Check out the results for SOL boys’ soccer teams in action on Thursday.
National Conference
WILLIAM TENNENT 1, PENNSBURY 0
It came down to keeper Ben Zeitz.
Fortunately for William Tennent, his presence in net was more than reliable. And strong for that matter. His denial of a penalty kick in the final two minutes of the Panthers home tussle with Pennsbury was one of several crucial stops on the afternoon. His effort made Tennent’s lone goal stand up in a home victory over the Falcons.
“He had a tremendous game,” praised Panthers coach Luke Gibson of his goalie.
The win was the first of the season for the Panthers in SOL National competition and improved them to 2-2 overall. They will look to gain their first winning streak of the year when they host Bensalem Monday.
“We’re really young, so for our guys, it’s an opportunity to see what we could be,” Gibson said. “For a young team, it’s all about consistency, day in and day out. We can’t overreact.”
The only goal of the match came in the first half on a set-up by Johnny Ciarlante to Bryan Note, who was able to bury in the back of the net. Despite being outshot in the closing 40 minutes, Tennent was able to hold its own and keep the Falcons’ offense scoreless for the first time in 2013.
“We were better organized today, and it was a collective effort,” said Gibson. “Everyone did their part, and we were able to get a result that we wanted.”
Pennsbury fell to 2-1 with the setback and will try to bounce back when Council Rock South visits Monday.
William Tennent 1 0 1
Pennsbury 0 0 0
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 2, ABINGTON 1
This is already shaping up to be a different type of year for Council Rock North.
A year removed from winning just a single game, the Indians have shown plenty of signs they are vastly improved after just three games. Thursday afternoon, though, may have been the biggest step so far as CR North trekked to defending District I champion Abington and left with a 2-1 triumph.
“This year, I think we’re older, maturer, faster, stronger,” Indians coach Joe Stackhouse said.
Midway through the second half, the Indians T.J. Roberts took advantage of an opportunity and buried a shot for the eventual game winner. That gave his squad a 2-0 advantage at the time, which Abington cut in half late in the match. The Ghosts, though, could not get an equalizer in falling to 2-3 on the season (1-1 in the SOL National).
CR North’s other tally came from Nick Harwell, who added an assist on Roberts’ goal. Alex Lean also had an assist on the goal, while Matt Moller pulled in five saves to earn the win in net.
“Combined, the whole defensive unit did a really good job,” said Stackhouse. “We just want to build off the positive energy.”
The Indians are now 2-0 in the SOL National and next host Truman Monday.
Council Rock North 1 1 2
Abington 0 1 1
NESHAMINY 2, BENSALEM 1 (OT)
Hanging right with CR North so far has been Neshaminy, which earned a tough road win over Bensalem Thursday in a contest that needed overtime to determine a winner.
With the score deadlocked at one, the contest headed to overtime and went to the 93rd minute before the Redskins finally struck. Kenny Herman gained control off a throw-in by Eric Schaefer and set up his own shot that beat the Owls keeper. The goal improved Neshaminy to 4-0 on the year and 2-0 in the SOL National, while Bensalem dropped to 2-2 and 1-1.
“We faced some adversity today and still got a win,” said Redskins coach Tom Foley. “Bensalem is a very good team. They are certainly going to be a major challenge this year.
The Owls goal came off a cross pass to Jack Lee, who found the back of the net to even the score with about 23 minutes to play. Neshaminy’s first goal came in the 26th minute, when Dylan McDonald followed his own shot with a rebound and put back goal.
Neshaminy will travel to Abington Monday.
Neshaminy 1 0 1 (OT) 2
Bensalem 0 1 0 (OT) 1
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 2, TRUMAN 0
Goals by Jeff Shuck and Jake Shefsky proved to be the difference for the Golden Hawks, who notched their first shutout of the season in a 2-0 victory over Truman. CR South did so with a combined effort in goal from Jake Nevin and Chase Spinelli. Sean Doyle also reached the scoring chart with an assist.
