Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ soccer teams in action Tuesday. Pennsbury/Souderton photos courtesy of John Gleeson. Abington/New Hope photos provided by Troy Leatherbury. Check back for galleries of both games. Pennridge/Neshaminy photos courtesy of Althea Tomlinson/Pennridge soccer, and Wissahickon/Cheltenham photos courtesy of Josh Stelzer. All SOS photo galleries for GIRLS’ SOCCER can be viewed by clicking HERE.
SOL Colonial/Patriot crossover
Council Rock South 1, Central Bucks South 0
The old saying goes “possession is nine-tenths of the law.”
It’s debatable what that other tenth is, but on Tuesday night, it was number of goals. Host Central Bucks South controlled the ball for much of the match, but it was visiting Council Rock South that made a little bit more of its possession.
Thanks to a towering free kick by defender Kim Speiser in the final minutes, the Golden Hawks completed a three-match sweep of the Central Bucks schools.
If the missing tenth wasn’t goals, Speiser had another option.
“Mentality,” the senior said. “We all just want to win, that’s what it comes down to. You have to put your body on the line for the game to get the win.”
Speiser and her teammates on the Hawks’ back line – Emily Davis, Jenna Waterman and Maggie Kane – certainly did just that by blocking quite a few shots or set pieces from the Titans. Senior keeper Karissa Smedley made five saves and her defense was able to hold its ground during a frantic sequence in the second half.
A win like Tuesday’s is often as much about the intangible as it is the play on the field, and the Hawks have certainly faced plenty of different tests this fall. Even their string of one-goal wins over CB East, CB West and now CB South pushed Council Rock South’s resiliency.
“Our backs bent a little bit, but they didn’t break,” CR South coach Nick Heim said. “We’ve had a lot of close games so far this year. There are no games that are runaways, so I think you learn a little bit from each one of them. When it comes time to step up, you hope someone does, and so far, we’ve been lucky enough to have that.”
On the other side, the Titans are wondering just what more they have to do in front of goal. Tuesday was the team’s fourth consecutive shutout loss, but it is by no means from a lack of effort.
CB South had numerous spells of possession that featured extended strings of passes, the Titans played the ball through the middle and out wide and had bodies in the box. They just can’t seem to score right now.
“We’ve had great improvement in the way we’ve been moving the ball and the way we’ve been passing and the last two games especially, we’ve had great opportunities and we’re playing a lot better as a team,” senior Allison Sauers said. “We’re right there, we just have to put a ball in the back of the net. It’s been a fun season, but it’d be better if we start pulling out some wins.”
Nobody is more frustrated than Titans’ first-year coach Gabbie Nolan. Her team’s play has drawn praise from opponents all season, and the Abington alum sees how hard her players have worked to learn their new system on a daily basis.
Nolan, along with her assistant coach and sister Kayla, have continued to keep things positive and they’ve seen the team’s collective confidence rise. They just really want someone to score a goal to reward that.
“For us, we’re frustrated, and they’re frustrated but what’s been key so far is to not let these types of moments break the team,” Nolan said. “We’ve been explaining to them how these moments can benefit us as we move forward from it. It’s frustrating but it’ll come, I know it will, the way we’ve been playing, there’s no way these results can keep happening.”
While most of the first half was played between the 18-yard boxes, both sides had a quality scoring opportunity. CR South’s Cam Blatz, coming off a six-goal week, got played in on a breakaway but an aggressive play by Titans keeper Kristen Conway led to the senior tackling the ball off Blatz’s foot midway through the half.
Late in the half, as CB South was starting to settle its passing, the Titans created a look in front with freshman Alana Peev squeezing a shot off that Smedley was able to cover to keep it scoreless.
“It came down to our mentality,” Speiser said. “I think both teams were pretty even on the field, and it came down to who wanted it more. I think that was us.”
After the break, the home side controlled the bulk of the possession but couldn’t quite put together a finishing touch in front of goal. The Titans made it difficult for the Hawks to pressure the ball because they kept moving it quickly, whether it was a short pass or ball back to a defender to re-set, it never stuck in one spot.
