PW knocks off Unionville in field hockey

Plymouth Whitemarsh scored a pair of first-half goals less than two minutes apart Monday on the way to a 4-1 upset of host Unionville in the opening round of the District 1 Class AAA field hockey playoffs.

The Colonials (12-6-1), who were seeded 17th in the 28-team field, will visit top seed Central Bucks South in the second round on Wednesday. The unbeaten Titans (16-0-2) drew a first-round bye.

"It is what it is," Colonials coach Marianne Paparone said regarding her team's next opponent. She obviously was happy with the way her team played against the 16th-seeded Indians.

"We played with composure today and that should help us now," she said.

Colonials junior Mollie Gotzfread broke a scoreless tie with 10 minutes, 44 seconds to play in the first half with a shot from the penalty stroke line.

Sarah Naylor followed with another goal, this time off a penalty corner, with 8:51 to go in the half.

"That first goal was big," Gotzfread said. "I think we had been playing scared up to that point. Unionville had the ball at our end of the field most of the time up until then."

Gotzfread said she and her teammates had been looking to get back into the playoffs. They made them in her freshman year but failed last season.

"We lost 11 seniors my freshman year, so we're a young team right now, Gotzfread said. "I know several girls who play for Central Bucks South. They are on my club team. It will be interesting."

Unionville's Brielle Hartzell scored just before halftime to make it 2-1, but PW's Megan McCullough put the game away with pair of goals in the second half, both of them off penalty corners.

"I felt the game would come down to corners," said Unionville coach Caitlin Barbakoff, noting that three of the Colonials' goals came off corners.

The Indians matched the Colonials with nine corners but could not convert on any of them.

Unionville finished with an 11-5-2 record.

Plymouth Whitemarsh   2 2 - 4

Unionville   1 0 - 1

Goals: PW-Meg McCullough 2, Mollie Gotzfread, Sarah Naylor. U-Brielle Hartzell.

Saves: PW-Becky Stiteler 4. U-Sam Carlino 9.