U-10 boys team ties with Springfield in CHYSC action

by J. COOPER ROBB

It was a clash of undefeated teams in the Chestnut Hill Youth Sports Club when the fourth division U-10 boys Blue Lightning visited the similarly unbeaten Springfield Lightning. In a highly competitive first half, Springfield scored the only goal to put the Blue Lightning behind for the first time all season.

Augie Frank and Gilman Myran's stellar defense and Gabe Buchanan's tenacious goal tending helped the team survive a number of fierce attacks in keeping the game close before Gabriel Osorio-Soto's break-away goal knotted the score early in the second half. Despite numerous excellent saves by Nathaniel Vahedi and dogged defense by Will Twyman, Hank Goldenberg and Johnny Hass, Springfield pulled ahead again and things looked bleak for Chestnut Hill when they dropped behind 3-1 with eight minutes to go.

However the Blue Lightning continued to force the play. Bryce Low resolutely fought for a loose ball and slid it to Henry Bushnell who put it by the goalie to narrow the gap to a single goal with only three minutes left. With just 60 seconds remaining in the hard-fought contest, Osorio-Soto broke into the clear and ripped the ball into the back of the net, thus completing the U-10 boys’ comeback and leaving the teams with a 3-3 tie.

U-15 girls

The U-15 girls faced off against undefeated Upper Moreland. Chestnut Hill opened the scoring when forward Hannah Conant got her foot on a cross from Nina Carpenter-Farran. Upper Moreland scored twice later in the half, but the Blue Lightning evened the score when a Conant corner kick was tapped by midfielder Mariah Barstow to Cecilia Davis-Hayes, who rocketed home the tying goal. In the final minute, Upper Moreland scored on a shot just inside the post, sending the girls to a tough 3-2 defeat. The loss dropped the girls’ 2nd division record to 4-3-0.

U-13 girls

The U-13 girls continued their winning ways, besting Plymouth 2-1 in their first game at the new Carson Valley fields. Down by a goal at halftime, Celia Dedrick got the Blue Lightning on the board off a cross by Carrie Carney. Emma Shields made numerous key passes from her midfield position, feeding Lexi Glassman for several shots and providing several crosses from the left wing. Nina Voith was particularly effective at fullback and picked up an assist on Maura McInerney-Rowley's game winner, a hard blast that sailed over the goalie's outstretched arms and under the crossbar.

U-9 boys

The U-9 boys had a breakout weekend at the Yardley Makefield Soccer tournament, dominating their opponents through the first four games and advancing to the final match in their division. Nic Solomon, Philip Kelly and Jack Martin were relentless in their attacks on goal. Sam Conant and Will Randall played strong defense and both Harrison Tracy and Jaime MacEachern played their best games of the year. In the championship game, the Blue Lightning played valiantly but lost a well-played match 1-0.

U-10 boys

Playing a double header over the weekend, the U-10 boys bounced back from a tough 4-0 loss Saturday to defeat Upper Dublin 5-2 on Sunday. Goals were scored by Greg Boxley (2), Jamie Hearn (2) and Sam Rudovsky. Ben Krieger and Sam Sheppard shared goaltending duties and were spectacular. Jonathan Olson had his best game of the season, playing well both offensively and defensively.

U-13 boys

The U-13 boys got back on the winning track, taking down Upper Dublin 3-1. Spencer Jones opened the scoring early, taking a pass from David Scott and beating the goalie. Brendan Turner added another goal on an assist from Harry Getty. In the second half, Hank Mancuso one-timed a loose ball past the keeper from 12 yards out and Zach Fernberger emerged from the nets to make several key stops. Squeaky Fries patrolled the left midfield with ferocity. The U-13 boys are now 6-1 and tied for first place.

U-15 boys

Despite playing with only a single substitute, the U-15 boys earned a well-deserved 1-1 tie against Upper Makefield. After Upper Makefield took an early lead, Josh West pushed home the tying goal off a Kelsey Dorwart corner kick. Phil Jones kept the game even with his second stop of a penalty kick in as many weeks. Jones made several more key saves, while the defense of David Marvin, Matt Stanczak, Sam Yeoman, Andrew Butler and Matt Howard got stronger as the game progressed. The U-15's record now stands at 2-2-2 in first division play.

In other action, the U-11 third division boys lost to Phoenixville 3-0 and then were defeated 2-0 by Upper Dublin, Springfield beat the U-12 girls 1-0, the U-13 boys triumphed over Upper Dublin 3-1, the U-11 girls came up short against VAA 1-0, and the U-13 girls upended Plymouth 2-1.

Contributors include Jeff Krieger, Graham Robb, Bob Kaufman, David Bushnell and Phillip Scott.