MIDDLEBURG — Top-seeded Mifflinburg scored four first-half goals, and tacked on four more in the second half in an 8-0 win over fourth-seeded Athens here Saturday afternoon in the semifinals of the District 4, Class AAA girls soccer playoffs at Midd-West High School.

“We knew what we were coming up against,” said Athens coach Rich Pitts. “They’re a pretty talented team, they have a number of travel players.”

Pitts said the biggest challenge was matching Miff’s speed of play early in the game.

“I knew MIfflinburg was good,” he said. “The speed of play, we’ve seen it in some of our non-conference games. I just wanted the girls to work their way into the game, catch up to the speed of the game, and I thought they did.

“The question was, can we win a ball, get possession and move forward?“ he noted. “Can we work our way into the game, get on our front foot in the attacking end? I thought we did it.

“Even though the ball was in our end a ton, I didn’t think there was a ton of dangerous stuff.

“We got in their end, and couldn’t be clinical enough to finish,” Pitts continued. “We weren’t able to attack with enough numbers to sustain anything in their end.

“I think if we had been a little more aggressive when we did get it down there, I think we could have created a few more chances,” added Pitts.

Sarah Fritz gave Mifflinburg a 1-0 lead about 12 minutes into the game, then scored again about 5 1/2 minutes later on a hard shot that squirted through the hands of Athens keeper junior Karlee Bartlow.

Bartlow redeemed herself a few minutes later with a nice save on a 1-v-1.

Peyton Yocum converted a nice cross from Emily Walls with 16:09 remaining before the intermission to make it 3-0, and Taylor Beachy capped the first-half scoring with a shot from 35 yards out two minutes later.

Beachy scored twice in a 5 1/2-minute span midway through the second half to complete her hat trick, and extend the lead to 6-0 with 16:29 left in game.

Walls made it 7-0 about 2 1/2 minutes later, and Yocum capped the scoring with 8:45 remaining in the contest.

Mifflinburg improves to 18-1, while Athens wraps up the season with a 9-9 record.

Following the loss, Pitts reflected on the season.

“I thought (Hannah) Walker was a huge leader for us this year,” he said. “She plays defender for her club team, but I can put her anywhere. She’s had a stellar career here.

“I think Addison Wheeler is the best freshman I’ve had. In terms of how she acclimated herself, and took charge in the middle, I think she’s brilliant.

“We  were missing (Emma) Yohe because she got hurt, but having the Sayre girls has been big for us,” noted Pitts. “Kendra Merrill played tons of minutes, I don’t know if we would have been the same team without her.”

Pitts said the biggest addition to this year’s team came after preseason camp was already under way.

On the second day of practice, starting keeper Abby Champion suffered a season-ending injury.

“I asked Caydence (Macik) which basketball player wasn’t playing a fall sport, and Karlee (Bartlow) got the call.

“Karlee came in and worked and worked, and worked,” said Pitts. “Today was her 18th game ever of playing soccer in her life.

“Some of the things she did today were brilliant, and some of the things are things you’d expect from someone who has never played the game, and never played in goal.

“That girls is all heart,” added Pitts. “That scoreboard today does not say what (Karlee Bartlow) has done for us, stepping into a tough position and doing a fantastic job.”

HUGHESVILLE — Hughesville scored early in the second half on an Athens miscue to take a 2-0 lead on its way to a 3-1 win over Athens here Monday night in non-league girls soccer action.

“We played really well overall against a very good team,” said Athens coach Rich Pitts. “Our defense played really well all night

“I’m also happy with how we are getting forward and getting looks,” added Pitts. (But) we need to keep working on the finishing part.”

Kayleigh Rocker, off a feed from Haley Sherwood, gave the Lady Spartans a 1-0 lead midway through the first half.

The Lady Wildcats fell behind 2-0 about five minutes after the intermission on an own goal that was credited to Kate Forten.

Senior Hannah Walker put the Lady Wildcats on the board about 2 1/2 minutes later with a free kick from 20 yards out to trim the deficit to 2-1.