The Titans have leaders in key positions from Sauers, Eva Costello and Gab Coulon in attack to Conway, Aurora Jacalone and Mia Conte on defense and Holly Joseph in midfield. Sauers said the seniors’ job is to keep everyone positive and it’s easy to do so feeding off their new coaches.
“They value us being close on and off the field and it’s really starting to translate,” Sauers said. “We’re really close, we try to do as much as we can off the field together and I think it shows in the way we pass and connect the ball. They’re making this season really fun for us, it’s been a positive change.”
The transition has been easy for the Nolans as well, finding a group of players willing to do everything they asked. It’s why nobody will be happier to see the team’s next goal than the Titans’ coaches.
“It’s buy-in, a lot of the players wanted a change and got it, so they’ve bought in,” Nolan said. “The biggest things for us are effort and confidence and changing the mindset. Even today, we got scored on in the last two minutes and they didn’t even flinch, where earlier in the season, the game would have been over.”
CR South was determined to make sure that goal wasn’t going to come Tuesday, but the Hawks still had to find one of their own. With the clock nearing the final two minutes, a foul on CB South awarded Council Rock South a free kick from about 40 yards out.
Speiser wasn’t directly intending to score, but the senior’s free kick soared high into the air and seemed to stay there long enough to plot its own course down. The ball’s flight path was just enough to slip over the keeper rushing out to try and snare it, nestling into the back of the net with 2:10 left on the clock.
“I’m just hoping to hit it and give it as much hang time as possible so we can see where it’s going and try to get on the end of it,” Speiser said. “I don’t think they were expecting it to go that high or far but at the end of the day, it worked. It doesn’t matter if I score or if someone else scores, it’s still a goal.”
Heim credited his team’s closeness for its strong start to the season – the Golden Hawks opened the day atop the SOL Patriot table (although Neshaminy has played one less game) – but he cautioned the road doesn’t get any easier.
“Between our conference and the crossover with this conference, records don’t mean anything, every team is really, really good,” Heim said. “There’s no shock why our two conferences send teams deep into the district and state tournaments. It’s a battle every single game and it has to go all 80 minutes, plus.”
CB South (3-6, 2-6 SOL) hosts Bensalem at 3:30 on Thursday. Council Rock South (7-1-1, 7-1-0) hosts North Penn at 3:30 on Thursday.
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 0 1 -1
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 0 0 – 0
Goals: CRS – Kim Speiser
Neshaminy 2, Pennridge 1
It was a challenge Neshaminy was eager to take on.
Prior to Tuesday’s clash with the undefeated Rams, Neshaminy coach Josh Van Reed put his players to task. Last season, Pennridge had the better of Neshaminy twice, so this was a test to see
where this year’s team stood near the midpoint of the season.
“I told the girls we needed to match their intensity, and they all really stepped up,” Van Reed said. “Everyone worked hard all over the field. Pennridge is a team where defending in our own end wouldn’t be enough, you have to press and make it difficult to advance the ball the whole length of the field.”
It was going to take the combined efforts of all 11 players on the field to get the job done, but there was a definite onus on the back line of Neshaminy to stay together. Carly Hock-Smith, Alexis Ocasio, Taylor Maxwell and Paige Borkowski faced plenty of challenges but with the help of their teammates, were able to limit Pennridge to one goal.
“Our back line definitely came up big today, minimizing mistakes and working hard to keep them contained, which is no easy task. Pennridge works hard and plays quick,” Van Reed said. “We had to defend all types of attack well. Pennridge can score in the run of play, from free kicks and corners so it was definitely a team effort.”
On top of the back four, Van Reed noted two other defensive players who were pivotal in Tuesday’s result.
“Abby Collins, our defensive center mid, had a great game disrupting their advancing play,” Van Reed said. “When we needed a save, our keeper Hannah Labadie stepped up to stop a ball floating to the back post and bat it away.”
All three goals came in the first half.
“Our goal scorers stepped up when the opportunity presented itself,” Van Reed said. “You’re not going to get many chances, so when they come, you have to make it count.”
Near the midpoint of the first half, a corner kick for Neshaminy dropped into the box, got knocked around a bit and found its way to Mercedez Paino. The Neshaminy senior did what she’s best at, knocking home another goal to open the scoring.
