Following an undefeated season, the boys cross country team will attempt to repeat as Pioneer Athletic Conference champions. 

Last year’s team featured graduates Anthony Bamford, Liam Baker, and Andrew Carlin. They all finished their respective seasons as All-Area Honorable Mentions, with Bamford and Baker also making the 2020 All-PAC Team. Bamford will continue his cross country/track career this fall at Elon University, competing in the distance event. 

This year’s cross country team for Spring-Ford will include rising junior Quinn Smith. Smith concluded his impressive 2020 season by securing a spot on both the All-Area First Team and the All-PAC Team — not bad for a sophomore. He will begin his junior year with high expectations and the chance to lead his team to victory. 

The team kicked off its season at Perk Valley on September 8 with a 19-40 victory over the Vikings, earning three of the Top 5 finishers in a tri-meet that included Souderton. PV finished its 2020 campaign with a record of 5-2. Winning the rivalry match in the opening meet could help build momentum as the Rams spring into the 2021 fall season. 

— Jack Baumgardner, Staff Writer

GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY 

The Rams’ girls team hopes to bounce back this fall after experiencing a rebuilding campaign in the Liberty Division last year at 2-5.

Spring Ford’s top two runners — 2020 All PAC honorable mentions Julia Breisch and Abigail Duersch — return with high expectations. They will fill in the shoes of the key departures of Alyssa Mulhall and Brooke Donughue, both a part of the previous senior class. 

Breisch and Duersch will join an inexperienced group of runners, who hope to improve on their previous year’s finish. 

— Anthony Goldsmith, Sports Editor

FIELD HOCKEY 

Spring-Ford’s field hockey team hoped to build on its strong finish the year prior last fall, but a slow start coupled with injuries to key players led to a 3-8-1 record in 2020.

As the season kicks off this year, though, the Rams seem to be in prime position to continue making strides towards success in the PAC Liberty Division. 

There were surely positive takeaways from last fall’s campaign such as excellent play from rising senior Alexa Collins (midfield, 1st Team All-PAC) and rising junior Julia Corropolese (defense, 2nd Team All-PAC). These two returning players will guide this Rams team as they take over leadership roles after the departure of a senior class that included Abbey Boyer, Mackenna Maloney, and Sophia DiBattista. 

The Rams have begun the year with strong performances but are still seeking their first win, falling to Perkiomen Valley in a close, 3-2 loss and Boyertown, 2-1, in overtime.

— Andrew Eross, Sports Editor

BOYS GOLF

After a dominant season by the boys golf team last year, they entered the PAC Championship with high hopes but unfortunately fell to the Methacton Warriors in a 5-stroke defeat that snapped the team’s perfect record at 7-1. The golf team now has a chip on their shoulder, though, and will look to make improvements this season and reverse their fortunes in the PAC.

The Rams did lose many seniors last season including Luke Watson and Joey Chilano, but have much returning talent in juniors Luke Fazio and Jake Blackmore. The team also had a coaching change since last season, as coach Gerald Hollingsworth moved from running the junior varsity to the varsity club this year. 

“I am enjoying my first year as the head coach,” Hollingsworth said. “Coach (Jeff) Mast built a great program for many years.  He left behind a very talented team. I was put in a great situation with so many talented players. I enjoyed working with Coach Mast for over 20 years. I also learned a lot from him.  Because of the work he put in, my job has been much easier.” 

Although many stars left last season, the team still saw massive improvements from many of the returning golfers. 

“The team is led by four seniors. Garrett Wible, Jon Seifarth, Noah Kim have gotten better each year and put in a lot of hard work over the summer. Robbie McNelly, also a senior, has been a pleasant surprise. I didn’t know that much about him. He also put in a lot of work over the summer and is now playing No. 1 on the team. Three juniors on the team include Jaden Minter, who played on the JV team last year and has really improved.  No one puts in more time working on their game. Luke Fazio has played in numerous tournaments with much success.  His game has gotten so consistently good that he has counted in just about every match.  Jake Blackmore has also put in the work to be a contributing member of the team.  He works hard and is always looking for ways to improve his game.  The team has one tenth grader, Charlie Ferrise.  He was on JV last year and had a lot of success.  He put in a ton of work over the summer and has contributed in many of our matches. This team is determined to compete in every single match.” 

–Anthony Goldsmith, Sports Editor

GIRLS GOLF 

The Spring-Ford Girls Golf team once again looks poised for a great year. Before we talk about this upcoming season and what is expected, let’s first look back to last year.

The 2020 fall season was one of doubt and uncertainty. With the increased threat of COVID-19, no one really knew how the season would work out. Despite the difficulties that arose, this team remained vigilant. The group would end up winning the PAC team competition, sending four girls on to Districts. They finished PAC match play with a record of 4-1, falling short only to Methacton, 170-177. 

Former SF golfers Aleena Ghanta, Sophia Harvey, Bryn Borzillo, and Katherine Bates all graduated this past June. Though a lot of talent was lost, a group of rising golfers looks to lead this team back to glory. Names headlining this year’s group include juniors Nicole Yun, Cierra Griffith, Morgan Kunze, Audrey Cummings and sophomore Alie Adams. 

