Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ soccer teams in action Thursday. Upper Moreland/Wissahickon photos provided courtesy of Kathy Leister Photography. CR North/CR South photos provided courtesy of John Gleeson. Check back for galleries of both games.
SOL National
Pennsbury 3, Neshaminy 2 (OT)
Pennsbury coach Kaitlyn Battiste had one word to sum up Thursday's SOL National title game.
War.
The Falcons made it five straight National conference championships with a 3-2 overtime thriller over visiting Neshaminy. Neshaminy, of course, was the last team to win the National before this current Falcons streak, in the 2013 state title season.
"We went to war today," Battiste said. "A Pennsbury-Neshaminy matchup is always intense, but throw in a chance for a league title on top of that and it was war."
Pennsbury entered play atop the conference table by just one point, so a draw would have still handed the Falcons a split of the title. They weren't really interested in that idea.
"As a coaching staff, we did a lot of reflecting about how to present this game to our team," Battiste said. "A loss wouldn't mean the end of our season. A tie would've still been enough for the league title. Neither of those options were what they wanted.
"They're competitors and they don't want to be out-worked. As long as they keep that mentality, they'll be successful."
The SOL National title will stay in Fairless Hills, but getting it to do so took a titanic effort from a number of actors on both sides of the contest. Neshaminy scored first but the Falcons rallied to tie the match on Christine Cataldo-Smith's 22nd minute goal assisted by Rosie Bostian.
"There was no relaxing for either team," Battiste said. "Every goal was contested and both sides were throwing their bodies around to force the ball in the back of the net. It was physical and aggressive all over the pitch."
Cataldo-Smith, who left a massive footprint on the outcome, scored her second of the game to stake Pennsbury to a 2-1 lead only for Neshaminy to score its own equalizer inside the final five minutes. Much like it had a few days earlier in a win over Cumberland Valley, Neshaminy had forced extra time in the final act of the match.
"Neshaminy challenged our girls on every single play and they had to dig deeper than they even knew they could," Battiste said. "If any outsiders had any doubts about how important this game and this title are to this team, they proved that desire and grit today."
In Monday's win over CR South, a Bostian free kick found Cataldo-Smith for the winning goal. They sort of did it again on Thursday.
A foul set up a free kick about 35 yards out, which Bostian bombed into the Neshaminy box. The keeper made a play on the ball but didn't catch it cleanly, allowing Cataldo-Smith to knock it loose. With the game winner sitting in space, Evia Ciaccia buried it four minutes into the first extra period to hand Pennsbury is unshared title.
"I think the team's experience was a huge factor," Battiste said. "We talked about managing the ebbs and flows of the game and our veterans helped us maintain that 'bend but don't break' mentality. We've been in those situations where we get knocked around and start feeling sorry for ourselves.
"When we started down that path today, we saw our leaders fight back to change the momentum – Ella Palmieri, Taylor Muller, Rosie Bostian, Christine Cataldo-Smith – they never stopped."
As a result of the match, Pennsbury (14-2-1, 10-1-1 SOL) vaulted over Neshaminy to take the No. 8 spot in the District I 4A rankings while Neshaminy (12-4, 9-3) landed at No. 9.
Neshaminy takes on Abington, the current No. 7 team in the rankings, at 3:30 pm Friday. Pennsbury's regular season is over.
PENNSBURY 1 1 1 – 3
NESHAMINY 1 1 0 – 2
Goals: P – Christine Cataldo-Smith 2, Evie Ciaccia
Council Rock South 2, Council Rock North 0
The Golden Hawks and Indians weren't playing for a conference title on Thursday, but there still a prize at stake.
For the third year in a row, Council Rock South topped North to claim the Rock Cup.
"North-South is always a tough match, especially the last one of the year for the Rock Cup. I think our girls really responded well today to the challenge of setting the pace," Hawks coach Nick Heim said. "I know our girls felt like we didn't convert chances when we tied them earlier in the year and had a sour taste in their mouths having to play just the OT a few weeks after the regulation so I was very happy with their response."
Senior captains Carly Hickey scored off a corner kick, which gave South a 1-0 lead at the half. Aubrey Hondros then continued her strong second half run of form with a goal off Madison McDowell's assist in the second half.
"It being the senior class' last chance to play against North made it extra special too," Heim said. "To be able to have the seniors leave the program with three straight Rock Cups is a feather in their caps."
The teams' first meeting took place in a total downpour, with the squads having to then convene for a scoreless 20-minute overtime weeks later.