Pennridge came back roughly 10 minutes later, knotting it up when Gabby Herrmann scored from in close off a ball that found its way behind the Neshaminy defense.
The Rams had only given up one goal in their first seven games, so getting a second seemed a tall task but again Neshaminy was up for a challenge.
“We came back and put together a nice set of passes,” Van Reed said. “It ended on a through ball behind the defense to Kylie Maxwell, she touched it inside to Angeline Daino who returned the ball to Kylie for the finish.”
While neither team scored in the second 40 minutes, it was not devoid of opportunities. LaBadie’s key save came after halftime and the Neshaminy defense was peppered by a series of corner kicks.
“We pushed everyone into the box to defend and Abby Collins was able to win some very dangerous balls inside the 18 for us,” Van Reed said.
Van Reed also praised the combined efforts of his back four and their ability to complement each other throughout the match.
“Carly and Paige really did a nice job defending the speed that they had on the outside and just being disruptive,” Van Reed said. “Alexis stepped up several times to win some dangerous 50-50 balls. Taylor was always a step ahead to clear out a ball before it caused problems for us.”
Pennridge (7-1 SOL) visits CR North at 3:30 on Thursday. Neshaminy (6-0-1) hosts Souderton at 7 on Thursday.
NESHAMINY 2 0 – 2
PENNRIDGE 1 0 – 1
Goals: N – Mercedez Paino, Kylie Maxwell; P – Gabby Hermann
Central Bucks West 6, Bensalem 0
After back-to-back games with some good opportunities but little to show for it, the Bucks’ offense found a breakthrough on Tuesday.
CB West is relying on a mix of freshmen and newcomers to varsity at the top of its formation, and sometimes the best thing for a player to see is simply the ball finding the back of the net.
“We really needed a game where we could finish. We’re coming off back-to-back losses from both Council Rock teams. I think we really played well in both of those games, but we couldn’t score. It’s just one of those things you have to do in soccer,” Bucks coach Mike Moyer said. “We needed this win.
“Bensalem is a really good team, they’ve had some really good results. We knew it was going to be tough going there, playing them on their grass field. The team really came out and we finished our chances. It was good.”
The teams dueled for about 20 minutes until an Owls foul awarded CB West a penalty kick. For the Bucks, who have been on the wrong side of several PKs this fall, it was a prime opportunity to get a goal and they turned to Kate Weyer.
“Eva Wierzbowski made a great run and was about to go in one-on-one with the goalie, and she got fouled from behind, so we got a penalty kick. Kate Weyer buried it, and that kind of set the tone for us,” Moyer said. “We were knocking on the door, and once we got that first one, we kind of settled in a little bit.”
Wierzbowski would be an extremely active participant in the match, setting up a goal and the mere cost of getting fouled, then getting two of her own. The midfielder wasted little time, using an assist from Mackenzie Gausch a few minutes later to double the lead.
That’s all the Bucks would get in the first half, with Moyer noting they were playing against a strong wind. Heading to the second half, he had a task for his team.
“My goal for them was to get one in the first six minutes, and we were able to do that,” Moyer said. “We had a really good buildup on the side. We got a throw-in. Emery Sterling is just playing great heads-up soccer. She picked up the ball, threw it into the box.
“Mackenzie (Gausch) possessed the ball really well, and Eva came in again. She laid the ball back, and Eva got her second goal of the match. It was probably our best goal of the day.”
Rian Detweiler hit a volley from the top of the 18 to make it 4-0, Ava Winn slipped a pass to Avery Markowitz for the fifth goal and West had a nice finish on its final tally.
“Emery Sterling made some defenders miss and found Cam Nocito, who is our backup goalie. Cam hit a beautiful shot from 20 yards out to make it 6-0,” Moyer said. “I thought Kira Winn gave us really good minutes in the back, and so did Sam Kubala. AC (Alexis Castro) is just dominating the midfield right now. She’s doing a lot of the dirty work that’s really not getting her on the stat sheet, but she is just holding down the midfield right now.”
Bensalem (4-5-1, 2-5-1 SOL) visits CB South at 3:30 on Thursday. CB West (5-4) hosts Harry S Truman at 7 on Thursday.
