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Semifinal preview; Plumstead grows
The Intelligencer
Tuesday’s PIAA District One Class AAA semifinals at War Memorial Field will
bring a rematch of one of the most exciting girls soccer games of the season
and a true Cinderella story in the other.
At 5:45 p.m., No. 1 seed and undefeated Central Bucks South will face No. 4
seed Pennridge, in a battle between the first- and second-place teams in the
Suburban One League Continental Conference.
The Titans have been dominant, outscoring the opposition by a 53-7 margin
this year. They have only trailed once all season, but that one time was
against Pennridge. In their last meeting, the Rams held a 1-0 lead late in
the game, only to see the Titans rally for a 2-1 overtime victory.
The key to the game might be CB South’s great offensive firepower trying to
get the ball past Pennridge goalie Shannon Zickler - never an easy task.
In the 8 p.m. game, No. 2 seed Neshaminy will take on No. 6 Souderton.
The Indians finished fourth in the SOL Continental Conference, but have
taken advantage of No. 3 seed Council Rock South being upset in the first
round. Souderton has beaten No. 11 Hatboro-Horsham and No. 14 Wissahickon en
route to the semifinals.
However, Souderton can not be taken lightly. The Indians have yet to give up
a goal in the postseason and, during the regular season, they tied Pennridge
and gave CB South all it could handle on its home field before falling, 2-1.
The third-place game and final will take place on Thursday night at War
Memorial.
Plumstead growing
Chelsea Radmore and Alex Brill thought they would graduate from Plumstead
Christian having never played in a district playoff game.
After all, the Panthers had gone 2-13-1 last year and did not win a game in
the Bicentennial Athletic League. Additionally, as it turned out, Radmore
and Brill were the only seniors who started all this season.
Yet Plumstead made a remarkable turnaround, going 9-5-2 on the year and
snagging the No. 5 seed in the District One Class AA playoffs.
The Panthers lost to defending district champion Springfield-Montco, 4-0, in
the quarterfinals but, instead of being upset, the players went over to the
stands. While the Spartans were the home team, the Panthers seemed to have
just as many fans rooting for them during the game.
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“We’re such a small school, everyone knows everyone; we’re all like brothers
and sisters,” said Brill. “There’s 26 in our graduating class.”
According to the PIAA Web site, Plumstead has a total female enrollment of
54 in grades 9-11, while Springfield has 233 students.
Plumstead coach Carolyn Burgman remembers that when she went to the school,
there was no girls soccer team; she had to play on the boys team to compete.
Now, she’ll have nine starters returning with playoff experience next year.
“It’s nice to see the program grow; it’s pretty exciting,” said Burgman, who
has been on the coaching staff for eight years. “We have some good
eighth-graders coming up as well.”
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