“It was a perfect strike into the upper-90,” said Pitts.

However, sophomore Sophia Clark found the net from 25 yards out on a free kick with 19 1/2 minutes remaining to put Hughesville up 3-1.

Hughesville had an 8-4 edge in shots-on-goal, and a 7-1 advantage in corner kicks.

Karlee Bartlow recorded seven saves in net for the Lady Wildcats.

Athens, now 9-8, returns to action Thursday when it travels to Northeast Bradford.

ATHENS — Bloomsburg scored in the 11th minute of the game, and then tacked on an insurance goal late in a 2-0 non-league win over Athens here on a rainy Saturday morning.

“We played really great soccer in tough conditions,” said Athens coach Rich Pitts. “I challenged the girls pre game to put a total 80 minutes together, and we had only two moments that cost us goals.

“They did what I asked game-plan wise, other than finishing a few balls,” he noted. “We were way better going forward and attacking. 

“On to Monday for another tough, non-conference match-up that I think we we ready for,” added Pitts, in reference to the Lady Wildcats’ trip to Hughesville.

Elaina Flick put Bloomsburg on the board about 10 1/2 minutes in the game on a shot that slipped through the hands of the Athens keeper.

With 5:44 remaining in the contest, freshman Teagan Serrano scored on a direct kick to provide the final margin.

Athens had a 4-3 advantage in shots-on-goal, and a 1-0 edge in corner kicks.

Athens falls to 9-7 on the season.

TOWANDA — Senior Hannah Walker scored midway through the first half to lift Athens to a 1-9 win over Towanda here Thursday night in NTL girls soccer action.

“Defensively, we did a really ice job,” said Athens coach Rich Pitts. “Towanda played really hard tonight and battled for 80 minutes.

“I thought we played OK in moments, but we need to be a whole lot better offensively,” added Pitts. “So, the next two weeks we need to work in the offensive end more. “

Athens outshot Towanda, 10-2, and had a 7-0 edge in corner kicks.

Athens, now 9-6, hosts Bloomsburg Saturday at 11 a.m.

EAST TROY — Troy scored four first-half goals, and pulled out a 5-3 win over Athens here Saturday morning to take sole possession of first place in the NTL girls soccer standings.

Troy, which has not won an outright NTL title since 2010, improves to 7-1 in the league standings, while Athens falls to 6-2. The win also avenges a 3-2 early-season loss at Athens.

Addy Parker scored four goals for Troy, to offset a hat trick by Athens senior Hannah Walker.

Parker put the Lady Trojans on the board in the 5th minutes, then took a through-ball from Camille McRoberts in the 12th minutes and knocked it past Athens keeper junior Karlee Bartlow to make it 2-0.

Less than a minute later, junior Alli Thoman set up Walker  for her first goal to trim the deficit to 2-1.

Four minutes later, freshman Addison Wheeler found Walker outside the box, and she drove a shot from 30 yards out over the keeper’s head to tie the game at 2-2.

Shortly after the tying goal, the Lady Wildcats had a chance to take the lead on a direct kick, but it sailed wide.

Troy controlled the action for the majority of the next 40 minutes.

With 9:59 remaining in the first half, Parker slid a pass through the defense to Makena Matthews, who punched a shot into the net to give the Lady Trojans a 3-2 lead.

With just 1:11 left before the intermission, Parker, off a feed from Anneleise Getola, gave troy a 4-2, which it would carried into the half.

After the intermission, Troy kept the ball in the Athens defensive end for the first 15 minutes, but Barlow and company kept the Lady Trojans off the board.

After an Athens counter came up empty, Parker and McRoberts each got off shots that were on target, but Barlow made nice saves on both to keep the score 4-2.

After a leaping save by Barlow, Walker worked her way down the field and punched a shot past Troy keeper Madelyn Seeley to pull Athens within a goal, at 4-3, with 16:37 remaining in the contest.

