TOWAMENCIN – Getting a chance to break the scoreless tie with North Penn in the second half Wednesday night, Cameron Blatz went with what had always worked for the Council Rock South senior.
“Low and hard,” Blatz said. “I’ve been a goal scorer my whole life and I’ve always just done low and hard. Or just honestly kick it and hope it goes in.”
It ended up being the right choice for Blatz, who was played in behind the defense then sent her shot in at 32:06 left in regulation.
“As a senior and as a striker, I have a lot of responsibility and I have a lot of pressure and if I don’t put that away for us, that’s a big moment,” she said. “So I’m just happy that today that I was able to cause I’ve been struggling to get back on my grind.”
Blatz’s strike ended up being the lone goal of the Suburban One League girls soccer crossover, the visiting Golden Hawks holding off the Knights down the stretch to claim a 1-0 victory at Crawford Stadium.
“I think we knew coming into it obviously they’re a good team, you could see by their results that it was going to be a competitive game, probably going to be something that was decided by a goal here or there,” North Penn coach Mike Rio said. “And they were able to get on the end of it and put one in. Thought it was overall a pretty evenly contested game.
“Happy with the way our girls fought, battled tonight, really good energy and again it’s tough when it doesn’t go your way but again we knew they were coming in a good team and it was going to be a tough one.”
Each team came into the matchup looking to build on a bit of momentum – Rock South having stopped a three-game winless stretch with a 2-1 victory over Central Bucks South last Thursday while North Penn had gone 2-0-1 over its after starting the season with just one win in its first five.
“Lot of new faces this year,” Rio said. “And as far as just girls getting used to each other on the field, having more time to practice, more games under their belt, I think they’re growing in their confidence, their chemistry with each other on the field.”
Both the Knights and Golden Hawks play 3:30 p.m. Friday, North Penn visiting Bensalem while CR South hosts Pennridge.
“These past couple of games for us have been really close games – the tie against Neshaminy, the overtime game against (Council Rock) North and now this one,” Rio said. “I’m proud of the way the girls have fought in each game, I think, again, as a team we’re growing and developing and improving at this halfway point of the season where we’re a more confident, better team than we were at the start which obviously is the goal.”
Maddy Murphy ripped a shot wide right in Wednesday’s opening minute with the Knights (3-5-1, 3-4-1 SOL Colonial) getting opportunities on free kicks in the first half but came up empty.
A free kick from the left of the 18-yard box was curled in towards the front of goal but South keeper Ella Mayberry punched it forward before the Hawks knocked it out of the box. A North Penn shot off the clearance sailed high over the net.
Blatz broke through in the eighth minute after intermission, a pair of passes up the middle of the field getting the ball behind the NP defense for Blatz to make a run at goal and deliver a shot that went into the back of the net.
“We didn’t have our heads down,” Blatz said. “Usually our team, we get a little bit shaky and upset but we kept our heads up and we came out strong and I’m just glad we put one away and could finish the game out.”
A chance for the Knights to equalize came after Emily Patkos dropped a ball into the box, which Murphy reached but Mayberry came out to disrupt things and eventually the ball was cleared.
“Can’t really say anything bad about the way we played – the energy, the effort,” Rio said. “Sometimes it’s just that one goal that kind of separates it and tonight it went against us.”
