Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ soccer teams in action Friday. CB West/Lower Moreland photos courtesy of Karla Donohoe. Check back for a gallery of photos. All SOS photo galleries for GIRLS’ SOCCER can be viewed by clicking HERE.
Non-league
Central Bucks West 2, Lower Moreland 0
The Bucks entered the day in the District 1 4A playoff field but their standing was tenuous at best.
Thanks to a win over the Lions on Friday afternoon, they’re all but assured a spot in the 28-team field next week. It hasn’t been an easy road for West, but the team’s offense came through with enough to end the regular season with an important win.
“It was one of those games where we had chance after chance after chance, but we just couldn’t put one away,” West coach Mike Moyer said. “Finally with six seconds left in the first half we got on the board with a great individual effort from Mackenzie Gausch. She got the ball around the 25-yard line, beat a couple girls and finished a beautiful shot that got us on the board.”
The win vaulted West up to the No. 26 spot in the standings, although the final order is not yet set. Regardless, all the Bucks could control on Friday was their own effort, and they didn’t want to leave things up to a single goal.
“I told the girls at halftime that we needed a goal in the first four minutes. I had no idea it was only going to take us 17 seconds to get the second goal,” Moyer said. “Emery Sterling was just relentless in pursuit and tracking a ball down, getting in behind the defense and giving us a 2-0 lead.” 
CB West continued to generate opportunities but could not find another goal. It didn’t matter thanks to a strong effort anchored by the team’s senior-heavy defensive unit.
“Obviously with our schedule and cross-over games we finished near the end of the pack, so it was nice to get all my seniors a lot of time on the field as this was their last home game,” Moyer said. “Courtney Moylan, Jules Broskey, Ava Longo, Taylor Madden, Ava Winn, and Sam Kubala all played fantastic in their final home game.”
The Lions (9-9, 9-7 SOL) remained in the 10th and final playoff spot in Class 3A. Lower Moreland won the SOL Freedom for the second straight season but will have to open the postseason on the road in Tuesday’s opening round.
No matter who they end up playing, the Bucks (10-8, 8-8) will have to do so away from War Memorial Field. The team has been tested against a difficult schedule which included five 1-0 defeats and seven matches against squads in line to have a first round home match or a bye.
“Now we have to get ready for an away night game on Tuesday,” Moyer said. “At this point it’s a new season where everyone is 0-0. I am very excited to get another opportunity in the postseason.”
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 1 1 – 2
LOWER MORELAND 0 0 – 0
Goals: Mackenzie Gausch, Emery Sterling
SOL Liberty Division
Abington 2, Upper Dublin 1
A final tune-up for the postseason saw the Ghosts mount a late-game rally to maintain a probable high seed for the upcoming District 1 4A playoffs.
Trailing 1-0 going into the final 10 minutes, Harper McGinley came up big with a pair of assists as the Ghosts flipped the script on a Cardinals team that was battling for its own seeding in the playoffs. Harper assisted her twin sister Piper on the equalizer, then with just 37 seconds left, found Maura Day for her 25th goal as the game-winner.
“Once we scored the first one, I was pretty confident we’d get the second, it was just a question of when,” Abington coach Rick Tompkins said. “Thankfully it happened before the end of regulation.”
Senior Alex Devers put Upper Dublin ahead early by using her head, knocking in a corner kick for a 1-0 Cardinals lead. UD, which dropped to No. 16 with the loss, did all it could to hold from there.
The Cardinals are still in position to host a first round game pending any late changes in the power rankings.
“They were very, very organized defensively,” Tompkins said. “Upper Dublin is a really good squad. They outplayed us in the beginning of the game, they seemed to want it more than we did and we had a little bit of a letdown but our kids didn’t want to lose.”
Piper McGinley has been a potent goal-scorer this fall but her twin sister has also been an integral part of the attack. A wing forward, Harper McGinley kept making runs at the defense and eventually broke through with a couple of well-timed runs late in the second half.
“Harper got down the flank, turned the corner and brought a ball across and her sister finished it,” Tompkins said. “From that point on, we really poured it on. The go-ahead goal, Harper again pushed the ball across, but she put it behind Piper and Maura called her off, settled it and slotted it in. It was a nice goal and worked through their communication.”
Both teams were dealing with some injuries and had a couple players out of the lineup. For Abington, the defense was without Sarah Kaeser and Anna Cleary but had good showings from Nevaeh Brauer and Jocelyn Pollock in relief and center back and fullback respectively.
Tompkins also cited the play of Kara Slavin at fullback, especially with her passing and possession.
“We keep stats on possession, and she completed 40 passes and only gave the ball away three times,” Tompkins said. “She was everywhere. We were putting a lot of pressure down the right side and she kept collecting the ball, pushing it back and giving it to someone else or taking it herself.”
Abington (15-3, 14-2 SOL) ended the night holding the No. 6 spot in the district power rankings, giving the SOL Liberty champion Ghosts a first-round home date on Tuesday.
UPPER DUBLIN 1 0 – 1
ABINGTON 0 2 – 2
Goals: A – Piper McGinley, Maura Day; UD – Alex Devers
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