But 5 1/2 minutes later, the Athens defense was able to clear a ball out of the box after a Troy direct kick, and Parker knocked a shot into the back of the net to make it 5-3.

Troy had a 12-7 advantage in shots-on-goal and a 5-0 edge in corner kicks.

Barlow had seven saves for Athens, while Seeley had four for Troy.

Athens, now 8-6 overall, returns to action next Saturday when it hosts Bloomsburg.

ATHENS — Athens bounced back from its first league loss Tuesday with a dominant performance in a 5-0 win over Northeast Bradford here Thursday night in NTL girls soccer action.

“It’s a great bounce-back win for us,” said Athens coach Rich Pitts. “We played amazing soccer throughout the match.

“We feel like we are hitting our stride at the right time, but understand after Tuesday night, we have no room for error,” noted Pitts in reference to the Lady Wildcats’ 3-2 home loss to Wyalusing.

“We played a really talented NEB team tonight and performed at a great level,” added Pitts. “We were able to go deep into our bench and allow players who have been working very hard to get valuable playing time for the future.”

The Lady Wildcats took an early lead when sophomore Kendra Merrill took a through-ball from senior Delaney Stedge and deposited it into the back of the net.

In the 27th minute, senior Hannah Walker took a feed from freshman Addison Wheeler and beat the NEB keeper for the first of her three goals in the game to make it 2-0.

About six minutes later, sophomore Mya Thompson set up Walker for a point-blank shot extend the lead to 3-0, which is where it stood at the half.

In the opening minutes of the second half, Walker returned the favor and set Thompson up for a close-range shot that found the net to make it 4-0.

Walker finished off her hat trick with an unassisted goal about three minutes later to push the Lady Wildcat lead to 5-0.

Holly Towner put NEB on the board in the 75th minute to provide the final margin.

Athens had a 12-8 advantage in shots-on-goal, but NEB had a 4-1 edge in corner kicks.

Junior Karlee Bartlow registered five saves in net for Athens.

The Lady Wildcats, now 8-5 overall, are 6-1 in the league and tied atop the NTL standings with Troy. They play at Troy Saturday morning.

ATHENS — Wyalusing made the most of its three shots-on-goal as Olivia Haley scored in the final two minutes of the game to lift the Lady Rams to a 2-1 win over Athens here Tuesday afternoon in NTL girls soccer action at Alumni Stadium.

The loss is the first in league play for the Lady Wildcats, who are now 5-1. They fall into a first-place tie with Troy. Wyalusing and NEB are 1 game back.

“I thought the girls executed our game plan and we played great ‘soccer,’” said Athens coach Rich Pitts.
 
“We faced a lot of adversity throughout the game, but nothing we haven’t seen before when playing them the last two years,” noted Pitts.

“I am proud of the girls, and how they handled themselves to the end,” he added. “We will get back to work and prepare for NEB.”

The Lady Wildcats struck first midway through the first half when senior Hannah Walker set up freshman Addison Wheeler for a goal to make it 1-0.

Layla Botts tied the in the 30th minute, and the game went to the half tied at 1-1.

With 1:57 remaining in the game, Haley scored an unassisted goal to give the Lady Rams a 2-1 lead.

Athens had a 7-3 advantage in shots-on-goal, and a 4-3 edge in corner kicks.

Pearl O’Connor had six saves for Wyalusing, while Karlee Bartlow had one for Athens.

Athens, now 7-5 overall, hosts NEB Thursday night.

TIOGA JUNCTION — Freshman Addison Wheeler scored the game’s lone goal about 10 1/2 minutes in to lift Athens to a 1-0 win over Williamson here Saturday afternoon in NTL girls soccer action.

“I thought we played really good soccer,” said Athens coach Rich Pitts. “We put the ball on the floor, and moved it up an down the field better than we have all year.

“We were not quite good enough on the final shot, or final pass in there end though,” noted Pitts. “So, we will work on that this week.

“Big props to Williamson and that coaching staff,” added Pitts. “He has made them a very formidable program in a short time. I was impressed with how they played the game the entire 80 minutes.”

