Check out Monday’s SOL field hockey action. To view action photos of the CB West/CB East game, please visit the Photo Gallery.
National Conference
WILLIAM TENNENT 1, PENNSBURY 0 (OT)
Rachael Mueller (Samantha Huttick assist) scored early in overtime, propelling the Panthers to the thrilling win on Monday. The win was the first of the season for the Panthers, who evened their conference record to 1-1 (1-2 overall)
“It was more than exciting,” coach Kaitlyn Rauchut said. “The girls played an awesome game. At the same time, we had very high expectations for ourselves, and we really needed a lift after a couple of losses.
“So many people stepped up - it was unbelievable. I’m very proud of the girls and the direction in which they’re heading. As a young team, they have very high expectations for themselves and each other, and we’re moving in the right direction.”
Rauchut, whose team held an advantage in shots on goal, lauded the strong performances of Mueller, Huttick, Colleen McCabe and Taylor Skiba and the defensive efforts of Maddie Reed and Megan McCloskey.
The Falcons fell to 1-1 in league play (1-3 overall).
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 4, ABINGTON 0
The Indians rolled to the decisive win, but it could have been even more lopsided had it not been for the performance of Abington goalie Faith Geating, who was credited with 35 saves.
Keating and the Ghosts’ defense fought off 15 first half corners, forcing the Indians to settle for a 0-0 halftime tie.
Alex Kuzma broke the scoreless tie with a goal at the 17:49 mark of the second half (Madison Gouza assist). Three minutes later Aubrey Deon scored, using a Jennica Jonovich assist. Another Kuzma goal, this one on a penalty stroke, as well as another Deon goal closed out the scoring for the Indians, who improved to 2-0 in the league (3-1 overall). The Ghosts saw their record drop to 0-2 in the league (1-2 overall).
NESHAMINY 5, BENSALEM 0
Malloree-Jo Mason scored with an assist from Marlena Koellner at the 12:03 mark to put the Redskins on the scoreboard. A goal by Erin Bedesem (Brittany Sheenan assist) made it a 2-0 game heading into halftime. Sheenan (Abby Alexis assist) scored less thann to minutes into the second half, and then it was Alexis connecting with a Sheenan assist. Sheenan closed out a big day with an unassisted goal for the 5-0 final, finishing the day with two goals and two assists.
The Redskins improved to 2-0 in league play (2-1 overall) while the Owls are 0-2 in the league (0-2-1 overall).
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 10, HARRY S TRUMAN 0
Continental Conference
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 2, CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 1
Elena Romesburg called it a ‘humbling experience’ when the Bucks not only spotted their neighboring archrivals a 1-0 halftime lead but still found themselves trailing by one with more than 10 minutes gone in the second half.
“We were used to scoring goals and goals and goals,” Romesburg said. “This wasn’t necessarily a setback, but it was different from what we were used to. It put more pressure on us, and it certainly brought more intensity out on the field.”
It was easy to understand the Bucks’ concern. After all, they had outscored their opponents 18-5 in their first four wins and scored five goals in three of those four games.
When East took a 1-0 lead after Olivia McGee (Marissa Glatt assist) scored with 3:07 remaining in the first half, the Bucks found themselves staring at a deficit for the first time this season.
“We didn’t want it (enough) inside the circle,” Romesburg said of her team’s inability to generate a whole lot of offense in the first half. “We would leave our girl hanging out to dry, she wouldn’t have any help, and once their defender got the ball, we would kind of give up.”
Momentum swung firmly in West’s favor after Heather Zezzo (Kim Hitchcock) assist scored the equalizer at the 18:05 mark of the second half. East drew a corner shortly thereafter and managed a shot that was turned away by goalie Brianna DeAngelis, but West responded with four corners of its own.
With 3:22 remaining in regulation, Romesburg scored a goal that turned out to be the game winner, banging home the rebound of a goalie save of her own shot.
“When Heather scored, that kind of brought us back to more, ‘Okay, we know we can do this. We know we can pull it out,’” Romesburg said. “That was a turning point in the game.
“That goal really sparked the intensity and it got all of us wanting to win.”
Last year, Romesburg was an all-league defender, but coach Casey Hughes opted to move her to the midfield. She was a natural fit.
“Seeing her come into that role where she’s playing a lot of offense – it was an important goal, and just seeing how she handled the ball and put it in was great to see,” first-year coach said. “I know she’s excited and the team is excited.”
Hughes was pleased with her team’s response to facing its first deficit of the season.
“I think we played nervous a little bit,” she said. “It’s such an important game against their sister school, and this is the game they’re all going to remember.