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 2 4 – 6
BENSALEM 0 0 – 0
Goals: CBW – Eva Wierzbowski 2, Kate Weyer, Avery Markowitz, Ryan Detweiler, Cam Nocito
Council Rock North 1, North Penn 0
They may have only scored one goal to show for it, but the Indians had plenty to like about their effort Tuesday night.
“Solid performance tonight. I thought we possessed the ball really well at times and with a little more luck could have scored three or four,” CR North coach Gavin Flannigan said.
North Penn’s defense did a nice job baiting the Indians into several offside calls in the first half that negated some good looks on goal. At the break, the visitors talked about staying patient and using the spaces in the defense to better effect.
About 10 minutes into the second half, things opened up enough for CR North to capitalize and convert.
“The winning goal came from a cross from Mia Cairone that deflected out to Audrey Rogan who buried one from the top of the box,” Flannigan said.
The Knights never go down easily, and the hosts battled the entire 80 minutes. CR North had to contend with some set pieces and a handful of balls played in behind the defense but the Indians, led by their senior goalkeeper, were able to handle them all.
“Our back four and Danielle Eden did a solid job overall. Danielle made one outstanding save to hold our lead and we kept the ball well in the last few minutes to ensure victory,” Flannigan said. “In the second half especially, I thought our midfield did a really good job, Ella Needham, Taylor Fischer and Audrey Rogan worked hard and also kept the ball moving for us.”
CR North (7-1-1, 6-1-1 SOL) hosts Pennridge at 3:30 on Thursday. North Penn (1-8, 1-7) visits Council Rock South at 3:30 on Thursday.
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 0 1 – 1
NORTH PENN 0 0 – 0
Goals: CRN – Audrey Rogan
Pennsbury 1, Souderton 0
Coming off a determined effort in the second half of Saturday’s loss to Pennridge, the Falcons were looking to build off it on Tuesday.
Playing an Indians team hungry to get back on the winning path, Pennsbury’s mettle was tested and the Falcons came through with enough to get the result they wanted.
“We stressed the need to go out and establish the tone early to which they responded and controlled most of the first 40,” Falcons coach Kaitlyn Battiste said. “The tempo remained high, and they continued to generate chances.”
In a game that’s sometimes a matter of inches, it wasn’t a day that favored Souderton on the attacking end.
“It was a decent performance for us today, but we lacked that final piece needed to put the game away,” Souderton coach Ian Smith said. “Front to back I thought both teams were evenly matched, and at times, we had control of the game, but in the final third, we couldn’t create the opportunities we needed to score.”
For a good portion of the match, the game of inches also didn’t seem to favor Pennsbury. Sometimes the woodwork is a player’s best friend but often it’s a mortal enemy. Through 75 minutes, the frame of the goal was not on Pennsbury’s side.
Then Abby Shumski put a shot on target off a Jillian Haley corner and fortunes finally changed.
“Even as the ball hit multiple posts, they remained composed and didn’t try to force a different style of play,” Battiste said. “Abby’s shot also hit a post, but fortunately, it was one that had a favorable bounce for us.”
Souderton, on the other hand, saw its best efforts waylaid by the Pennsbury defense, a matter of inches and some bad luck.
“We earned a corner in the first ten minutes and had a chance after a scrap in the box. Shortly after, Liv Beresovoy cut off a ball out from the goalkeeper and sent a long ball into the box as she was out of position. It caused some chaos for us and Sienna Stunkard put a shot on frame that was blocked well,” Smith said. “Ashlee Rose let loose a great shot in the second half as well that soared just an inch or two over the bar.”
In a sometimes frantic and sometimes frustrating game, the Falcons relied on their veteran players to keep setting the tone and playing with a positive mentality.
“I felt like our seniors did a nice job of keeping us level today,” Battiste said. “Emma Erickson stepped up defensively, Jess Conlow worked hard all game generating offensive opportunities, and Jade Gallagher covered a lot of ground on both sides of the ball.”
Smith praised the play of defenders Emma Hunter and Alexis Stefanowicz for keeping the back line organized.
In the end, it was Pennsbury’s ability to respond from a few near-misses and continue to pressure the goal that made the difference.
