Check out the results for SOL girls’ soccer teams in action Wednesday.
American Conference
QUAKERTOWN 2, WISSAHICKON 1
Quakertown's introduction to the SOL American is a stiff one, facing the Trojans then Upper Dublin, last season's No. 2 and No. 1 finishers respectively, to open the slate.
Consider the first test passed after the Panthers went to Wissahickon and came away with a hard-earned night victory on Wednesday. Quakertown coach Mike Koch touted a total team effort, and it was certainly needed trying to contain Wissahickon senior Maddie Elwell.
"We played a very disciplined game," Koch said. "Wissahickon is a great team and they have a great player. and we were definitely focused on trying to neutralize that player which I think we did effectively. She did score the goal they got, but I thought we did a good job trying to neutralize her and generated some decent attack."
Haley Pursel was the offensive catalyst for Quakertown, assisting Katie Crouthamel's marker 13:41 into the first half and then scoring the eventual winner in the second half with 45:30 elapsed off the clock. Vic Sturgess provided the assist on the winner.
"Haley Pursel had a goal and assist and she's certainly a special player," Koch said. "Katie Crouthamel who scored the other goal – this league's going to find out she's one of the more dangerous players around."
Wissahickon coach Shannon Creamer-Franke said her team failed to set the tempo early, but settled down to give Quakertown a "run for their money."
"Rachel Colemen was fierce in the midfield, never giving an inch. Emily Vervlied came up big playing left back with a tally of three nice shots on target. Jasmine Bishop answered as well stepping up and holding down left wing," Creamer-Franke said. "Maddie Elwell, despite being man-marked, managed a textbook upper 90 goal from well outside the 18 to breath new life into her Trojans."
Striking early was a just reward for the Panthers.
"I thought we played really well the first 60 minutes of the match," Koch said. "Wissahickon scored with about 17 minutes left and they certainly put us under pressure at the end."
As one of the newcomers into the American, Quakertown has turned its focus inward and developing its own style more.
Trying to slow Wissahickon's attack didn't fall to just one person and Koch pointed to defenders Sam Ramsden, Julia Taylor, Kyra Handel and Carley Peacher especially. Backing them up was keeper Morgan Small.
"She had a world-class save tonight," Koch said of his keeper. "It would have been a highlight-class save."
Quakertown won't have much time to dwell on its win, as it welcomes Upper Dublin on Thursday night.
"If we can navigate these two games, we put ourselves in a good position," Koch said. "We can work on getting better and move forward."
Wissahickon will try to quickly regroup as well.
"A disappointing loss but a lesson learned, 'tempo'," Creamer-Franke said.
Quakertown (1-0 SOL) will host Upper Dublin Thursday at 7 p.m., and Wissahickon (1-1, 0-1) will be on the road at Plymouth Whitemarsh on Friday.
QUAKERTOWN 1 1 – 2
WISSAHICKON 0 1 – 1
Goals: Q – Katie Crouthamel (Haley Pursel) 13:41, Haley Pursel (Vic Sturgess) 45:30; W – Maddie Elwell 63:24
UPPER MORELAND 1, PLYMOUTH-WHITEMARSH 0 (OT)
The Golden Bears scored a big win to open up league play, getting their first victory over the Colonials since 2013, thanks to an overtime goal by Syndey Bachmayer in the 87th minute.
It was an even match with both sides putting everything they had into trying to pick up a win.
"Both teams were evenly matched and had multiple opportunities throughout regulation to score," Bears coach Lisa Benvenuto said. "A great effort was put forth by both teams throughout this battle.”
Upper Moreland keeper Kim Benge was credited with nine saves and she had a lot of help from her defenders.
"The defensive line was able to pull P-W offside five times," Benvenuto said.
PLYMOUTH-WHITEMARSH 0 0 0 – 0
UPPER MORELAND 0 0 1 – 1
Goals: UM – Sydney Bachmayer 87'
HATBORO-HORSHAM 3, SPRINGFIELD 1
The Hatters began life in the SOL American with a victory Wednesday.
Ali Hontz carried the offense with a brace, getting an assist from Erica Paluszek each time while freshman Camryn Ryan came off the bench to put one away with Hontz playing facilitator on the marker.