“I think with a great lineup and a great team, we’re really destined to win again,” Yun said. “I definitely think I have a better mentality going through it (this season). In the beginning, I was nervous because it was my freshman year. But now, as an upperclassman, I have higher expectations and I know I can succeed”.

Already, they have opened the season by winning the State College Invitational and four golfers from Spring-Ford cracked the Top 10 of the leaderboard.

— Jack Baumgardner, Staff Writer

BOYS SOCCER 

The Rams have experienced their fair share of playoff heartbreak the last two years, falling to Abington despite holding a two-goal lead in 2019 and enduring a loss to Pennridge decided by penalty kicks in last year’s District One semifinals. 

The Rams can only use these experiences to motivate, hoping for bigger and better things in the 2021 campaign. After a normal offseason with a few scrimmages as well as a more traditional training schedule, the Rams will surely be hungry this fall.

Last year’s Rams featured an astounding group of seniors, 14 to be exact. This group included several All-PAC and All-Area players, many of which are committed to play at the collegiate level. Stars like Andrew Merchant, Tommy Bodenshatz, Ekow Asomaning, Trevor Jones, and more headlined this special class. 

But the large graduating class means there are many spots to be earned all across the pitch. Senior captains Justin Russell (striker) and Dylan Smith (center midfielder), each with varsity experience, will lead the way for this young Rams team. Other impact players include junior center back Matt Henzler and senior outside back Connor O’dea.

One sure strength to this particular team is the stellar goalkeeper trio the Rams will put forth this year. Senior Eric Moriarty and phenomenal sophomore Logan Hyduke headline this group, where their 2020 District campaign featured two shutouts in three games. Junior Paul Pozniak will also help out in net as he was the leading junior varsity goalie throughout last season and will get varsity time this year.

The Rams opened up the year with a non-PAC win against Plymouth Whitemarsh on Sept. 3. They lost a tough game against Boyertown in the PAC opener but bounced back with a 2-0 shutout of Phoenixville on Sept. 10. Thankfully this year will feature a PAC championship tournament, where this Rams team will compete for what the prior group was unable to due to COVID-19 restrictions.

— Andrew Eross, Sports Editor

GIRLS SOCCER

Spring-Ford’s dominance in girls sports was the story of the 2020-2021 school year, with the SF girls soccer team being no exception. A 10-1-1 PAC record earned them the respect of tying for first place in the conference alongside OJR. The Rams’ stellar run continued throughout the District One Tournament as well, where their defense stifled the likes of CB West, OJR, and Downingtown East in 1-0 victories. Their three consecutive shutouts earned them a bid in the tournament championship, but an unfortunate 2-0 defeat to Pennridge ended the dominant run.

The Rams will have the tough task of replacing a strong senior class. The leadership and skill sets from graduated All-Area first team midfielders Molly Thomas and Hope Flanegin (who will now play Division One soccer at East Carolina University and Lehigh University, respectively) alongside All-Area second-team keeper Riley Wallace (who will play at Carnegie Mellon), East Stroudsburg University commit Caitlin Norwood, and Emily Higgins.

But talent still remains on this upcoming 2021 team. All-Area Player of the Year Liv Curry (Wisconsin commit, rising senior) headlines the previously dominant Rams defense. All-PAC first team forward senior Ally McVey will pace the team’s offense backed by midfielder Reese Kershner, who took home All-PAC second-team honors in the previous year. Junior keeper Erika Eickhoff will command the defense in her first year starting on varsity.

The Rams started the season 3-0 overall and 2-0 in PAC play — defeating Boyertown and Phoenixville early. Their first game at McNelly will not be until September 17 when they host Methacton. Eight of their last 12 games will be at home, though, hopefully meaning they can comfortably close out the regular season and compete for the PAC championship as well as the District One tournament title.

VOLLEYBALL 

The team finished last year at 6-4, a respectable record for having played in such a tough conference. 

Spring-Ford will start the season without the familiar faces of graduates Clarke Gilmore and Maddie Lebiedzinski. These girls achieved much success in 2020, the former making First Team All-PAC and the latter Second Team All-PAC. 

Spring-Ford still boasts a very strong lineup, including seniors Camryn Elsner, Ally Plitnick, Faith Hudon, Yy Li and Maddie MacDonald. In addition, juniors Sara Fritzinger, Kylie Michal and Katie Gentilotti will look to contribute. Be sure to keep an eye out for promising freshman Lauren Angelucci as well as she looks to make an impact for the varsity team.

To begin the 2021 campaign, the Rams lost a heartbreaker to rival Perk Valley on the road but rebounded to beat West Chester Rustin in four sets at home. A strong sense of teamwork combined with the hard-hitting swings of the previously-mentioned Fritzinger and Angelucci brought the team to their first win. 

This past week the Rams added another victory over Avon Grove but experienced a tough loss vs. Boyertown. 

— Jack Baumgardner, Staff Writer