“They had a lot of success creating chances from corners and hit the bar and the posts a few times before finally finding their goal off a corner and a well-placed header that dinked in off the far post,” Smith said. “Our goalkeeper Abby Allen did a great job keeping them out until that point, so it’s frustrating to not get a result for her again.”
Pennsbury (3-4-2, 3-4-0 SOL) visits CB East at 7 on Thursday. Souderton (2-7-1, 1-6-1) travels to Neshaminy at 7 on Thursday.
PENNSBURY 0 1 – 1
SOUDERTON 0 0 – 0
Goals: P – Abby Shumski
Central Bucks East 10, Harry S Truman 0
A hat trick by Olivia Samkavitz led the Patriots to a high-scoring win Tuesday.
Sydney Ralph, Elliot Forney, Cam Williams, Madelyn Hill, Addison Dooley, Savannah Jagoda and Brielle Guarracino also scored for East, which led 8-0 at halftime.
CB East hosts Pennsbury at 7 on Thursday. Truman visits CB West at 7 on Thursday.
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 8 2 – 10
HARRY S TRUMAN 0 0 – 0
SOL Liberty/Freedom
Plymouth Whitemarsh 2, Lower Moreland 1
The Colonials have given a good effort all season and seem to be finding their stride.
A duel with Lower Moreland tested PW on both sides of the field, and the Colonials responded.
“We really emphasized getting out to a fast start today and the team responded to that message,” PW coach TJ DeLucia said. “Caelin Kosvitch makes a run into the box and scores with a terrific near post left-footed finish off an excellent ball from freshman Marleigh Burton 15 minutes in.”
Kosvitch and Burton are two of the players on the Colonials roster starting to find their form to coincide with the team’s run of strong play.
“It was a well-deserved goal for Caelin who has been playing really well in midfield. Her work rate is terrific, and she does a lot of work that doesn’t show up on the scoresheet,” DeLucia said. “Marleigh Burton continued her breakout freshman season with four goal involvements on the year with two goals and two assists. We demand a lot out of her and Ella Clark defensively, so to see them both getting on the scoresheet should serve us well moving forward.”
The Lions have hit a rough patch in terms of results, but even shorthanded from injuries and illness, they continue to battle.
“We had another slow start where we were flat in the first half that led to a 1-0 deficit,” LM coach Todd Hill said. “PW came out of the gate in the second half attacking as well. Eventually this led to a 2-0 deficit.”
DeLucia felt the Lions got more dangerous as the match wore on and credited Lower Moreland’s attackers for asking questions of his defensive unit.
“As the half wore on, Lower Moreland found their legs and had a few chances. Junior goalkeeper, Caitlyn Dinh, turned in a vintage Dinh performance with several big time saves,” DeLucia said. “LM has two really nice players who lead their attack in Nikki Sahl and Morgan Pennisi. I thought our defense really responded to our halftime discussion and played well in the second half. Kate Yocom, Meghan Wendler, and Katie Lukens played all 80 minutes strong in defense.”
Dinh, who had posted back-to-back shutouts coming into Tuesday’s match, is playing her best soccer and it’s no doubt that has played a part in the Colonials’ three-match winning streak.
“She was more vocal today than she’s been all season. Early in the season, she got beat with a couple balls over her head. Today, she tracked these shots back with her feet and punched multiple opportunities over the crossbar,” DeLucia said. “We are also playing her feet more and more. She wants the ball, and our defenders are getting comfortable playing the ball back. It has led to some offensive transition opportunities.”
PW held its 1-0 lead for a majority of the contest until a free kick late in the second half set up a prime chance to add on.
“With 12 minutes to go, Kate Yocom hit a free kick into the box and Ella Clark attacked it, sending a cross to freshman Kaiane Jayo who put it away for her first varsity goal,” DeLucia said.
Lower Moreland’s dynamic duo wasn’t leaving the field without a fight and in the late stages of the game, came through to give the Lions a chance.
“We started to maintain possession later in the second half, getting more creative in our attack. This led to a Morgan Pennisi working the ball to the corner and sending it across to Nikki Sahl who had a nice finish into the back of the net,” Hill said. “They are so good at working together. We had a number of other opportunities that were left unfinished.”
Both teams felt they had several standout performers in a very competitive contest.