While it was a good start, the Hatters felt it could have been better.
"We'll take the win, though we can be better putting teams to the sword when we have the chance," Hatters coach Ike Onyeador said. "We gave them too many opportunities to get back into the match, mainly by wasting our opportunities."
Onyeador, in his second season with the team, was still happy with the way his attackers created those chances. In particular, the two goal scorers noted attention.
"Hontz was very productive from the (center forward) position and we've been lacking production out of that position for a while, so it was good to see," Onyeador said. "Cam Ryan, being a freshman, coming off the bench and getting a goal – she's making a statement that she can contribute right away and that's the kind of confidence you want to see out of young players."
It was a quick flurry of scoring, with Hatboro-Horsham finding two strikes in the first 15 minutes. Emily Cooney scored for the Spartans on an Emily Giampietro assist to cut the Hatter lead to 2-1 after 20 minutes of play.
Springfield coach Suzette Wolf said her defense continued to play well, especially goalkeeper Katie Fitzpatrick but the team's offside trap wasn't as effective as it had hoped.
"It was a great game, my defense played awesome," Wolf said. "Lindsey Smith was impenetrable as well as Emily Smith, my sophomore stopper. (Smith) just played phenomenal, today she was just unbelievable. She marks everything coming through the middle and anything she couldn't pick up, Lindsey picked up."
Hatboro-Horsham (1-0 SOL) will host Upper Moreland on Friday, and Springfield Township (0-2, 0-1) will be on the road at Cheltenham.
HATBORO-HORSHAM 2 1 – 3
SPRINGFIELD 1 0 – 0
Goals: HH- Ali Hontz (Erica Paluszek), Hontz (Palusek), Cam Ryan (Hontz); S- Emily Cooney (Emily Giampietro)
UPPER DUBLIN 3, CHELTENHAM 1
The Flying Cardinals began their conference title defense with a solid win over a veteran Cheltenham team.
Sizzy Lawton's brace led Upper Dublin while Priya Kaneria scored the third, making it three goals from Cardinal sophomores. UD scored twice after halftime, breaking a 1-1 deadlock at the break thanks to a goal from the Panthers' Ruby Tomasic.
Kaneria also assisted both of Lawton's tallies. Getting the goals required a bit of work.
"After a chaotic start in which we were having trouble finishing our chances, sophomores Sizzy Lawtown and Priya Kaneria came up big for the Cardinals," UD coach John Topper said. "They worked well together and did a great job of finding each other in dangerous areas in the top third of the field."
Upper Dublin (1-0 SOL) heads on the road to Quakertown for a Thursday night contest, and Cheltenham (0-1) will host Springfield Township.
CHELTENHAM 1 0 – 1
UPPER DUBLIN 1 2 – 3
Goals: C- Ruby Tomasic; UD – Sizzy Lawton (Priya Kaneria), Lawton (Kaneria), Kaneria (Lexi Schneider)
Continental Conference
SOUDERTON 1, CB SOUTH 0
Last year was a breakout season for Souderton. On Wednesday, the Indians showed they're determined not to be a one-year wonder. A driven defensive effort from both sides ultimately broke Souderton's way under the lights.
"It's a big win but definitely a game we were targeting to win," Souderton coach Chris Felber said. "It's so hard to win games in our conference so home wins are a must."
As expected with two sides that make their mark defensively, chances were at a premium throughout. Still, both back lines were tested, and it was the Souderton attack that managed to break through in the first half.
Souderton built up play down the right flank, the ball eventually finding its way to the feet of Tori Dowd, who fired a cross into the box.
"Cara McCausland ran in front of the goalie to get a touch," Felber said. "She ran past (the keeper) then finished it from a very tight angle."
McCausland's shot to the upper left corner was enough, thanks to some valiant defending by Souderton through the second half.
"All our defenders played a tough game but were stretched a few times," Felber said. "Sam Plinke made a number of big moments covering at the back and stuffing out shots at the source."
CB South stayed in striking distance thanks to its defense, with goalkeeper Sophia Boggs recording "three key saves" that kept the Titans in the game according to coach Betsy Bullock. Mackenzie Ehresman and Nicolle Wills were also big factors in the back for CB South.