"Today we did a better job of matching their physicality. They're a big, physical team," Heim said. "Their midfield can really do damage if you allow them to dictate the style of play. We stressed getting into a rhythm early and making them play more to our style."
The Hawks had a nice balance of contributors on both ends of the pitch.
"Our senior center backs Carly Hickey and Emily Kavash really limited North's chances and seniors Emily Helmich and Chelsea Jameson combined for the shutout in goal," Heim said. "Claudia Steinmetz gave us a great boost up top off the bench with Madison McDowell and Sammy Jones creating offensively."
Although the Indians won't make the postseason, Heim had nothing but praise for his team's opponent.
"If this was back a few years when coaches decided playoff teams, I think North would absolutely be in," Heim said. "They've played us, Neshaminy and Pennsbury very tight. They're a team that can really play with anyone else we've seen all year."
Council Rock South (12-4-1, 8-3-1 SOL) wraps its regular season with a nonleague visit to Wissahickon on Friday. The Hawks ended Thursday as the No. 13 seed in the 4A rankings.
Council Rock North closed out its season with a 7-10-1 record (4-8-1 SOL).
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 1 1 – 2
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 0 0 – 0
CRS – Carly Hickey, Aubrey Hondros
William Tennent 7, Harry S Truman 0
SOL Continental
Pennridge 2, North Penn 1
The Rams didn't have to go all-in on Thursday, but they weren't going to just give away a match either.
Pennridge built a lead then withstood an energized Knights rally as it ended North Penn's five-match winning streak two nights after winning its third straight SOL Continental title.
"We could have gone one of two directions tonight," Rams coach Audrey Anderson said. "We could have said the conference championship was enough and we don't care about this, but we went the other direction and prepared for the postseason with this effort."
Lindsey DeHaven put the Rams on the board six minutes in when she put away a composed finish after Maddie Angelo played her in with a terrific cross from her right back spot. Both sides had a couple looks at goal before the half ended, but the score stood 1-0 Pennridge.
Abby Groff was one of the Rams who couldn't quite finish in the first half, but the senior put away the one that mattered in the second half. After pressuring an attempted clear, Groff knocked the kick backwards, ran past a defender then about 25 yards before putting her own collected finish in the back of the net.
"It's simple, if the other team doesn't have the ball, they can't be much of a threat to us," Anderson said. "As long as we're connecting passes we can control the tempo and what's going to happen."
North Penn picked things up after the second goal, morphing its formation into an attack-oriented one that put pressure on right away.
The Knights sliced the lead in half when Marissa Werner poked home a point blank shot following a scramble in the box caused by a long Emily Schurr free kick into the six.
"We talked about things we did really well and things we need to get better at and it's still the same story, balls dropping in that six," Anderson said. "It's good to see that if it's still happening, we have time to correct it."
After that, the Rams backline held its ground with senior goalkeeper Mary Kate Levush playing conductor.
"MK is so smart, the girls respect her and our backs are so strong and smart as well and the one thing I loved seeing tonight was their fight," Anderson said. "When things seemed to not be going our way, they kept fighting and digging in."
Anderson also cited the play of senior midfielder Ashley Groeber. Groeber didn't score, but filled a lot of other roles as a ball-winner and pass connector in the middle for the Rams, who managed minutes for a couple of regular players.
"There's so much left for her to do for us in the postseason," Anderson said.
While the Rams took care of their conference title on Thursday, they were still taking in the accomplishment of finishing atop a loaded table for the third year in a row.
"I think they, a lot of times, feel they don't get the respect they deserve but they worked their butts off to get that title to show at the end of the season," Anderson said. "We look at the iceberg, all the things we do behind the scenes that people don't see are the big part underwater and they only see the wins above water. For them to have that in their hands to say 'this is who we are this season,' I think it means the world to them. I look at the seniors and all they've put up with the past four years and they're very deserving."
North Penn (9-6-3, 6-4-2 SOL) finished it regular season slate and ended the night No. 11 in the district 4A rankings. Pennridge (14-2-1, 9-2-1), which ended the night No. 3 in 4A, ends its regular season with a nonleague home game against Nazareth Academy on Friday.
PENNRIDGE 1 1 – 2
NORTH PENN 0 1 – 1
Goals: P – Lindsey DeHaven, Abby Groff; NP – Marissa Werner
Central Bucks West 3, Central Bucks South 2
The Bucks and Titans played a very entertaining match but the home-standing Bucks came out on top on their Senior Night.
"It was a great way to send our seniors off. We ended up 8-4 and second place behind Pennridge in the league," Bucks coach Mike Moyer said. "It was a great turnaround for this team from the past three seasons."
