In her three previous years on the Council Rock North girls soccer team, Sarah Scheidell had never beaten Council Rock South.
When this season rolled around, the defending District One Champion Golden Hawks came in once again as a prohibitive favorite in the National Conference and a threat to repeat as district champs. The Indians, meanwhile, came in with a new coach who was implementing a brand-new system on a veteran team.
"We were kind of intimidated at first because we heard so many things about him," Scheidell said of new coach Larry Sullivan, who coached the men's soccer team at Villanova University from 1991-2007. "We had heard he was in the army, he only coached boys, he never coached girls before ...
"Once we met him, he came off like a really nice guy. But we changed around our formation, and we weren't used to that. I think the girls were a little bit scared of that at first, but we really started clicking and it works."
So while eyes may have been focused on South, North quietly went about racking up an impressive -- and undefeated -- start to the 2011 season.
On Monday, in the first matchup of the year between the two archrivals, Council Rock North made a very loud statement. The Indians and Hawks battled fiercely for 80 minutes in a textbook defensive matchup. And Lexi Crocker's second-half goal turned out to be the game's only tally as, for the first time for anyone wearing blue and white, the Indians topped the Hawks on the soccer pitch.
"It's awesome for us," said Scheidell, one of the captains of this year's North squad. "It instills our team with a lot of confidence. It's just another game, it's another step on the road, but it gives us a lot of confidence to continue our season."
And though he may be new to Council Rock North's traditions and rivalries, Sullivan knew how important -- and how tough -- this game would be.
"The girls are always talking, and I talk to the parents, and they're talking about, 'Beat South. Beat South,'" Sullivan said. "It was a hell of a game. It was two teams with two different styles, and that usually makes for a good game."
And despite the intimidating prospects of learning a new system, and of taking on a team that no current Indians player had ever beaten, Sullivan had no doubts his team would rise to the occasion.
"It feels like the perfect storm," Sullivan said. "They do everything I tell them. The more I'm around, the more I can see the leadership abilities. And I think they're starting to see the possibilities. Some of the girls who maybe weren't so serious about the game, they're getting serious. There's no clowning around out there. They're hustling."
The Indians also learned an important lesson when they came into their next game, against National Conference opponent Bensalem, with a lackluster first half that saw North bring a narrow 2-1 lead into halftime. Following a "pep talk" from Sullivan, the Indians proceeded to score six times in the second half.
It's a lesson that Scheidell believes the team has taken to heart.
"Anyone can score on us. Anyone can beat us. We can't be cocky about it," she said. "We have to go out every game like it's South."
And if the Indians can do that, Scheidell believes that this team can accomplish great things.
"It would be awesome my senior year to beat South a second time," she said. "And I hope we make it to playoffs and get past the second round, because we haven't done that in a while. And I think the other girls on the team would want that as well because we have a great number of seniors, so I'm sure everyone would love to go as far as possible.
"I know we have the potential. It's just a matter of what we do with it."
***
Quakertown girls’ soccer coach Mike Koch can point to any number of reasons why Shannon Gibat is an outstanding goal-scorer -- her work ethic, her speed, her ball-handling and her natural ability to make plays happen.
But it's Gibat's attitude about herself and her team, Koch said, that makes her an ideal teammate and outstanding individual.
"One of the most remarkable things about Shannon is her unremarkableness," Koch said. "She acts with composure and integrity all the time. If you talk to her, you'd never walk away knowing this is the kid who scores all the goals. She's very humble, she doesn't brag. She's got a very good sense of self."
And while there's no doubt that opposing defenses are focusing on the sophomore -- who scored her 10th goal of the season in the Panthers' seventh game of the season on Wednesday -- Gibat is quick to deflect the credit to those on and off the field who contribute to the team's success.
"It's not just me, it's the whole team. We all work together. I just try to do my part," Gibat said. "Girls like Devin Reed and Emily Galluppi are so good on defense. The goal I scored the other night, Emily Grim had a great ball to Shelly Cowan who crossed it and I just happened to be there to put it in. And (goalkeeper) Sarah Fothergill kept us in so many games where we were under attack.
"Even someone like Jordyn Pursel, she's a senior captain, and she has a concussion and hasn't been able to play for a few games. She still encourages players. She sees the game and tries to help us."
Not surprisingly, Gibat credits another for helping her fall in love with the game of soccer ... namely, her older sister, Jackie.
"I've been playing since I was 3 or 4," Gibat said. "Jackie would be playing and I would watch her games, I would kick around a soccer ball on the sideline. She plays for York College now, and I still like to watch her play.
