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Stars of the Week: See which players had standout performances in Bucks/Montco high school sports

melissa hanejko, bucks county courier times
·12 min read

There's a real chill in the air now, but these players have been red hot.

From league tournament to rivalry games, see which players stood out last week (Oct. 2- 9) in golf, soccer, field hockey, girls' volleyball and cross country.

Cross Country:Hatboro-Horsham's Brian DiCola charts new course with record-setting run

And while you're here, cast your vote for the Girls and Boys Athletes of the Week (scroll to the bottom of the page). This week's polls will be open from Tuesday at 8 p.m. to Thursday at 8 p.m.

Stars of the Week

These players, teams and even a coach went above and beyond, from winning league tournaments to breaking records, and are the Stars of the Week in golf, cross country and volleyball.

Team of the Week, Volleyball: Council Rock South

The matchup between Council Rock South and Pennsbury, the two top teams in the Suburban One League National Conference, didn’t disappoint. The Golden Hawks took a 2-0 lead, but the Falcons claimed the next two sets. In the fifth set, the Hawks edged Pennsbury 15-11 for the thrilling win. CR South improved to 13-2 overall and 9-0 in conference play.

Star of the Week, Volleyball: Edan Kauer, Council Rock South

Kauer tallied 13 digs, eight kills and five aces to lead the Golden Hawks over Pennsbury in a five-set win that kept the Golden Hawks undefeated in the conference (9-0).

Star of the Week, Boys Golf: John Stevenson, La Salle

Stevenson shot a round of 72 at the Philadelphia Catholic League golf championships to claim second place in the individual tournament. Stevenson helped the Explorers win their 20th team title since 2000.

Star of the Week, Girls Golf: Lola Barnett, Archbishop Wood

Archbishop Wood's Lola Barnett follows through after hitting the ball during the 2021 PIAA Golf Championships at Heritage Hills Golf Resort in York.
Archbishop Wood's Lola Barnett follows through after hitting the ball during the 2021 PIAA Golf Championships at Heritage Hills Golf Resort in York.

The Vikings’ senior claimed her third Philadelphia Catholic League title in the girls’ individual tournament with a round of 82 at Philmont Country Club. Barnett also won the girls’ title in 2019 as a freshman (the tournament was not held in 2020) and last year as a junior.

Star of the Week, field hockey: Payton Muth, Pennridge

The Rams’ senior forward recorded her 100th career point in Friday’s game against Bensalem. Muth reached the milestone when she scored a goal in the third quarter. Later, Muth added another goal to help the Rams to a 7-0 win. The West Chester commit currently has 41 goals and 21 assists in her Rams' career.

Coach of the Week: Bob Schmalbach, Archbishop Wood

Schmalbach was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Philadelphia Catholic League at the PCL Golf Championships last week. Schmalbach, a teacher and head golf coach at Archbishop Wood, was honored for his years of dedicated service to the Catholic League. Schmalbach is in his 40th season of coaching golf at Wood.

Top Performers

These players had standout out performances last week in field hockey, soccer, volleyball and cross country.

Volleyball

Kiersten Adair, Pennsbury

Adair had 13 kills in the Falcons’ showdown with CR South. The Golden Hawks prevailed in five sets.

Ashlyn Dinan, Council Rock South

The Golden Hawks’ setter handed out 24 assists, along with seven digs, in a 3-2 win over Pennsbury.

Council Rock South's Ashlyn Dinan serves against Pennsbury at Pennsbury High School in Fairless Hills on Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022. The Falcons fell to the Golden Hawks 3 sets to 2 in a close game.
Council Rock South's Ashlyn Dinan serves against Pennsbury at Pennsbury High School in Fairless Hills on Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022. The Falcons fell to the Golden Hawks 3 sets to 2 in a close game.

Izzy Goebel, William Tennent

Goebel handed out a season-high 37 assists in the Panthers’ 3-0 sweep of Bensalem.