Wheeler took a cross from senior Hannah Walker, and knocked it past the Williamson keeper to put the Lady Wildcats up 1-0 with 29:33 remaining in the first half.

Athens outshot Williamson, 15-3, and had an 8-0 edge in corner kicks.

Karlee Bartlow had three saves in net for the Lady Wildcats, while Ashley Woodring recorded 14 saves for Williamson.

Athens is now 7-4 overall, but is atop the NTL standings at 5-0 — 1 game ahead of Troy.
 
“Overall, I am happy where we are in the league, and I’m looking forward to a tough week upcoming.”

The Lady Wildcats host Wyalusing Tuesday and NEB Thursday, before closing out the week Saturday morning at Troy.

ATHENS — Senior Hannah Walker netted a hat trick, and junior Alli Thoman had two goals and two assists to lead Athens a 5-0 win over Towanda in its annual “Pink Out” game here Tuesday evening in NTL girls soccer action.

The “Pink Out” game is played annually each year to honor the memory of former Athens Area standout Sarah Reid, a 2021 graduate who was tragically killed in an auto accident shortly after graduation.

Walker scored her first goal, off a feed from Thoman, gave the Lady Wildcats a 1-0 lead in the 8th minutes, but Towanda’s Kelsea Allen-Smith scored about 4 1/2 minutes later to tie the game at 1-1.

Midway through the half, Walker took a through-ball from Thoman and beat the keeper to make it 2-1.

Thoman tacked on unassisted goal to give the Lady Wildcats a 3-1 halftime lead.

About 6 1/2 minutes after the intermission, Thoman scored on a header to make it 4-1. Waker and freshman Addison Wheeler were both credited with assists.

Walker capped the scoring late in the game with a direct kick from 25 yards out.

Towanda had a 10-9 edge in shots-on-goal, while Athens had a 4-3 advantage in corner kicks.

Junior Karlee Bartlow recorded nine saves in net for Athens.

Athens improves to 5-0 in league play, and 6-4 overall.

The Lady Wildcats return to action Oct. 5 when it hosts Wyalusing.

WELLSBORO — Senior Hannah Walker scored one goal, and assisted on the other to lead Athens to a 2-0 win over Wellsboro here Monday afternoon in NTL girls soccer action.

With the win, Athens improves to 4-0 in league play, and leads the NTL by 1 game over Wyalusing.

Overall, the Lady Wildcats are 5-4, with losses to Vestal, Fayetteville-Manlius, and New Hartford, as well as a 6-1 loss at Shikellamy Saturday.

Athens coach Rich Pitts said his team’s tough non-league slate paid dividends in the win.

“I thought we had good possession, and our build-up was pretty good,” he said. “And, I thought our speed of play was better because of the tough games we’ve been playing.

“We came out today after a tough game Saturday, but the speed of play for us was on, and I thought that showed through for the whole match,” added Pitts.

Athens took the lead in the 8th minute when Walker drove toward the end line, and sent a pass into the box, where junior Alli Thoman one-touched it past the Wellsboro keeper.

“We talked about wanting to test (Wellsboro) down the flank a little bit,” said Pitts. “And, we switched our formation from what we played them last time. We played a 4-4-2 last time, and today went back to a 4-5-1.

“We got into space, and Hannah (Walker) was able to beat the girl around the corner,” added Pitts. “She picked her head up and Alli (Thoman) made a great driving run to it, got her foot on it, and knocked it in. It was a great goal.”

With 6:11 remaining in the first half, Walker drove home a free kick from just outside the 18 to make it 2-0.

“That’s Walker’s third free kick goal,” said Pitts. “I would have liked it a little farther to the far post, but it was a good stiff hit. It was a nice goal.”

Athens had a 13-4 advantage in shots-on-goal, and a 4-1 edge in corner kicks.

Pitts paid props to Wellsboro keeper Lilly Abadi, who had 11 saves.