The Golden Hawks, who are now 1-1 in the SOL National, will travel to Pennsbury on Monday. The Tigers are 1-2-1 despite outscoring opponents by a combined 11-6. They will travel to Council Rock North on Monday.
American Conference
UPPER DUBLIN 4, NORRISTOWN 1
Sometimes, letdowns happen in sports, and that can be particularly true when a team is coming off a big victory.
That scenario was exactly what Upper Dublin coach Rick Schmidt wanted to avoid. Following a victory over defending conference champion Wissahickon Tuesday, the Cardinals faced a trip to winless Norristown. While they were the favorite, a similar situation occurred last season after the Cardinals tied Wissahickon and then had to rally for a 3-3 tie against Norristown in their ensuing match.
“We didn’t play that day,” said Schmidt of last year’s Norristown game. “We came out flat and it showed.”
Any potential concerns did not come to fruition this year, though, as Upper Dublin jumped to an early 2-0 advantage and ultimately pulled away for a 4-1 triumph.
“It’s a difficult field to play on sometimes, but we commanded a good part of the game,” Schmidt said. “They knew they had to come out and do it again, and that’s exactly what they did.”
While the pace wasn’t as fast as Schmidt had hoped, there was little doubt who was the better team on this day. The Cardinals sent 18 shots at Norristown’s goal and connected on four of them, all from different scorers.
Netting the first goal was Zach Arnold, which was followed by Alex Browndorf to make it 2-0 at halftime. John Roos later scored off a corner kick and Alex Demchick added another to wrap up a solid afternoon for the visitors.
Glenn VanOrden earned two assists in the win, while his brother, Charlie, combined with fellow goalkeeper Scott Wexler for a four-save shutout.
Norristown’s lone goal came thanks to sophomore Brendan Kelly, who was set up by Drew Baltrus. But, it wasn’t enough, as Norristown dropped to 0-3 overall and next plays Monday at Upper Moreland.
The Cardinals, meanwhile, are 2-2 and will also play Monday against Cheltenham.
Upper Dublin 2 2 4
Norristown 0 1 1
WISSAHICKON 3, SPRINGFIELD (MONTCO) 0
After suffering their first loss of the season Tuesday at the hands of Upper Dublin, the Trojans bounced back with a resounding first half in dispatching Springfield (Montco). Defensively, goalie Neal Guaglianone didn’t get much work but was solid when he did\, stopping three shots for his first shutout of the campaign.
The offense was also excellent as Wissahickon scored three goals in a span of 15 minutes to pull away for good. Cole Kropnick led the way with the latter two tallies while Sam Hunt struck for the first one and eventual game winner. Jason Bugis added an assist and helped the Trojans out shoot Springfield, 17-5.
Springfield received a solid effort from goalie Kevin Sykes, who made 11 saves as his team fell to 1-2. Wissahickon improved to 1-1 in the SOL Continental and 3-1 overall with a Monday match with Plymouth-Whitemarsh up next.
Wissahickon 3 0 3
Springfield (Montco) 0 0 0
PLYMOUTH-WHITEMARSH 2, CHELTENHAM 0
Goals from Alex Bilodeau and Dom Woldarczyk were all the Colonials needed to survive a road challenge with the Panthers Thursday afternoon.
Bilodeau’s score was set up by Adam Deeves in the 35th minute of action to give P-W the advantage. The insurance goal came 10 minutes of game action later, when Taij Rosen set up Woldarczyk to make it 2-0.
The Colonials remain undefeated at 3-0-1, while the Panthers dropped to 0-4 on their campaign.
Plymouth-Whitemarsh 1 1 2
Cheltenham 0 0 0
UPPER MERION 3, UPPER MORELAND 0
Upper Merion improved to 3-0 on the year by defeating the Golden Bears (1-4 overall). The team scored a first half goal and added two more tallies to cap the scoring.