"I just liked the game so much, I just kept playing. It just grew on me more and more."
And while Gibat also plays basketball and runs track for Quakertown, her true passion is soccer. She opened plenty of eyes as a serious scoring threat as a freshman, and this year she is establishing herself as one of the top finishers in the league.
The key to that, Koch said, is that while Gibat may be humble, she is also supremely confident in her abilities on the field.
"One of the marks of a great forward -- not that this happens with Shannon very often -- but to me the confident ones are the kids who miss six shots and when the seventh shot comes along, they still think they're the best one to take it," he said. "I don't know that I've ever coached a player who's that composed that young. When she gets a good look at goal, my mind's telling me, 'Goal.'"
In fact, Koch compares Gibat to a player he coached at Phoenixville High School, Ashley Habbel. The 2006 Phoenixville went on to become the all-time leading scorer for the University of Pittsburgh.
"I think scorers are born," Koch said. "You can make really good players, but I think scorers are born scorers. But what separates Shannon from most forwards, in my opinion, is the work ethic she puts into it. Of anybody I've coached that's that good of a scorer, she'll work really hard to track down a ball that's being passed from the center back to the left back. She's a tireless worker and she has a great sense of where to find the spaces to put herself in good scoring positions."
As for Gibat, team success far outweighs her scoring totals. She'd much rather win a game than score a goal. Of course, the way the Panthers are developing, she might be able to have her cake and eat it, too. The Panthers stand at 2-5 overall, 1-5 in the Continental Conference, but she believes that close losses can be avenged the second time through the conference.
"We're getting ready for out second time through the conference, and we can't wait to come and prove our tenacity to the other teams," Gibat said. "We were one goal a lot of those games. If us girls can try even more than we have been, really take it to them, leave it all out on the field and try to score as much as possible, we can get the wins."
***
Many area teams enter the new season with aspirations of league and district championships.
At Norristown, the Eagles' goals this season were far more basic -- keep the number of players relatively intact ... score a goal ... win a game.
"I know there are soccer programs for younger kids in Norristown," said second-year coach Jared Elias, "but I do think there's a gap between the younger teen years and the high school level."
As a result, the Eagles came into the season looking to find the back of the net, and to win a game, neither of which the team was able to do last season.
They're making progress. While the team entered Friday's games at 0-4 overall (0-2 in the American Conference), they've had a couple close games. And more importantly, in the Eagles' Sept. 13 game against Upper Moreland, they broke the scoring drought when junior Megan Grande scored to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead.
"It was amazing," Elias said. "The girls were jumping and screaming like we won a championship. And the goal wasn't like it was a freak break, it was a combination of passes between three players and the last player that received the ball did everything she was supposed to ... she received the ball with her back to the goal, she turned away from the defender, made a touch and got a pretty good shot at the side of the net past the goalie.
"She said that at first, it was part of the game and she didn't think about it. But after the game when I told her how happy I was and how happy she should be, I think she felt really good about herself."
And that's been the case with the entire team. Despite their lack of good fortune on the scoreboard, Elias said the players remain focused and determined to achieve their goals. And they keep the game in perspective.
"I'm either too competitive a person, or too tough on myself, but it is frustrating for myself at times," Elias said. "But the girls handle it amazing. They get on the bus after a tough loss and they're laughing, singing songs, having a good time. They take a real positive perspective on everything.
"And I think I get it from them. I look back and smile and think - everything is OK. It's just a game. And winning and losing isn't everything -- it's the bonds that are created, the moments they share, the good times that are created wherever they're able to find those."
Elias credits seniors Norma Lopez, Amanda Assenmacher and Racsan Limbauan for their continued dedication, as well as juniors Jenn Capone and Leslie Cuellar.
"Those three seniors certainly provide a lot of leadership," Elias said. "They're a very positive group of girls, and they're all leaders in school, too. Jenn is a tremendous, positive person, great to be around, a great leader. And Leslie plays her heart out. She doesn't say much, doesn't complain, she just plays left back and plays every game and plays hard and tough."
For the rest of the season, the Eagles will continue to aim for their modest goals. They'd like to score a few more, and they're gunning to wipe out that goose egg in the "Wins" column.
"I know they want to win a game, which I certainly think is possible," Elias said. "We've had a couple close games. And Upper Moreland was the team we scored on and actually led for a while. We'll play them again. I think they would like to beat Upper Moreland."
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