Three SOL field hockey teams advanced to Friday’s District One Class AAA quarterfinal round. To view photos of the Central Bucks West/Neshaminy game, please visit the Photo Gallery.
#2 CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 2, #15 COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 0
The Titans used first-half goals by Amber Steigerwalt and Jess Schmidt to earn the second round win. They held a 13-1 advantage in shots and an equally lopsided 15-1 advantage in corners.
“We got what we needed to win but would have liked more from our 13 shots,” South co-coach Marie Schmucker said.
The Golden Hawks received a glittering 13-save effort from senior goalie Kelly Schlupp, who returned to the cage this week after being sidelined with a concussion, but they could not generate any offense against a Titan squad with its sights set high.
“We are excited to continue playing in the district tournament,” Schmucker said. “We’re looking forward to a quality session tomorrow to prepare for Friday.
“The coaching staff is enthused with the team’s energy and hunger to play.”
The Titans will host seventh-seeded Haverford in Friday’s quarterfinal round. Haverford edged 10th-seeded Strath Haven 3-2 in overtime.
To read Bill Keen’s complete game story, please click on the following PhillyBurbs.com link: http://www.phillyburbs.com/my_town/doylestown/titans-reach-quarterfinals/article_5eb268be-f483-57a7-ba37-c9a105cfba48.html
#WISSAHICKON 2, #19 OWEN J ROBERTS 1
Jackie Hibbs name won’t show up with the goal scorers, but it was the junior midfielder who set up teammate Stacie Rocco for a goal that might well have turned the tide in the Trojans’ big win on Wednesday. Rocco’s goal came four seconds before halftime and broke a scoreless tie.
“We had been pounding on them a little bit,” coach Lucy Gil said. “We came out the aggressor, but we were hitting a brick wall because their goalie is really, really good at straight shots.
“Jackie did one of her dribble-around-everybody moves, got to the goalie and at the last second dished it off to Stacie Rocco, and she just buried it. Jackie made it happen.”
Few things give players a bigger lift than a goal at the buzzer.
“It was great because nothing had been happening for 29 minutes and 56 seconds,” Gil said. “We were going back and forth and back and forth.
“These kids had to be exhausted because it was such an evenly matched game, and they were going from one end of the field to the other. For us to score and be up one going into the second half, that was a big one for us.”
Hibbs acknowledged the significance of a halftime lead.
“It was really great just to have that great end to the half,” she said. “It just really pumped us up a lot because we really needed that goal.
“We were trying to score so hard in the first half, and we needed that going into the second half.”
The second half was more of the same with the teams exchanging opportunities, and Emily Gallagher gave the Trojans some breathing room when she scored with 12:56 remaining in regulation (Rocco assist). That goal loomed large when Emma Christman (Molly Minahan assist) scored for the Wildcats at the 4:10 mark, but the Trojans held on for the hard-fought win.
“It was really exhausting,” Hibbs said. “We would bring it all the way down the field, and they would take it from us and bring it all the way down. It was a good game to watch. I don’t think one team dominated another, but it was also tiring.
“It was a great win for us. It built up our confidence for Friday. We all played as a team, and we all played really well together.”
What was difference in the game?
“We were just running after every ball,” Hibbs said. “We were cutting. I don’t think we wanted it more, but we finished our shots better than they did.”
Anything less would not have been enough against a team that, according to Gil, was better than their 19th-seed suggested.
“I had gone to their game on Monday, and I was amazed at how quick they were,” the Trojans’ coach said. “Their skills were really good, and they didn’t back down.
“They were down 1-0 at the half in that game as well.”
Gil went on to laud the performance of her senior captains.
“They had somebody chasing Jackie the whole time, and as soon as she touched the ball, they would have three people collapsing,” Gil said. “Even with all of that, she just makes things happen.
“I moved Emily Gallagher from striker to midfield so I could have her handle the ball a little bit more, and she just played outstanding. She was everywhere, and she scored the decisive goal for us. She did really awesome.”
Trojane goalie Emoni Fisher was credited with three saves.
“The saves she made were key,” Gil said.
Lizzy Tamburro had seven saves for Owen J. Roberts.
The win vaulted the Trojans in Friday’s quarterfinal round where they will host sixth-seeded West Chester Henderson.
#9 CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 1, #8 NESHAMINY 0
Goals win games, stats don’t.
That’s a concept coach Casey Hughes has been preaching to her West squad this season, and the Bucks certainly proved that theory to be true in Thursday’s win. Erick Fiorelli scored on West’s only shot of the game, connecting seven minutes into the opening half. It was all the Bucks needed to upend the National Conference champion Redskins.
“We didn’t have a ton of chances, but we were able to capitalize when we did have a chance, and that’s all that mattered,” Fiorelli said. “Our coach always say that goals win games, not stats, and that’s what happened today.”
“If you look at the stats, this is not a game you would think we would have won,” Hughes said. “It was probably only the second time and one of the only times we took the ball into their circle in the first half. It was a beautiful pass to the stroke mark from Ginny Moore, and it was right to Erick. He finished it and put it in.
“Both halves – they were all over us the whole time. Persistence was the word.”
The Redskins certainly held the statistical edge, taking nine shots to just one for the Bucks. They also had 15 corners to only three for the Bucks.
“They definitely were coming at us really hard, but our defense was able to do a stellar job and continually stop them every single time,” Fiorelli said. “We owe a lot to our defense in this game.”
Madison Shields is a member of West’s defensive unit that simply refused to give in to the Redskins’ pressure.
“We all were on our defensive game,” she said. “It turned out to be really good, but it was a little frustrating at points because offense wins games.”
Hughes also acknowledged the play of several other defenders.