“Coming from behind, especially against CB East, is an awesome experience for them because we haven’t been behind. We’ve been scoring a lot of goals. I’m so happy that they continued to play poised, and they did what they needed to do. I think that speaks volumes about the type of players I have and the talent that is out on the field for my team.”
While the Patriots fell to 0-2 in the league (0-4 overall), the Bucks improved to 2-0 in league play (5-0 overall), and according to Romesburg, the transition to a new coach was seamless.
“It’s been easier than I thought it was going to be,” she said. “She’s great. She’s brought out the chemistry within us.
“Last year we didn’t have any chemistry – we didn’t trust each other. This year we trust each other, and we know we’re good.”
HATBORO-HORSHAM 2, SOUDERTON 1 (OT)
The Hatters won another thriller on Monday night, this time edging Souderton when Casey Swezey (Jenna Cutilli assist) scored with 1:18 remaining in overtime. It was the second time in as many league games that the Hatters have won in overtime.
“The game was unbelievable,” coach Laura Swezey said. “This league and this division – it’s so competitive.
“This was our first game we’ve ever had on our home turf. There was a nice crowd, and it was really nice to have a night game.”
Souderton got on the scoreboard first just over five minutes into the game when Emily Myers turned an Abbey Gabriel pass into a goal. That lead held until the 27:27 mark of the second half when Swezey connected, this time using a Colby Eldridge pass.
It looked like the two teams might be forced to settle for a 1-1 tie, but Swezey had other ideas, connecting for the game winner as time as winding down in OT.
“It was a well-played game,” said Swezey, whose team was down a player for three minutes in the 7v7. “Souderton has some nice players, and they were doing some nice give and go passes.
“It was so neat to be on the turf field for the first time and have people up in the stands instead of field level watching a grass game.”
Souderton coach Lauren Whiteside had no complaints about her team’s effort.
“We played a solid game for almost 75 minutes,” the first-year coach said. “We came out fast and quick, and our passing game was on. We had a couple of lapses which Hatboro-Horsham was able to capitalize on.
“It was a back and forth game with a lot of excitement. Hatboro never gave up while we kept pushing towards goal.”
Souderton’s Jen Bergey turned away 12 shots in a busy night in goal.
“She turned away a lot of hard, lifted shots to keep us in it,” Whiteside said. “We had a great midfield game.
“It was a disappointing end to a well-played game – from both teams. Although we aren’t happy with the loss, we can’t hang our heads too low because we did a lot of great things. We will focus on what we can do better and rebound ready to win our next game.”
Whiteside went on to laud the efforts of Alyssa Ziegler in the midfield.
“She was key in our offensive game with shots and rebounds and hustled throughout the whole game to slow down Hatboro’s breakaways and get back on defense,” the Indians’ coach said.
Sophomore Emily Braunewell turned away seven shots in goal for the Hatters.
“She was unbelievable in goal,” Swezey said. “She’s amazing.
“Jane Henry is like a wall on defense, and she was key in getting the ball out on a number of corners.
“Robyn Barbell really distributed the ball well. She’s a defensive middie, but she also gets the ball and distributes the ball. She did a great job of transferring (the ball) to different sides of the field. She had a really nice game.”
While the Indians fell to 1-1 in league play (1-2 overall), the Hatters improved to 2-0 in the league.
PENNRIDGE 5, QUAKERTOWN 2
This game was the story of two halves.
The two teams found themselves deadlocked 1-1 at halftime, thanks to goals by Pennridge’s Jess Tennett (Kelly Wolff assist) and Quakertown’s Emma McLaughlin (Stephanie Thompson assist). The Rams held a slim 10-7 edge in shots but a decisive 9-2 advantage in corners.
It was still anybody’s game after Pennridge’s Kyra Preston (Kari Moyer assist) and Quakertown’s Josh Schwartz exchanged goals to open the second half, knotting the score 2-2.
After that, the game belonged to the Rams, who closed out the game with a 3-0 tear that began with a goal by Tennett (Addy Marshall assist) at the 13:28 mark and concluded when Tennett scored an unassisted goal with 2:55 remaining. In between, Ben Van Pelt connected as the Rams – who held a 16-1 advantage in shots in the second half - took complete command.
“I wasn’t exactly pleased,” Pennridge coach Nikki Thren said. “At one point, there was a timeout, and we said, ‘Do you want this or not?’ Jess went out and scored that third goal, and that was the boost they needed to push them through it.”
Thren acknowledged the standout efforts of Maddie Rice and Melissa Herd.
