GIRLS SOCCER: Sleicher’s first-half goal ignites CB East offense, sends Patriots to states with 3-0 win over Spring-Ford in district playbacks

BUCKINGHAM — When Central Bucks East earned the second seed in the District 1-4A girls soccer tournament this year, the team fully intended on defending the title that it won a season ago.

But soccer can be a cruel game in that it doesn’t always adhere to best-laid plans, nor does it feel nostalgic or sentimental about past championship wins. The Patriots made that realization the hard way in a 1-0 district quarterfinals loss to local and league rival CB South last weekend, sending the team to playbacks where they needed to win two do-or-die games to make it back to the PIAA Tournament for the fifth consecutive season.

Consider the mission accomplished, even if East had to take the more treacherous route to get there.

Kiera Sleicher scored with 8:28 remaining in the first half to break a scoreless tie and the Patriots added two more tallies in the second half as they powered past No. 4 Spring-Ford via a 3-0 victory in the 4A fifth-place game on Friday. The result allowed East to secure the fifth and final PIAA berth given out to District One, while Spring-Ford’s impressive season that included a PAC championship came to a crushing conclusion.

“After we lost to South we were bummed, but sometimes losses like that do motivate us more,” said Sleicher, a sophomore captain and midfielder. “That’s exactly what happened. It put a little bit extra on our shoulders, but we handled it. These games where you don’t know if it’s your last game or if you’ll have another game afterward adds a bit of excitement, honestly.”

First, East had to dispatch No. 11 Conestoga in a Tuesday playback, which they did to the tune of a dominant 4-0 showing. The offense took a little longer to get humming on Friday, even if the Patriots did have significantly more meaningful offensive chances in the first half before Sleicher’s goal.

When she got her best opportunity to date, Sleicher was determined not to miss. She jumped a ball near the 50 and found a lane down the middle of the field with only one defender to beat. Staying a half-step ahead the entire time, Sleicher dribbled toward the goal until she was about 15 to 20 yards away before blasting a laser into the top left corner of the net past Rams keeper Riley Reavy.

“In those moments when the ball is on my right foot and I have the space, I’m going to take it,” recounted Sleicher, who also picked up an assist and hit the crossbar early in the second half. “I did a little fake, pushed it (past the defender) and just ripped it. It definitely helped with momentum.”

“Getting that first goal was almost like a wakeup call,” added junior captain Mia Forney, who scored the team’s third and final goal with 5:55 remaining. “It’s not like we came in thinking it would be easy – we just had never played Spring-Ford and didn’t know them. They were an unknown team. So when Keira scored going into the half, it gave us hope. We had better scoring opportunities and it felt good to be rewarded by that.”

The Patriots remained on the attack once the second half began. The Rams (18-5-1 overall) had a few chances, but nothing that was terribly difficult for goalie Aralynn Patterson or the defense to handle. So, East continued knocking on the door looking to add insurance, with the first of those coming with 28:41 left in the second half. Taylor Roumy took a long pass from the back line around the 18 before settling and firing a shot toward the goal that deflected off a Spring-Ford defender and past Reavy for a 2-0 lead.

Forney finished the job 20-plus minutes later as Mackenzie Peters and Sleicher both fought to win the ball in the air near midfield and moved it forward. Sleicher headed the ball to the foot of Forney, who took the ball in stride, beat her initial defender, cut past a second and finished with the Patriots’ third and final goal.

“We were still pushing on the gas, but at the same time it’s a sigh of relief with only six minutes left in the game,” Forney said. “Nothing was connecting or moving how we wanted it to early until we got Kiera’s goal. So 3-0 is satisfying, it’s nice and feels really good.”

Spring-Ford ends with 18 wins and a PAC title in head coach Blake Hornbuckle’s first year with the program. The former Division-I college coach got the job late in the summer but quickly whipped the Rams into top shape; after a 1-2 start to the season, they reeled off 10 straight wins and quickly separated themselves from the rest of the league. Like CB East, Spring-Ford was tripped up 1-0 by a lower seed in the quarterfinals (Lower Merion) and had to try to make it to states through playbacks. They beat Neshaminy 2-1 on Tuesday but couldn’t find the offense against East.

There are eight seniors on the roster, with Reavy, Carly Szczerba, Brynn Vickery, Izzy Pandorf and Erin Buckley being the most significant impending departures. Still, sophomore Brynlee Williams was the team’s best goal scorer this season, and fellow talented returners like Lily Hassan, Mackenzie Kerr, Tatum Kott and Brynn Stiles give the program plenty to build on in year two of the Hornbuckle era.

The Patriots, meanwhile, will open up against the District 3 champion — either Mechanicsburg or Manheim Township — on Tuesday at a time and site to be determined. The program won’t have as smooth a path as they did last year when they advanced all the way to the state semifinals, but that doesn’t really matter to this group. After all, they are battle-tested and know what it takes to win championships and excel in the postseason, even with the speed bump against South in their rearview mirror.

“It’s very exciting,” Sleicher said. “Once you hit states and districts, it’s a whole new season where anything can happen. “It’s all about keeping your foot on the gas and pushing until you get to that last game.”

Sleicher said the team’s goal was always to advance further than they did a season ago, which means they fully expect to be competing for a state title on Nov. 14.

“We’re going to have to see who we play and scope our competition out a little,” Forney said. “But it’s more about what we’re going to do ourselves than what we’re going to do for (our opponent). What are we going to do to win? Preparing correctly, having a good mentality and just getting it done.”