“Kenna Rozanski had a standout game. One minute she was shutting down the attack, the next minute she was attacking the net on the other end of the field,” Hill said. “She seems to have unending energy and is so good at seeing creative opportunities all over the field.”
PW’s run has also seen quite a few young players starting to emerge.
“I’d like to highlight freshman Maddie McGuckien who built on her really nice game against New Hope on Friday with a strong performance today, leading our attack,” DeLucia said.
Lower Moreland (4-4-, 4-3 SOL) hosts Abington at 3:30 on Thursday. PW (4-4) hosts Springfield Twp at 3:30 on Thursday.
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 1 1 – 2
LOWER MORELAND 0 1 – 1
Goals: PW – Kaiane Jayo, Caelin Kosvich; LM – Nikki Sahl
Quakertown 3, William Tennent 2 (OT)
The Quakertown Panthers’ seniors certainly had reason to celebrate on Tuesday.
On Senior Night, the homestanding Panthers twice had to rally from one-goal deficits against the visiting Panthers, then found a way to take their first lead on the winning goal in overtime.
“Our entire team played for this win,” Quakertown coach Jon Gingrich said. “We never lost our confidence in the game, and we fought hard to keep our team in it.”
William Tennent took a 1-0 lead in the first half, prompting Quakertown to respond the first time.
“Carolyn Sipprell had the first goal,” Gingrich said. “It was a beautiful head ball goal from a corner kicked by Madison Kalinowski.”
The second half was a similar story, with Tennent scoring again to go up 2-1. A halftime change from the hosts ended up paying dividends later in the half and helping to send the game into extra time.
“We moved our outside back Callie Abel to wing in the second half and paid off with her scoring late in the second half,” Gingrich said. “Callie scored from a breakaway, went around the keeper and slotted it home.”
In overtime, a handball by William Tennent inside the 18-yard box gave Quakertown a penalty kick. Sipprell stepped to the spot and converted, securing the win and capping a memorable night.
“The talk before overtime was that we needed to stay aggressive and keep working the ball to the outside where we had success all night,” Gingrich said. “The difference in the extra time was that our players wanted it more. We didn’t lose our confidence and aggressiveness.”
Tennent (3-5, 3-3 SOL) visits Hatboro-Horsham at 7 on Thursday. Quakertown (4-4, 3-4) hosts Upper Moreland at 4 on Thursday.
QUAKERTOWN 1 1 1 – 3
WILLIAM TENNENT 1 1 0 – 2
Goals; Q – Carolyn Sipprell 2, Callie Abel
Upper Moreland 3, Upper Dublin 2
A second half rally led to an overtime winner as the Golden Bears rode a strong defensive effort to a dramatic come-from-behind win Tuesday.
“We knew that Upper Dublin was going to be looking to set up triangles and utilize their speed on the outside flank,” UM coach Lisa Benvenuto said. “They have some dangerous speed, size and strength on the ball. They are a good team, and we knew they wouldn’t give us much.”
UD scored once on each side of halftime, with both goals coming off corner kicks. Alaina Sanders staked the Cardinals to a 1-0 lead just 10 minutes into play.
Erin Seabrook finished about 13 minutes into the second half, giving the Cards a 2-0 lead. In between, the Bears had talked about how to combat Upper Dublin’s formation while also using theirs to create some chances.
“UD continued to come at us hard, and we were able to contain the ball down the flank and force the cross and outside shot,” Benvenuto said. “Our back line of Annalise Messina, Devin Bush, Skye Kramer, Lizzy Walker and Katie Slear were tremendous for us.
“Natalie Walton saw a lot of action today; I was really proud of her and how she was able to maintain her mental strength even with us being down.”
The Bears defense locked up after Upper Dublin’s second goal, and it only took five minutes for the attack to answer back and breathe new life into the match. Kylie Wiest and Willow Taylor were able to find some space and combined well to rally UM back to a tie.
“Our goals were off transition. Willow Taylor received the ball from Wiest, and was able to beat UD’s defenders, she showed some great composure in front of the net,” Benvenuto said. “The second goal came twelve minutes later and this time it was Willow playing Kylie, who was able to beat the defenders and again showed composure in finishing.”
There was no shortage of standouts for Upper Moreland, which needed a strong effort from each third of the field to keep Upper Dublin under lock defensively while finding some offense to get back in the match.