CB West jumped out to an early lead, getting goals from Tori Albrecht and Ryan Fitzsimmons.
"The first goal was all Tori Albrecht, she hit a great shot from 30 yards out," Moyer said. "Our second came when Taylor Moyer slid a pass to Ryan
Fitzsimmons who hit a shot from 25 yards out."
The Titans were shorthanded, with three key starters out, but not short on effort and cut the lead to 2-1 at the break. Then, just a few minutes into the second half, they knotted the game at 2-2.
"The opening goal came from a cross from Meem Edwards that Grace Tecce finished," CB South coach Betsy Bullock said. "Early in the second half, Mackenzie Edwards dribbled around their defense and slotted the ball to Caroline Serban who buried the ball in the back of the net."
The Titans certainly put forth a worthy effort.
"South had the majority of possession in the first half and finished with 14 shots on goal," Bullock said. "I was very proud of the effort playing without three key starters."
West finally broke through on a second chance opportunity.
"We finally sprung Ryan Fitz(simmons) down the line and she hit a laser that the keeper couldn't handle," Moyer said. "Taylor was there to get the game-winner."
After a strong finish to the season last year, the returning players on the West roster, especially this year's seniors, carried into a season-long effort.
"I was so proud of my seniors tonight. Trish Hauck and Megan Gallagher have been the best captains game in and game out," Moyer said. "Alex Craine has been outstanding up top. Arianna D'Elia, Kyra LaLena, Gabbie Van Saun and Hope Morrison gave us great minutes on their senior night."
The Titans (9-6-1, 5-6-1 SOL) ended the night No. 15 in the District I 6A rankings, right on the bubble for a first round home game.
CB West (13-4, 8-4) visits Bensalem on Saturday to end the regular season. The Bucks were No. 4 in the 4A rankings at the end of Thursday's games.
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 2 1 – 3
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 1 1 – 2
Goals: CBW – Tori Albrecht, Erin Fitzsimmons, Taylor Moyer; CBS – Grace Tecce, Caroline Serban
Souderton 2, Quakertown 0
The Indians sent their 11 seniors off with a victory in their final regular season game, Thursday.
"From the start of the match Souderton looked energized and ready to win every 50-50. In the first 25 minutes of the match Souderton was able to control most of the match possession-wise, but didn't look particularly threatening in the attack," Indians assistant coach Ian Smith said. "Senior midfielder Campbell Power had a pair of chances in the first 15 minutes; one saved by Quakertown's keeper and the other just wide of the net."
Sara Readinger played a great cross to Hannah Alderfer late in the half, but Souderton couldn't finish it and took a 0-0 deadlock into the break.
"Souderton came out strong again in the second half and looked determined to get the ball forward into a dangerous area," Smith said.
Power fired off another long shot on a 30-yard free kick that looked like it was going into the net until Quakertown keeper Morgan Sipprell got her hand on the shot.
"The shot deflected off the underside of the bar and was half cleared to sophomore Leah Mowery who was able to slot home a nice finish to put the hosts up 1-0," Smith said.
Power threatened once more, but a free kick sailed wide as her quest to score on Senior Night fell a few inches short.
A corner kick with five minutes left would set up a payday for Kailee Harwick, one of Souderton's senior stalwarts in the back.
"The ball was sent in and after a short scramble in the box senior Kailee Harwick was able to clean up and drive home the finish that put the game out of reach," Smith said.
Souderton (10-2-6, 5-2-5 SOL) ended the night in possession of the No. 5 seed in the 4A District I rankings and on course for a first round bye. Quakertown closed out its season with a 3-13-2 record (1-10-1 SOL).
SOUDERTON 0 2 – 2
QUAKERTOWN 0 0 – 0
Goals: S – Leah Mowery, Kailee Harwick
SOL American
Upper Dublin 4, Springfield Twp 0
The Cardinals were finally able to celebrate their Senior Night and did so with a win.
"We did the simple things right," UD coach John Topper said. "We had all our seniors on the field from the very start, they clicked and had the right chemistry."
Topper said his team played against the wind and with the sun shining in their eyes in the first half, but it wasn't enough to stop them from scoring first. Anna Desch scored the winner off Priya Kaneria's assist in the 17th minute.
"Anna's just been doing a great job," Topper said. "She's been dangerous all year but now we're really starting to see some results from her runs forward."
A pair of senior midfielders connected on the next goal, as Tina Haig fed Lexie Moss for the 2-0 lead in the 44th minute.