Defensively, Upper Merion has been stout, as it has yet to give up a goal. Next up is a visit from Springfield-Montco Monday.
Upper Merion 1 2 3
Upper Moreland 0 0 0
Continental Conference
NORTH PENN 3, CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 2
Good teams tend to be resilient, and the Knights have shown that quality so far this year.
Down 1-0 at halftime, North Penn came out firing in the last 40 minutes, and it paid off to the tune of three straight goals. That proved to be just enough to squeak past host CB South for the Knights second SOL Continental victory in as many tries.
“I think CB South deserved to be winning at the end of the first half. They were a better team in the first half,” Knights coach Paul Duddy said. “But, we came on well in the second half.”
Danny Remick struck first for the Titans to give them the lead at intermission, but junior midfielder Brad Beckel had the answer in the second half, as he scored his first varsity goal on a shot set up by Kevin McKenna. Teammate Dylan McMahon then put North Penn ahead with a goal assisted by Tyler Johnston, and later in the second half, he added his second tally of the contest, thanks to an assist by Beckel.
The Knights outshot CB South by a 12-10 margin. Goalie Jordan Katz had six saves in the win, but Duddy knows the defense must improve if the Knights are to keep up their 4-0 start.
“We’ve been working hard and eventually it pays off,” he said. “I think we still have to get better on defense, though. Within our conference, you have to be better defensively.”
The Titans fell to 2-3 with the loss.
North Penn 0 3 3
Central Bucks South 1 1 2
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 1, CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 0
Stefan Szygiel thought a deadlock was in order, and after the battle his team had endured with undefeated Central Bucks East, he would have been okay with taking the point toward the SOL Continental standings.
Then came the 75th minute and an opportunity for Jared Kelly to send a ball into the CB West box. He did just that, and after a loose ball struggle, the ball popped to Chris Van Pelt. The senior midfielder took advantage by setting up a blast from 20 yards away that found the back of the net for the game winning tally.
“He took a great preparation touch, got it down, got his head down and took the shot,” Szygiel said. This was the Bucks first shutout of the year and came from the hands of senior keeper Redd Brown, who stopped four shots in the win. The Bucks also received a great effort from Nick Marella.
“He’s a guy that just understands how to play in our formation,” said Szygiel.
The Patriots (3-1, 1-1 SOL) will look to get back on track at North Penn Monday. Thursday’s loss was their first of the season.
“It was a very good game,” East coach Mike Gorni said. “It was a very even game. Both teams had seven shots and both keepers had four saves.
“It was very much a midfield game, a back and forth battle. There were good opportunities both ways. Ryan Gleason hit the crossbar off a set piece. Both teams had a couple of opportunities, and one of the few they had, they buried, and we didn’t bury one of the few we had.”
CB West upped its record to 3-1 overall and 2-0 in the SOL Continental. The Bucks will host Souderton on Monday.
“We’ve still got 12 league games, so we’re going to treat it as business as usual,” Szygiel said of the win.
Central Bucks West 0 1 1
Central Bucks East 0 0 0
HATBORO-HORSHAM 3, SOUDERTON 1
The Hatters filled the score sheet Thursday in their visit to Souderton, as five different players recorded points.
Just two minutes in, Hatboro-Horsham fell behind when Tyler Eckardt found Nate Verso for a shot and goal. But the Hatters were unfazed, and one minute later, they evened the affair on a goal by Eduardo Romero.
Things didn’t stay that way for long either as the Hatters took control of the match when Tom McElrath struck gold for the go-ahead goal. With two minutes to play before halftime, Kyle Parkinson added to the advantage with the final goal of the afternoon.
Chris Hobbs and Dante D'Alonzo each had assists as the Hatters moved to 3-1 on the year (1-1 in the SOL Continental). Souderton fell to 1-2-1.
Hatboro-Horsham 3 0 3
Souderton 1 0 1
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