“Maddie comes out strong for us every single day,” the Rams’ coach said. “Melissa is quiet, but she’s definitely a competitor out there.
“Today she didn’t do anything flashy, but she did what needed to get done and stayed - for the most part -pretty level-headed through the whole thing.”
The Rams are 1-1 in league play (3-1 overall) while are 0-2 in the league (2-2 overall).
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 1, NORTH PENN 0
The Titans eked out a win in Monday’s Continental Conference showdown.
“It wasn’t our top performance, but we came out on top with a hard-fought effort,” Titan sophomore Sam Bodo said.
Monday’s win came against a Maiden squad that sent top-seeded CB South home in the second round of the District One playoffs.
“It was a scrappy game, but we did some good things out there,” co-coach Marie Schmucker said. “Playing 60 minutes of hockey is a constant focus.”
While the Maidens fell to 0-2 in the league (0-4 overall), the Titans improved to 2-0 in league play (4-0 overall).
American Conference
SPRINGFIELD 3, WISSAHICKON 2
The Spartans wasted little time before making their presence felt in their return to the SOL after a two-year stint in the Bicentennial Athletic League, downing the defending conference champion Trojans on Monday at Springfield.
“I don’t think the girls grasped the fact that no one beats Wissahickon during the (conference) season,” Springfield coach Linda Nixon said. “They just knew they were going to have to play really hard today, and I think we did.
“It was a very interesting game because there were some answers to the goal. We really had to play very hard.”
The Spartans got on the scoreboard midway through the first half on a goal by Juli Cardamone (Adrienne Baer assist). The Trojans answered with a goal by Stacie Rocco, but Baer connected for the score (Alyssa Buckley assist) to send the Spartans into halftime with a 2-1 lead.
Cardamone’s second goal of the afternoon, this one with a Buckley assist, put the Spartans on top 3-1 before Angela Virtu scored with five minutes remaining in regulation to make it a 3-2 game.
Nixon acknowledged the solid performances of Colleen and Katie Morris, Maria Vido and Bridget Bennett.
“They’re all defensive players, and they played nice and steady,” the Spartans’ coach said. “We’re not there yet, but we’re trying.”
The Spartans are 2-0 in league play (3-0 overall) while the Trojans fell to 1-1 in the league (2-2 overall).
NORRISTOWN 2, UPPER DUBLIN 1
The Eagles own a share of the top spot in the conference standings after their big win over Upper Dublin.
Kerri Harner (Amelia Schunder assist) scored with 11:57 remaining in the first half to send the Eagles into halftime with a 1-0 lead. They upped that lead to 2-0 after Jennifer Menninger (Vanessa Fosco assist) scored less than two minutes into the second half.
Shelby Kenney (Jen Harchur/Sam Boyd assists) cut that lead in half with a goal midway through the half, but the Flying Cardinals would get no closer.
“Our passing game is coming along nicely,” Norristown coach Stacie Staufenberg said. “I think at halftime, (Upper Dublin) coach (Heather) Boyer made some corrections that we had to adjust to. They caught us on a corner that played out in their favor.
“The officiating was very strong and allowed both teams to concentrate on playing.”
Norristown goalie Jess Grose was credited with 11 saves. The Flying Cardinals held a 7-4 advantage in corners and a 7-5 edge in shots.
Staufenberg credited the performances of several of her players in the win.
“Emma Hagel had a great game,” she said of her sweeper. “As a sophomore, she showed amazing poise and confidence. I am really proud of her today.
“Amelia Schunder also fought hard in the midfield, putting pressure on their inside passes.”
The Eagles are 2-0 in league play (2-1 overall) while the Flying Cardinals fell to 0-2 in the league (0-3 overall).
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 4, CHELTENHAM 0
PW picked up a win to set up a three-way tie at the top of the conference standings. Allison Spinelli scored a pair of goals, and Courtney Konowal and Morgan Nagy each added one goal to propel the Colonials to the win.
While the Lady Panthers fell to 0-2 in league play (0-4 overall), the Colonials improved to 2-0 in the league (2-2 overall).
UPPER MERION 6, UPPER MORELAND 0
Amanda McAteer connected for the hat trick to lead the Vikings to their first win of the season on Monday. Mia DiBella added two goals and two assists, and Danielle Antonuicci added one goal to close out the scoring.
Viking goalie Devyn Antonucci was forced to make just two saves in the shutout.
While the Golden Bears fell to 0-2 in the league (0-4 overall), the Vikings upped their record to 1-1 in the league (1-2 overall)
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