Emily Irvin, Dock Mennonite

Irvin had a big game on offense as well as defense, leading the Pioneers with 14 kills and 18 digs to help Dock edge Plumstead Christian 3-2.

Sarah McCafferty, Council Rock North

McCafferty tallied 28 assists and seven aces in CR North’s 3-1 victory over William Tennent.

Keira Rogan, Pennsbury

Rogan posted seven kills and six digs in the Falcons’ sweep of CR North. She had 10 kills in a match against division leader CR South in which the Falcons were edged 3-2.

Carly Scott, Central Bucks South

The freshman setter tallied 22 assists, five digs and two kills to lead the Titans to their second win of the season with a sweep of Quakertown.

Maddy Ware, Central Bucks East

Ware posted 16 kills and five digs to power the Patriots to a 3-2 win against Souderton.

Field Hockey

Central Bucks East's Paige Keller comes up against Quakertown's Kiera Gallagher in a first-round District One Class 3A playoff game, on Monday, October 25, 2021. The Patriots shut out the Panthers, 3-0.
Central Bucks East's Paige Keller comes up against Quakertown's Kiera Gallagher in a first-round District One Class 3A playoff game, on Monday, October 25, 2021. The Patriots shut out the Panthers, 3-0.

Ava Jones, Souderton

The sophomore standout continued to dominate offensively for Souderton. Jones scored all three of the her team’s goals in a 3-1 win over Council Rock South.

Julie Pizzi, Quakertown

The Panthers’ senior goalie had a tough task in net against the powerful New Hope-Solebury Lions. Pizzi, who made several saves and kept the circle clear, gave up just one goal, which was the second time all season the Lions were held under two goals in a game. The Panthers won 2-1 for their eighth straight win.

Ella Haag, Central Bucks South

Haag made a highlight-reel worthy defensive save and helped hold high-powered Souderton to a single goal in the game. Souderton edged CB South 1-0.

Ella Schubert, Kiera Gallagher, Quakertown

In a big match against New Hope-Solebury, Schubert and Gallagher stepped up to orchestrate a comeback for the Panthers. Trailing 1-0 through the third quarter, Schubert scored to tie the game, and Gallagher followed with the game-winner as the Panthers dealt the Lions their second loss of the season.

Tiffany Oponski, Dock Mennonite

Oponski dished out three assists as the Pioneers topped Sacred Heart 8-0.

Caroline Rawlings, Elsa Nelken, Izzy Matson, George School

The Cougars defeated Friends School League rival Shipley School 3-1, with Rawlings, Nelken and Matson each scoring a goal. The win put the Cougars at 3-1 in the FSL standings, as they dealt Shipley its first league loss.

Kylee Hager, Council Rock South

Hager dished out four assists to help the Golden Hawks to a 6-0 SOL Patriot League win against Bensalem.

Audra Szymborski, Central Bucks East

The Patriots’ goalie recorded 12 saves in the always-intense Pink Out game against rival CB West, keeping her team in the game, though the Bucks came away with the 2-1 overtime win.

Kendall Siegle, Lily Cosner, Central Bucks West

Siegle and Cosner gave the home crowd something to cheer about in Thursday’s highly anticipated Pink Out match between CB West and CB East. Siegle scored the game-winning goal with an assist from Cosner in overtime to give the Bucks a thrilling 2-1 win against their rival.

Jocelyn Franek, North Penn

The Knights’ senior made a game-changing defensive save in a game against Pennridge. With Pennridge up 2-1 in the first half, Franek put a stop to what would have been a sure goal for the Rams. The Knights scored three times in the second half to win 4-2.

More:Bristol field hockey surging after a slow start; Players of the Week

Caitlin Murcur, Abington

The Ghosts’ goalie posted a shutout to secure a 1-0 win against Plymouth Whitemarsh. It was Murcur’s fourth clean sheet in the last six games, made even more impressive by the fact that Murcur was recently called up from the JV team.