"It was a see-saw battle that could have gone either way with Souderton capitalizing on a defensive miscue," Bullock said. "A very good and well-coached opponent in the difficult Continental conference."
In a pair of key conference battles Friday, Souderton (1-0 SOL) will host Central Bucks East, and Central Bucks South (1-1, 0-1) will host Pennridge.
CB SOUTH 0 0 – 0
SOUDERTON 1 0 – 1
Goals: S – Cara McCausland (Tori Dowd)
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 3, NORTH PENN 0
The Patriots scored midway through the first half then got a pair of quick finishes late in the game to top the Knights on Wednesday.
Carly Whiton scored the winner off an Isabel Hunter assist 24 minutes into the game, which stood up for almost the rest of regulation. Then Gabby Learn put two away in a blink, with a 77th minute hit assisted by Bri Talbot and a 79th minute score.
"Kristen Obetz made four quality saves for the shutout," East coach Paul Eisold said of his keeper. "Abby Brown was dominant on defense."
Central Bucks East (1-1, 1-0 SOL) will be on the road at Souderton Friday, and North Penn (0-2, 0-1) will travel to Central Bucks West.
CB EAST 1 2 – 3
NORTH PENN 0 0 – 0
Goals: CBE – Carly Whiton (Isabel Hunter) 24', Gabby Learn (Bri Talbot) 77', Learn 79'
WILLIAM TENNENT 2, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 1
The visiting Bucks took a 1-0 lead into halftime, but early in the second half, the Panthers knotted the score on an own goal. Shannon McGuinn scored the game winner, finishing a shot from close range with an assist from Nikki Reh.
William Tennent (2-1, 1-0 SOL) will be on the road at Hatboro-Horsham for a non-league game on Monday, and Central Bucks West (1-1, 0-1) will host North Penn on Friday.
CB WEST 1 0—1
WILLIAM TENNENT 0 2—2
National Conference
PENNSBURY 3, BENSALEM 0
The Falcons came off an impressive weekend win and got right back to work with a hard-fought victory to open conference play.
Three different players buried a ball in the back of the net, but it was far from easy.
"(Bensalem goalkeeper) Kathleen Rivera challenged our attackers throughout the game with great positioning and athleticism," Pennsbury coach Kaitlyn Battiste said. "Although the Falcons had a large portion of the possession, Rivera made us earn every one of our goals."
Cara Thomas opened the scoring with a 12th minute tally from Dani Cady, but the Falcons would have to wait until after intermission to put the game away. Meredith Webber doubled the lead on a Jenna Peters assist in the 52nd minute and Whitney Roth, with Thomas acting as set-up, iced the game with a 68th minute strike.
Battiste rated her team with a solid performance overall, noting Hope Drewes' showing on both sides of the ball.
"Defensively she helped us keep a clean sheet, AND won a lot of individual battles to keep the team on the offensive throughout the game," Battiste said.
Pennsbury (2-0, 1-0 SOL) will host Neshaminy next Thursday, and Bensalem (1-1-1, 0-1) will host Neshaminy on Friday.
PENNSBURY 1 2 – 3
BENSALEM 0 0 – 0
Goals: P- Cara Thomas (Dani Cady) 12', Meredith Webber (Jenna Peters) 52', Whitney Roth (Thomas) 68'
CR SOUTH 4, ABINGTON 0
A quick turnaround benefitted the Golden Hawks Wednesday as they shook off a loss to Downingtown East one day earlier and turned it into a win over the Galloping Ghosts.
"It was an overall team effort," South assistant coach Nick Heim said. "We challenged our seniors to rebound after a tough road loss with league play starting today and they responded well."
South got goals from four different players with Julie Rebh starting things off. Julia Goldberg and Sara McDonald also scored in the first half while Cassidy Kmetz found the net after halftime to complete the scoring.
South also got a combined shutout from Emily Helmich and Chelsea Jameson.
Council Rock South (1-1, 1-0 SOL) will be at Council Rock North on Friday, and Abington (0-1) will be on the road at Germantown Friends for a non-league contest.
ABINGTON 0 0 – 0
CR SOUTH 3 1 – 4
Goals: CRS – Julie Rebh (Jesse Magee), Julia Goldberg, Sara McDonald, Cassidy Kmetz (Sophia Datsko)
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