“Last time we played them, we had a lot of good chances, but we weren’t clinical enough in front of the net and put balls on the frame,” said Pitts. “We talked about it on the bus ride here, that we had to test (Abadi) … I thought she stood on her head tonight.

“They play good defense in front of her,” added Pitts. “They’re very courageous and throw their bodies in front of ball so things don’t get to her, but when things get to her, she’s good. She had a great game tonight."

Athens travels to Towanda tonight.

SUNBURY, Pa. — Athens took the early lead, but Shikellamy scored three quick goals late in the first half, then three more late in the game on its way to a 6-1 win here Saturday afternoon in non-league girls soccer action.

“The first half of both halves we played really well and we were ahead early,” said Athens coach Rich Pitts. “But we made some mistakes and it continues to cost us goals against the good teams.

“Compare this weekend to last weekend though, and we are stringing longer periods of good play together as we head toward league play and districts,” added Pitts.

Freshman Addison Wheeler collected a rebound off a hard shot, and gave Athens an early 1-0 lead, but Shik’s Averi Dodge scored the first of her four goals in the 17th minutes to tie the game.

Wiley Egan scored about five minutes later, and Dodge scored again in the 29th minute to give the Lady Braves a 3-1 lead it would carry into the intermission.

With 16 minutes remaining in the game, Dodge finished off her hat trick to make it 4-1.

McKenna Zellers scored three minutes later for Shik, and Dodge capped the scoring with 5 minutes remaining in the contest.

Shik had an 18-4 advantage in shots-on-goal, and a 4-1 edge in corner kicks.

Junior Karlee Bartlow recorded 12 saves in net for the Lady Wildcats.

Athens, now 4-4, returns to action Monday at Wellsboro.

ATHENS — Senior Hannah Walker scored late in the first half, and the Athens defense made the stand for the final 41-plus minutes in a 1-0 win here Wednesday night in NTL girls soccer action.

The Lady Wildcats, coming off back to-back losses to N.Y. state powers Fayetteville-Manlius and New Hartford, in which they were outscored 11-1, bounced back with a “big league win.”

“I thought we did some really nice things tonight, then I thought we looked a little off after a long weekend,” said Athens coach Rich Pitts.

“I was proud of the girls,” he noted. “They worked hard even if they were not as sharp as they have have been.

“It’s a good win in the league,” added Pitts. “Now, we have to prep for a good (Class) AAA match-up with Shik(ellamy) on Saturday.”

Walker found the back of the net, off an assist from junior Alli Thoman, with 1:40 remaining in the first half. The final 41:20 was a scoreless battle.

The Lady Wildcats dominated play with 13 shots-on-goal to just two for Wellsboro. Both teams had three corner kicks.

Lilly Abadi had 12 saves in net for Wellsboro, while junior Karlee Bartlow had just two for Athens.

Athens, now 4-3, is on the road at Shikellamy Saturday.

BALDWINSVILLE — It was a tough weekend for the Lady Wildcats, who dropped a pair of decisions at the Baldwinsville Tournament.

On Saturday, Fayetteville-Manlius topped Athens, 5-1. Today, state-ranked New Hartford blanked them, 6-0.

“In spite of the score, the girls played their hearts out all weekend,” said Athens coach Rich Pitts. “We had very good game plans and executed a lot of what I wanted to accomplish.

“We are a better team after this weekend and just like in years passed, this will battle-test us for districts and league,” he noted.

Saturday
Fayetteville-Manlius 5, Athens 1
F-M led 2-0 at the half en route to a 5-1 win over Athens Saturday afternoon

Senior Hannah Walker knocked how a direct kick from 30 yards out to trim the deficit to 2-1 about 5 minutes after the intermission.

F-M answered in the 53rd minute to make it 3-1, and tacked on two goals for the final margin.

F-M had a 25-2 advantage in shots-on-goal, and a 7-1 edge in corner kicks.

Junior Karlee Bartlow recorded 17 saves in net for the Lady Wildcats

Sunday
New Hartford 6, Athens 0
New Hartford controlled the action on its way to a 6-0 win Sunday afternoon.