Avery Mendola, New Hope-Solebury

Mendola had a hand in seven of the Lions’ goals in a 12-0 win against Cheltenham. Mendola scored four goals and assisted on three more in the Lions’ SOL Freedom victory.

Jordan Vradenburgh, Pennsbury

The Falcons’ goalie had a standout performance against division-leader Neshaminy, who had 18 shots on goal and 12 penalty corners. Vradenburgh made 15 saves in the game, which Neshaminy won 3-0.

Megan Rafter, Council Rock South

Rafter delivered in overtime, scoring the game-winner goal to give the Golden Hawks a 3-2 victory against Haverford.

Katie Dome, Caroline Alegado, Lansdale Catholic

Dome and Alegado both scored in the Crusaders’ 2-0 win against Archbishop Wood. The victory gave the Crusaders a boost in the crowded Catholic League standings as they improved to 4-3.

Boys Soccer

Boys Soccer:This boys' soccer team has been around since 1900; Stars, Teams of the Week

Garrett Cohen, Council Rock South

Cohen scored the go-ahead goal late in the second half as the Golden Hawks topped Bensalem 2-1.

Brandon Epstein, Central Bucks East

Epstein played a part in both of the Patriots’ goals in a 2-0 win against rival CB West. Epstein converted a penalty kick to break the scoreless tie, and then dished an assist to Michael Montabana for some insurance. The night game was the backdrop for a fundraiser for Pediatric Cancer research and also Red for Rosica, in support of community member Bryan Rosica fighting ALS.

Liam Hartman, Abington

Hartman scored both goals for the Ghosts in a 2-1 win over Plymouth Whitemarsh. The victory moved Abington into a tie for place with Upper Dublin in the SOL standings.

Jake Kafrissen, Germantown Academy

Kafrissen scored the go-ahead goal that turned out to be the game-winner to give the Patriots a 2-1 victory against Springside Chestnut-Hill and their first Inter-Academic League win of the season.

Joe Joe Maxwell, Neshaminy

Maxwell dished out two assists and converted a penalty kick as Neshaminy picked up a big 3-0 win over rival Pennsbury.

La Salle senior Seth Michalak, shown here in last season's PIAA Class 4A first round playoff win.
La Salle senior Seth Michalak, shown here in last season's PIAA Class 4A first round playoff win.

Seth Michalak, La Salle

Michalak scored both of the Explorers’ goals in a 2-1 win against PCL opponent Archbishop Ryan. The victory followed a rare loss and tie in the Explorers’ previous two games.

Cross Country

Jack Czarnecki, Council Rock North

Czarnecki raced to a fifth-place finish in the William Tennent Invitational boys varsity run with a 16:24.80 time.

Bailey Gassmann, Council Rock South

Gassmann took third place  in the William Tennent Invitational with a time of 19:07.40 in the girls varsity race.

Gwen Hamilton, Archbishop Wood

Wood’s freshman phenom continued to dominate the PCL, winning her third straight league meet. Hamilton’s time of 20:54.80 was over two minutes faster than the second-place finisher.

Bryce Keenoy, Neshaminy

Keenoy finished third in the boys varsity race at the William Tennent Invitational with a time of 16:16.30.

Claire Pfanstiel, CR North

Pfanstiel claimed sixth place in the Whippets Invitational with a 20:26.40 clocking in the girls varsity race.

Aidan Quattrocchi, Bristol

The Warriors’ senior finished third in the Bicentennial Athletic League meet with a time of 18:11.00.  His brother, sophomore Andreas Quattrocchi, placed sixth in the race.

Emily Simko, Hatboro-Horsham

Simko finished second in the William Tennent Invitational with a time of 18:35.70 in the girls varsity race.

Girls Soccer

Tori Angelo, Pennridge

Angelo gave the Rams a 1-0 victory against Quakertown in a windy, rainy Monday night contest. Angelo scored the game-winner late in the second half, giving the Rams the win and keeping the contest from going to OT.

