Under an unexpectedly warm midafternoon sun last Friday, the score still stood at 0-0 more than 20 minutes into a soccer match between the ladies of Springside Chestnut Hill Academy and their guests, the Patriots of Germantown Academy.

The host Blue Devils would score in the 23rd minute for a 1-0 halftime lead, then they found the back of the GA net twice in the second period for a 3-0 Inter-Ac League victory.

In a road game three days earlier, SCH had come from behind to defeat Agnes Irwin School, 3-2, taking over first place in the league standings. Earlier in the season, they had lost to the Irwin Owls, 3-1, but had then beaten defending league champion Episcopal Academy, 1-0.

At the end of last week, the Blue Devils had a record of 8-1 in the league (11-3 overall), while Episcopal was 6-2-1 and Irwin was 5-2. Penn Charter, which had beaten and tied Episcopal in their home/away series, stood fourth at 3-3-2, followed by the Academy of Notre Dame at 3-5-1. After Friday's outcome in Chestnut Hill, GA was 2-6 in league play and 8-7-1 overall, while Baldwin School was 0-8 in the Inter-Ac.

This Friday's SCH-Episcopal rematch, to be played at EA, looms large in the race for the 2024 league title.

Against Germantown Academy last Friday, SCH sophomore Cali Smith played a role in all three goals, assisting on the first-half strike by classmate Alex de Beaulac and then scoring twice herself later on. Senior Gracyn Lee-Torchiana notched the shutout in goal, with classmate Emmy Lloyd making an appearance in the net late in the game.

Before the match, the team's class of 2025 was recognized, including varsity veterans Zarin DeVeaux, Lida Goloveyko, Jolie Kaoma, and Kenna Quinn.

When the match commenced, the visiting Patriots pushed up on offense in the first minute, then soon it was Springside's turn. Junior Jill Major angled a shot in from the left, and a save was made by GA goalie Gabby Bowes, a senior who'll be playing basketball for Millersville University.

SCH freshman Emma Schweizer put a long shot over the crossbar about 10 minutes in, then GA got off a few shots at the other end, with one by sophomore Myree Jean-Brian hitting a goalpost.

Lee-Torchiana had to make a diving stop on a subsequent shot by the Patriots, but it was the Blue Devils who would actually put the first point on the board. On the left side, Smith forwarded the ball to de Beaulac, who was cutting toward the near post.

Avoiding a GA defender not far off the endline, de Beaulac shot the ball on the ground past Bowes, recording what would be the game-winning goal with 17:42 left in the first half.

About five minutes later, Bowes was able to save a shot by Devils senior Jolie Kaoma at the right post, and a little later Smith hit the goal frame on back-to-back shots.

Near the end of the period, SCH was unable to generate a shot off of a very nice right-to-left cross by Goloveyko, and on a pass into the middle by sophomore Ryleigh Bakley, GA's Bowes was able to scoop up the ball to end the half with the score still 1-0.

In the second half, Germantown was unable to muster the offensive threats they'd presented during the first 20 minutes of the match. SCH controlled the ball and the action more of the time, confidently connecting on short passes.

When the wings were clear, however, individual Devils were happy to bring the ball right down the sideline. Goloveyko transported the ball along the lefthand boundary, and when she crossed it into the box, Smith was there for the tap-in with 23:36 remaining in the contest. The final score was in the books with 10:58 to go, after Smith settled the ball in the box and put it away.

GA defenders like junior Maggie Luviano and sophomore Piper Loney played a solid game overall, but SCH flooded the Patriots' offensive third so frequently that the dam was bound to burst.

Earlier last week at Agnes Irwin, the Blue Devils fell behind the Owls for the second time this season. While SCH had some near misses, Irwin hit the mark for a 2-0 lead. The visitors got one point back before halftime, with a strike by Schweizer that was assisted by Smith.

After she leveled the scoreboard at 2-2 (with an assist from Bakley), DeVeaux earned an assist on the game-winner, which was scored by Smith for a 3-2 final. It was the Blue Devils' first win over Agnes Irwin since the 2022 season.