“Mackenzie Gallagher played center back, and she has been anchoring us back there all season, stepping up,” the Bucks’ coach said. “Elena Romesburg plays defensive mid, and she was making great clears.
“Carson LeGreca played real well in the first half. Jacqueline Fitzgerald is one of my backs and she played good. Caitlyn Lowery was in there in the second half and got it done, got the ball out which we needed. She played poised and controlled.”
Gallagher delivered a defensive save on the goal line late in the second half during corner play to preserve the shutout.
“It was a crazy scramble in front of the goal, and my goalie, Brianna DeAngelis, made a couple of saves on it,” Hughes aid. “Mackenzie made a defensive save, and that was the difference in the game.
“The defense was persistent. It wasn’t always the prettiest defense, but they were getting it out and doing their jobs. We just could not generate any type of transition game and offense was a struggle, but the one time we did we executed, and that was the difference.”
The season has been a magical one for the Bucks since the late hiring of Hughes in July.
“This is such a great year,” Shields said. “During the summer, we went through a period where no one wanted to be our coach, and coming into the season, we just wanted to beat our record from last year.
“During the season, our goal was to make playoffs, and now that we’re in playoffs, we just want to keep going. This is definitely what we have been striving for all summer, in the preseason. This is it, this is our big year.”
The Bucks find themselves in the unexpected position of hosting Friday’s quarterfinal game, thanks to 17th-seeded Conestoga’s stunning 3-2 upset of top-seeded Spring-Ford.
“That’s great,” Fiorelli said. “We thought we played our last home game, and coming home to our field is going to feel real nice. We don’t have to travel. I think the home field is huge.”
“We found out about it on the bus ride home,” Shields said. “Boy, was that bus ride loud. It was definitely amazing.”
“We thought we were going to Spring-Ford on Friday,” Hughes said. “From Doylestown, that’s a long drive, so we’re very excited to have that home field advantage on Friday, play on our turf. I’m expecting big things. I hope the girls get amped up for this game. It’s exciting.”
To read field hockey beat writer Karen Sangillo’s complete game story, please click on the following PhillyBurbs.com link: http://www.phillyburbs.com/sports/high_school/intel/cb-west-shuts-out-neshaminy/article_8cc80231-5fda-502b-acb2-766b0edb589c.html
#6 WEST CHESTER HENDERSON 3, #11 COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 0
The traditional postgame handshakes between the two teams had just been completed when Gabby Tofig and Alex Kuzma shared a tearful embrace.
“I think we’re kind of a package,” Tofig said of her longtime teammate. “It’s obviously going to be hard. We’re not sad we lost. We’re sad to leave.”
“I want to take her with me to college,” Kuzma said. “I couldn’t have done it without her.”
The two senior captains have been playing field hockey together since seventh grade, not only in school but in club hockey with the Mystics. They are two of seven seniors who assumed leadership roles for a very young Indian squad this season.
“They showed the younger kids how to work hard and every day play with heart,” Whalin said. “That was the big thing with the team this year.
“They absolutely played with heart. The skill came later, so in the early games, we just had to rely on toughness and just working through, working through. That’s why we were able to do as well as we did this year.”
On Wednesday, the Indians couldn’t find their offense against a Henderson squad that not only played outstanding defense but also possessed a dangerous offensive weapon in senior Katie O’Donnell.
The senior standout had a hand in all three goals, scoring one – her 40th of the season - and assisting on the other two. It was O’Donnell’s rocket late in the first half that sent the Warriors into halftime with a 2-0 lead.
“I don’t think we’re the type of team that sees a goal and gets down,” Tofig said. “We’re such a family that every single time it was like, ‘Okay, there was a mistake, and it went in the cage, but the family has got to work together to get another one in the cage.’
“Never were one of our goals ever done by just one person. It was done by everybody.”
The Indians possessed the ball enough but never could generate any serious offensive threats.
“We didn’t get the release off the ball today,” Whalin said. “During one of the timeouts, I said, ‘We just have to release the ball on cage and see what happens.’
“They played a really nice defensive game. They marked really well, and Kuzma couldn’t get her release off. I talked to her and said, ‘Just dump it in.’ At the end, we were getting a lot more chances, and they were doing well.”
The Indians closed out the year with a 14-6 record, exceeding even their own expectations.
“We weren’t as skilled as last year,” Tofig said. “But we had a lot of heart. From freshmen on up, everyone wanted to be here.”
We had no expectations,” Kuzma said. “We just did our best and took it wherever it would take us. Everyone just gave their all.”
#4 UNIONVILLE 4, #20 HATBORO-HORSHAM 1
This game was a whole lot closer than the final score suggests. Three Unionville goals in the final 11 minutes were the difference in the game.
“It was a back and forth battle in the first half and three quarters of the second half,” coach Laura Swezey said. “The Hatters played an amazing 50 minutes of hockey but ran out of steam the last 10 minutes.
“Both teams transitioned the ball well. It was a well-played game. I’m so proud of the girls. They left it all out on the field. It was just a great season.”
Things looked promising when Jaime DiQuattro scored, using a Casey Swezey assist with 12 minutes remaining in the opening half, but the Indians knotted the scored on a goal by Annabeth Donovan five minutes later, sending the teams into halftime deadlocked 1-1.
That tie held up until Donovan (Brielle Hartzell assist) scored with 11 minutes remaining. The Indians added a pair of goals by Erin Karcher and Hansen, both with Donovan assists, for the 4-1 final.
“Annabeth Donovan was amazing,” Swezey said. “Erin Karcher had an amazing cannon shot for her goal at the top of the circle on a ball she brought in with speed from the 40.”
The Indians held an 11-6 advantage in shots and an 11-4 edge in corners. Hatter goalie Emily Braunewell was credited with five saves.
The Hatters closed out their season with a 10-9-1 record.
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