“New Hartford to me is a clear favorite to win a state title,” said Pitts. “They would beat every team I can think of in District 4. They are loaded with three or four Division 1 players.  

“I can’t say enough about how well we played,” added Pitts. “Their coach came over after and told me we gave them a really tough match.”

New Hartford had a 26-1 advantage in shots-on-goal, and a 10-0 edge in corner kicks.

Bartlow registered 19 saves in net for Athens.

Athens, now 3-3, returns to action Wednesday when it hosts Wellsboro, then travels to Shikellamy Saturday.

MANSFIELD — Freshman Addy Wheeler, and junior Alli Thoman each netted hat tricks to lead Athens to an 8-0 win over North Penn-Mansfield here Thursday afternoon in NTL girls soccer action.

Senior Hannah Walker was also a major contributor in the win, scoring one goal, and doling out six assists.

The Lady Wildcats opened the scoring about 2 1/2 minutes into the game when Wheeler re-directed a corner kick from Walker past the keeper. It was Wheeler’s first varsity goal.

A few minutes later, Walker received a long ball, dribbled about 20 yards, and fired a shot into the back of the net to make it 2-0.

Thoman got on the board later in the half when she took a through-ball from Walker and knocked home a shot from just inside the 18 to up the lead to 3-0.

Taylar Fisher capped the first-half scoring, with her first varsity goal on a penalty kick to make it 4-0.

Wheeler scored the first two goals of the second half to complete her hat trick, then Thoman scored the next two to do the same thing. Walker assisted on all four goals.

Athens had a 19-2 advantage in shots-on-goal, and a 4-2 edge in corner kicks.

Junior Karlee Bartlow had two saves in net for Athens, while Tierney Patterson had 11 saves for NP-M.

Athens, now 3-1, face Fayetteville-Manlius Saturday in the opening game of the Baldwinsville Tournament.

ATHENS — Junior Alli Thoman scored a pair of goals early in the second half to lift Athens to a come-from-behind, 3-2, win over Troy here Monday evening in a key early-season NTL girls soccer match-up.

“That was a huge win tonight,” said Athens coach Rich Pitts. “We needed the win to set the tone in our conference as the NTL is important for us each year.

“We have a ton of respect for Troy and knew they would come to battle,” he noted.

“I thought every girl stepped up, and played their heart out for 80 minutes,” added Pitts. “We played our way into the game a bit, but hit our stride as the game went on.”

Senior Hannah Walker gave the Lady Wildcats the early lead with a goal about 13 1/2 minutes into the game. The goal was set up by Thoman and freshman Addy Wheeler, who were both credited with assists.

About six minutes later, Addy Parker scored off a feed from Camille McRoberts to tie the game at 1-1.

Two minutes after that, McRoberts found the net from long distance to give the Lady Trojans a 2-1 lead.

About 3 minutes into the second half, senior defender Caydence Macik fed Thoman, and she fired a shot into the net to tie the game at 2-2.

With 24:38 remaining in the contest, Thoman took a cross from Walker and found the net again to give the Lady Wildcats a 3-2 lead.

Athens continued to pressure the Troy net, but keeper Madelyn Seeley was up to the task.
 
Troy outshot Athens, 12-10, and had a 3-2 advantage in corner kicks.

Junior Karlee Bartlow had 10 saves in net for Athens, and Seeley had seven for Troy.

Pitts was pleased with his team’s performance.

“I was really pleased with Karlee (Bartlow) in goal. She made some incredible saves,” he said. “The back four — Mia Robinson Caydence (Macik), Kaylee (Grazul), and Taegan Williams — was really sound.  

“The midfield worked extremely hard up and down the field,” noted Pitts. “Mya (Robinson), Addy (Wheeler), Taylar (Fisher), Abby Panek and Kendra just ran all night.
 
“And up top, (Hannah) Walker and Alli (Thoman) created really good mismatches in how they played together,” Pitts added.

Athens, now 2-1, returns to action Wednesday at Williamson.