Cam Blatz, Council Rock South

Blatz scored a pair of goals in the Golden Hawks’ 4-1 win over Bensalem in an SOL Patriot matchup.

Olivia Boccella, Lansdale Catholic

Boccella scored the game-winning goal to give the Crusaders a 1-0 victory over Archbishop Carroll and their fifth consecutive Catholic League win.

Mia Cairone, Kate Thompson, Council Rock North

Cairone scored the game-winning goal, with an assist from Thompson, in the final seconds of regulation to give the Indians a big 1-0 victory against Villa Joseph Marie.

Keira Cassidy, Gwynedd Mercy

Trailing by a goal with time running down, Cassidy scored to tie the game against CB South at 1-1 and force overtime.

Ava DeGeorge, Archbishop Wood

DeGeorge came up big in the matchup between undefeated PCL teams Wood and Lansdale Catholic. With 30 seconds remaining in a scoreless game, DeGeorge found the back of the net to give the Vikings the 1-0 win. The Vikings improved to 6-0 in PCL play.

Archbishop Wood's Ava DeGeorge dribbles at Monsignor Bonner and Archbishop Prendergast Catholic High School in Drexel Hill on Monday, Sept. 26, 2022. The Vikings won 11-0.
Archbishop Wood's Ava DeGeorge dribbles at Monsignor Bonner and Archbishop Prendergast Catholic High School in Drexel Hill on Monday, Sept. 26, 2022. The Vikings won 11-0.

Maura Day, Abington

Day scored twice and assisted on another two goals in the Ghosts’ 5-0 win over Plymouth Whitemarsh.

Hannah Griffin, Gwynedd Mercy

Griffin assisted on the game-tying goal and the game-winning goal in the Monarchs’ 2-1 double overtime victory.

Girls Soccer:CB East's Williams is a difference maker; Stars, Team of the Week for girls' soccer

Rylee Joyce, Conwell-Egan

Joyce scored three goals for the hat trick in a decisive PCL win over Bonner-Prendergast.

Ella Koschineg, Gwynedd Mercy

Koschineg scored in double overtime to give the Monarchs a thrilling 2-1 victory over CB South.

Kylie Maxwell, Neshaminy

The sophomore forward scored both of Neshaminy’s goals in a 2-1 win over Pennsbury in the first meeting between the two rivals this season.

Neshaminy forward Kylie Maxwell runs to save the ball from going out at Neshaminy High School on Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022. The Skins defeated the Rams at home 2-1.
Neshaminy forward Kylie Maxwell runs to save the ball from going out at Neshaminy High School on Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022. The Skins defeated the Rams at home 2-1.

Cassidy Norley, Sarah Frei, Faith Christian

Norley and Frei scored a goal apiece to lead the Lions to a big 2-1 win against a talented Conwell-Egan squad.

Mercedez Paino, Neshaminy

The senior midfielder scored twice in the first half, staking Neshaminy to a 2-0 lead and eventual 3-1 win against Unionville.

Natalie Walton, Upper Moreland

The Golden Bears’ goalie had a stellar outing in goal against the SOL Freedom-leading Lower Moreland. Walton recorded 11 saves and the shutout in a 1-0 win against the Golden Bears’ neighboring rival.

Kylie Wiest, Upper Moreland

Wiest scored the lone goal of the game to give the Golden Bears a 1-0 win across cross-town rival Lower Moreland.

Cam Williams, Central Bucks East

Williams has been a huge factor on offense for the Patriots all season. Her goal in Monday’s game, though, might have been her biggest of the season. Williams scored the game-winner, and lone goal of the contest, to give the Patriots a 1-0 victory against CB West in the highly anticipated Kick for Pink game. The goal was Williams’ 10th of the season and she also has 10 assists, both team-highs.

This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: PA Bucks Montco High School Sports: Top Performers soccer, volleyball