GIRLS SOCCER: Dock Mennonite’s Ashley Brown in 2024 The Reporter/Times Herald/Montgomery Media Athlete of the Year

by staff report

Appearances aren’t everything.

Take Ashley Brown for example. The Dock Mennonite sophomore, with her slight build and unassuming demeanor, probably wouldn’t be the first player someone who didn’t know better picked out as one of the most prolific goal scorers in Pennsylvania.

Put a ball at her feet on a soccer pitch and Brown is all the numbers appear to be.

Brown’s unparalleled production was again a focal point as the Pioneers repeated as PIAA Class 1A champions. The forward headlines the Reporter/Times Herald/Montgomery News Girls Soccer 2024 All-Area Team as Athlete of the Year.

“Seeing it not go in, that lights something in me,” Brown said during the season. “Every miss, I think ‘that should have gone in, I have to get the next one.’ It makes me just want to keep going and keep going.”

Between the regular season and playoffs, which included a District 1 title – Brown’s second straight and Dock’s third in a row – the striker accumulated a whopping 52 goals.

Brown finished her freshman season with 41 goals playing center forward on a highly productive front line. She nearly matched that in the regular season this year, the striker putting up 39 tallies before the postseason even started.

The 38th and 39th goals had some extra significance, the first tying and the second moving Brown into sole possession of Dock’s career scoring record. Brown, who passed 2015 alum Bailey Kratz when she netted her 80th career goal in the regular season finale, marveled at the accomplishment when it happened.

“I’m just going to keep pushing and pushing, keep getting as many as I can,” Brown said the night she tied Kratz. “Already having the record is crazy enough.”

Just like she did as a freshman, Brown turned things up in the postseason by netting 13 goals in six total playoff games. She had a hat trick in the first round of states, a brace in the second round and netted both goals against Moravian Academy in the semifinals.

Brown added two more goals in a wild 4-3 win in the state final, following a masterful four-goal effort as a freshman in the PIAA title match.

“She’s one of those kids who never gives up,” Pioneers coach Stacey Vaitis-Dubost said. “Soccer is her thing, it’s always been her thing so to see her on the field, she’s always driven to keep going.”

Brown knows defenders will try to get rough with her or think they can just bounce her off the ball. Usually, that just serves to fire her up even more and her dad, Dan, constantly reminds Brown to push back if needed and let defenders know she’s there.

The sophomore is also a weapon on set pieces. Brown, who has plenty of range on free kicks, isn’t necessarily always trying to go for goal – even when it pays off like the dazzling free kick she scored against Moravian Academy – but she does carry the same mindset on each restart.

“That’s the most important thing on kicks, you just have to hit the goal cause either it’s going to have a chance of going in or the goalie may bobble it out for a rebound,” Brown said after the state semifinal win. “So, you just got to take that chance and hit it on frame at least.”

Soccer is a team sport and as she approached the scoring record, Brown pointed out that most of her scoring plays came off opportunities created by her teammates. Hailey Cummings and Eden Loux formed a strong midfield that allowed Brown to hunt through balls and poach chances while defender Ava Stokes and goalkeeper Emily Markel shored up the defensive unit to put a complete team on the field.

“She knows what her job is, she knows what she’s capable of and the girls around her know her strengths,” Vaitis-Dubost said.

Appearances aren’t everything, although two seasons into her high school career, Ashley Brown is everything her numbers appear to be.

“Based off appearance, I’m not very big or very tall so it’s about showing the other team you’re a better player than you may seem to be,” Brown said.

The Reporter/Times Herald/Montgomery Media 2024 Girls Soccer All-Area Teams

First Team

F: Ashley Brown, Dock Mennonite

F: Mia Forney, Central Bucks East

F: Regan Kelso, Archbishop Wood

M: Eva Wierzbowski, Central Bucks West

M: Erin Seabrook, Upper Dublin

M: Kiera Sleicher, Central Bucks East

M: Jessie Bernabe, Central Bucks East

D: Gabby Herrmann, Pennridge

D: Katie Lukens, Plymouth Whitemarsh

D: Agnes Kroll, Lower Moreland