"Lexie's been one of our stalwarts in there, she's been phenomenal all year," Topper said. "Recently she's been dangerous getting forward, we'd just been missing a pass or the net and today she picked a good time to get forward, Tina found her and she tucked home a nice finish."
Desch played helper in the 53rd minute, sending in a ball that Emily Booth did the rest of the work on for a 3-0 lead. Kaneria ended the scoring with a 70th minute marker, giving her and Desch a goal and assist for the game.
"Dani Tzabari played a very strong game in the midfield," Topper said. "Lexie Moss was her usual self, just bossing the midfield but also being very dangerous offensively and Anna Desch continues to improve every game.
Upper Dublin (10-6-1, 9-4-1 SOL) ended the night No. 16 in the District I 4A rankings, holding the final spot for teams that will host first round playoff games. The Cardinals host CB East on Friday afternoon to finish the regular season.
"I don't know what the math looks like but we started the day with a home playoff spot and that's our goal right now," Topper said. "East is always a very difficult team to play against so we're looking to get what we can out of that game and we'd love to finish strong. We have two good wins this week and would love a third."
Springfield Township (5-12, 3-11 SOL) ended its regular season and will be the No. 3 seed in the 2A playoffs.
UPPER DUBLIN 1 3 – 4
SPRINGFIELD TWP 0 0 – 0
Goals: UD – Anna Desch, Lexie Moss, Emily Booth, Priya Kaneria
Hatboro-Horsham 1, Plymouth Whitemarsh 0
The Hatters ended their resurgent season with a win over a PW side that's had their number in recent meetings.
Gab Liott scored the lone tally for the Hatters, who avenged a 1-0 loss to PW earlier in the season, with Kara Thomas assisting the second half marker.
"It was a great way to end the regular season as a team and the girls are excited to have made playoffs for the first time in six years," HH coach Kelsey Daley said.
Hatboro-Horsham (13-5, 11-3 SOL) ended the night No. 12 in the 4A power rankings, well in line for a first round home playoff game. Plymouth Whitemarsh closed out its season with a 7-10-1 record (5-8-1 SOL).
HATBORO-HORSHAM 0 1 – 1
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 0 0 – 0
Goals: HH – Gab Liott
Wissahickon 1, Upper Moreland 0
A valiant effort for the Golden Bears came up a goal short.
"It has been a week of conference battles for us, and tonight's was definitely the most raw. The atmosphere was definitely charged, and coming off our most recent win, we knew we wanted that same feeling again," UM coach Lisa Benvenuto said. "The entirety of the match was even from goalie saves, total team shots, and possession of the ball—we were neck and neck. We didn't back down."
Natalie Ryan scored 30 minutes into the first half to give Wissahickon all the scoring it would need.
The Bears rallied but just couldn't find the back of the net.
"Our two senior captains led us tonight, Madeline Gerlach and Sarah Veneziale played with all of their heart. They ran down every ball, they placed direct and indirects on goal, they got off shots that looked like they were in, but just didn't fall," Benvenuto said. "Most importantly though, they rallied their teammates, they controlled our responses and in turn, kept us in the game mentally. Jaclyn Martino (also a captain), our goalie, was absolutely awesome tonight, recording eight saves."
Wissahickon (7-10, 7-7 SOL) closes its season with a nonleague game against Council Rock South on Friday.
UM (6-8 SOL) finished the regular season 10-8 and was No. 6 in the District I 3A rankings with the top eight making the postseason.
"Tonight, we were able to keep our composure, we were able to continue to play as a team, and we were able to walk off the field with our heads high," Benvenuto said. "We did everything could tonight, and I am proud of the girls and the heart they showed."
WISSAHICKON 1 0 – 1
UPPER MORELAND 0 0 – 0
Goals: W – Natalie Ryan
Abington 8, Cheltenham 0
Eight different players scored for the Ghosts as they rebounded from their first conference loss of the season.
Kayla Taylor had three assists to pace the offense. Ashley Hopper, who posted a shutout in goal, also added an assist.
Cheltenham finished the season 5-12, its best record since a 5-12 finish in the 2015 season.
Abington (14-3, 13-1 SOL) ended the night No. 7 in the District I 4A rankings. The Ghosts travel to No. 9 Neshaminy on Friday for their regular season finale.
Non-league
Ridley 1, Bensalem 0
The Owls fell a goal short in their nonleague contest on Thursday.
Bensalem (7-8-3, 6-5-1 SOL) faces Central Bucks West in a nonleague game Saturday morning.
About the Author
