pennsbury at 7 on Wednesday.
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 0 1 – 1
NESHAMINY 0 0 – 0
Goals: CRS – Cam Blatz
SOL Freedom
Lower Moreland 2, Upper Moreland 0
The Lions repaid the Golden Bears to start the second half of conference play.
UM beat Lower Moreland 2-0 to open the season, but both squads have come a long way since then. Lower Moreland’s forward tandem may be young, but they’ve embraced their roles and helped their team to three points on Monday.
“I think our biggest difference was the confidence we have now, mostly from our forwards, freshman Nikki Sahl and sophomore Morgan Pennisi,” LM coach Mike Gould said. “Each of them had a goal today and their mentality has been that they should be scoring goals and carrying the team.”
Upper Moreland’s hustle and energy to press the ball has caused opponents trouble all season, and it was something the Lions had to do better with if they wanted a better result than the first meeting.
“I think what we did well was cover ground defensively,” Gould said. “Junior Payton Lennon was constantly breaking up any transition opportunities for UM and sophomore Abbie Wasserstrom who just slid to center back from left back was very solid as well.”
Alesandra Malave recorded the shutout in goal for Lower Moreland.
Sahl’s goal was a game-changer, coming right before the halftime whistle.
“The first half we came out and controlled the play. We had some really good opportunities on net, but they didn’t fall. Sahl was able to settle a clear and finished with five seconds left in the first half. She showed some really great composure,” UM coach Lisa Benvenuto said. “Again, in the second half, we had multiple opportunities in front of net that just didn’t go in. We knew today was going to be a tough one for us, we will take what we have learned and move forward.”
Pennisi added the insurance goal about 10 minutes into the second half.
The Lions navigated two losses out of the gate and some tough crossover games against the bigger programs in the SOL Liberty, but started the second half of Freedom play with the outcome of their season up to them.
“After finally coming out and getting a few wins, we’ve all found our roles on the field and what we need to do to win games,” Gould said. “I think we’re still developing and growing into our roles and trying to put together a full 80, but I’m very proud of how far we’ve come from August 16th to now. I think this is a great group of girls who really want to go out and win and compete for each other.
“We have a great opportunity but also a tough road ahead to finish first in our division.”
Upper Moreland (6-6-1, 5-6-1 SOL) hosts Cheltenham at 3:30 on Wednesday. Lower Moreland (7-7, 6-6) visits New Hope-Solebury at 3:30 on Wednesday.
LOWER MORELAND 1 1 – 2
UPPER MORELAND 0 0 – 0
Goals: LM – Nikki Sahl, Morgan Pennisi
Springfield Twp 5, New Hope-Solebury 3
As Alana Decker went, so went the Spartans on Monday.
“Alana Decker was a major factor in our offense today,” Springfield Twp coach Dan Malora said. “She generated the attack throughout the whole match.”
It only took her 11 minutes to put her team up 2-0.
“She started our scoring in the seventh minute with a put-away rebound from a dangerous shot by Maddie McDevitt,” Malora said. “Four minutes later, Paige Robinson found Alana in space and Decker buried her second goal into the top right corner.”
The Lions got a huge match from Ava Marrone, who netted a hat-trick, but they couldn’t keep pace with the Spartans ability to get the ball over the top and counter.
“Springfield takes advantage of counters really well, they have some girls who can flick the ball on fast and can get in,” NHS coach Derek Antonini said. “We dominated the match but kept getting beat easily over the top.”
Marrone cut it to 2-1 with her first goal in the final five minutes of the half, but the Spartans were able to answer.
“On our next possession, Paige Robinson notched another assist when she found Marlo Williams who put us up by two goals again,” Malora said.
Kaleigh Evans has been a top player for the Spartans this season, holding 10 goals coming into play Monday and she followed Decker’s lead after halftime.
“The second half started quick, with Alana Decker running a sequence of give and goes with her partner in crime, Kaleigh Evans. They strung some great passes together and Kaleigh netted her first of two goals in the game a minute into the half,” Malora said. “Kaleigh manufactured her own goal in the 58th to put us up 5-1.”
New Hope-Solebury continued to battle, with Marrone pulling two back but time would run out before the Lions could try and complete the rally.
“I have to give a lot of credit to those Lady Lions. They kept the pressure coming. They threw the kitchen sink at us in the last 20 minutes and put together some nice attacks,” Malora said. “The calm execution of defense by Tess Talbot, Shannon Meder, Maddie McDevitt and Sophie Williamson helped to keep the late damage to a minimum.”
New Hope-Solebury (1-10-1, 1-9-1 SOL) is on the road at Lower Moreland on Wednesday at 3:30. Springfield Twp (2-11, 2-9) visits William Tennent at 7 on Wednesday.
SPRINGFIELD TWP 3 2 – 5
NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY 1 2 – 3
Goals: ST – Alana Decker 2, Kaleigh Evans 2, Marlo Williams; NHS – Ava Marrone 3
Cheltenham 1, William Tennent 0
It had been a long time coming for Cheltenham.
The Panthers secured their first conference win as members of the SOL Freedom after not playing last fall due to COVID-19 and instead taking part in the United X spring season. It was a long wait in general, as Cheltenham secured its first SOL win since Sept. 19, 2019.
“This was our most complete game of the season, and it was great to see our team come together from start to finish,” Cheltenham coach Leah Matusow said. “Sydney Holland scored in the first half off a pass from Lily Crocker and our momentum and energy never dropped.”
Cheltenham’s defensive unit has shown plenty of growth this season, and the team came up with the shutout against a dangerous Tennent attack.
“Tennent had their chances and a few corners, but our defense held strong, and Rohan McInneshin earned the shutout in goal,” Matusow said. “Malena Vila, Kennedy Williams, Taden Versaw-Barnes, Lucy Trott and Tabitha Sterman played a solid game in the back. They communicated, were aggressive, and played smart soccer looking to do the little things, which led to some big stops.”
Cheltenham, which won the United X title last fall, has continually battled against every opponent this fall and despite not having a conference win for it prior to Monday, remained positive and just worked harder for each game that came next.
“I told our team after the game that we showed perseverance, grit and determination today,” Matusow said. “Most importantly, our girls had fun and that usually means good outcomes on the field.”
Cheltenham (1-10, 3-10 SOL) visits Upper Moreland at 3:30 on Wednesday. William Tennent (4-9, 3-9) hosts Springfield Twp at 7 on Wednesday.
CHELTENHAM 1 0 – 1
WILLIAM TENNENT 0 0 – 0
Goals: C – Sydney Holland
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