“In our middle, Willow Taylor, Maggie Brophy, Eliza Feil, Kyra Favors, Nicole Cancel and Victoria Rosenbaum all contributed solid minutes,” Benvenuto said. “Flank play of Michalena Soroka, Deana Swedberg, Brooke Lobban, and Gracie Cartin were big both offensively and defensively.”
Having shown plenty of heart to tie the game, the Bears didn’t want to lose it all in extra time.
“In OT we spoke about finishing early and continuing to keep the momentum that we had with us,” Benvenuto said. “We played the ball down the left side, the ball made its way to Kylie Wiest who slotted in back to Maggie Brophy for the win.
“This was a big team win for us on many levels.”
Upper Dublin (4-4-1, 3-4-1 SOL) visits Cheltenham at 3:30 on Thursday. Upper Moreland travels to Quakertown for a 4pm start Thursday.
UPPER MORELAND 0 2 1 – 3
UPPER DUBLIN 1 1 0 – 2
Goals: UM – Willow Taylor, Kylie Wiest, Brooke Lobban; UD – Alaina Sanders, Erin Seabrook
Hatboro-Horsham 3, Springfield Twp 1
The Hatters found themselves in some unfamiliar territory early in Tuesday’s second half.
Host Springfield Twp had struck for a goal, putting Hatboro-Horsham behind 1-0 after the rigid Spartans defense had held the Hatters scoreless in the first half.
“We came away with a 3-1 victory, but it was not an easy ride for us,” Hatters coach Kelsey Daley said. “We went down 1-0 and I think that’s when we started to kick into gear.”
A handball on the Spartans gave the Hatters a penalty kick. Emma Levin stepped up to take it and as the junior midfielder has so many times, came through for her team to tie the match up.
Levin’s goal was the spark Hatboro-Horsham needed, and the junior captain would keep things going the right direction with her second goal soon after.
“Sarah Boland played a ball to Emma Levin who found the back of the net for the lead,” Daley said. “With 10 minutes to go, Sarah Roesing made a cross and Sarah Boland was able to follow it into the net to give us a secure win.”
Hatboro-Horsham (7-0-2, 7-0-1 SOL) hosts William Tennent at 7 on Thursday. Springfield Twp (3-5) heads to Plymouth Whitemarsh at 3:30 on Thursday.
HATBORO-HORSHAM 0 3 – 3
SPRINGFIELD TWP 0 1 – 1
Goals: HH – Emma Levin 2, Sarah Boland
Wissahickon 7, Cheltenham 0
The Trojans’ offense clicked while a balanced team effort helped lead to a shutout win.
“Julia D’Aquanno, Lainey Werynski and Ingrid Kasenchar not only defended well, but started many of our attacks with nice ball movement out of the back,” Wiss coach Chris McDaniels said. “Seniors Eva Schools and Gianna Maiale played a nice game, creating opportunities that resulted in a goal and an assist for each.
“Today was a total team effort with everyone putting in a quality effort.”
Sage Stelzer and Kylie Friedman each netted two goal for Wissahickon, which also got markers from Schools and Maiale and freshman Sophia Stehlek.
“We struggled to find our footing early on,” Cheltenham coach Leah Matusow said. “There were moments of doing the little things well, but we need to find more consistency as we prepare for Thursday’s game.”
Cheltenham (0-7-1 SOL) hosts Upper Dublin at 3:30 on Thursday. Wissahickon (7-2, 6-2) goes to New Hope-Solebury for a 7pm start Thursday.
WISSAHICKON – 7
CHELTENHAM – 0
Abington 6, New Hope-Solebury 0
The Ghosts’ offense continued to pour in goals during crossover play on Tuesday.
Abington, which has out-scored opponents 20-0 in three games, was powered by two hat tricks against the Lions. Maura Day, who has seven goals in the team’s last three outings, and Piper McGinley each found the back of the net three times.
Abington (8-2, 7-1 SOL) visits Lower Moreland at 3:30 on Thursday. New Hope-Solebury (2-7-1, 1-1-1) hosts Wissahickon at 7 on Thursday.
ABINGTON – 6
NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY – 0
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