In the Council Rock boys derby, Ben Purcaro’s 12th minute goal proved to be enough in North’s 1-0 win over South Saturday afternoon.
The two teams met for the second time in three weeks, the earliest in the season for the rivalry, which is now in its twenty-fifth year.
Council Rock North (3-1-3, 2-0-3 SOL) got their first win since consecutive ties against Neshaminy (1-1) and Bensalem (0-0) earlier in the week, while Council Rock South (4-3-1, 2-2-1 SOL) suffered their first loss of the week after beating Truman (4-0) and Neshaminy (1-0).
Much like the 2-2 draw in the previous meeting, the teams played another closely contested game in which the midfield saw a bulk of the action with while neither defense gave away much. It took several minutes for either team to create a chance toward goal, and it happened to be Purcaro’s that broke the game open. David Morais sent a long diagonal ball on a North transition that beat the South backline, and Purcaro took it from there when he struck a low shot first-time in stride past South keeper Noah Selekman for the 1-0 lead.
“It was my first goal of the season,” Purcaro said after the game. “It got us where we needed to be. It was a tight game the whole time.”
Four minutes later, freshman Shane Murphy whipped a free kick into the box that Shaun Riley headed on goal, but Selekman made the first of many brilliant saves to keep the score line the same. In the 24th minute, South’s Michael Elko sent an early cross toward the North backline that Stephen Murray kept alive with a touch pass to Brian Hyans, but North keeper Eli Bermann made the save on Hyman’s bouncer. At the other end, Purcaro came with an inch of adding his second when he curled a shot from the top of the box that smacked the post.
North’s Tej Petel kept the South defenders on their heels with two chances, the first when he chased down a long ball and just missed Max Henry in front, and the second on a Shane Murphy free kick that he headed over the bar. South followed with another chance down the right side when Alex Abreu’s cross bounced up on Will Van Demark before the striker could connect on goal.
North came out of the break with more of the possession and eventually began to create some chances against South’s backline. Will Loudon took a solid half volley from distance that Selekman saved then Selekman made two incredible stops on Henry following a North counter attack. Andrew French fired high after keeping alive a North corner, and Hyans and Jake Sadkhin almost got on the end of a Murray flicked header, but Bermann charged the ball and scooped it up before the South forwards could get a final touch.
Midway through the half, Selekman made two more tremendous stops to deny Henry. After South put some extra pressure forward to grab an equalizer, Henry won a footrace on the counter and had a one-on-one breakaway to goal, but Selekman saved Henry’s shot with a quick reflexes. A minute later, Henry settled a free kick from midfield and sent a turning volley that was header for the top corner until Selekman pushed it aside with another big save.
In the final twenty minutes, South made a surge forward to find another late goal like they’d done in the previous matchup, but North held with a strong defense of their penalty area. Murray sent a free kick toward goal that just missed Hyans’ head in front, and Sadkhin couldn’t convert another free kick shortly after. Murray almost got on the end of a through-ball into space, but Bermann charged the top of the box and intervened. South had another corner that went through the box, missing Nolan Graham’s head and bouncing over Madden Burns’ attempted volley. Even in the closing seconds when Hyans’ flick found Fabio Nilli on the doorstep, South’s luck ran out when the striker’s volley ran high and wide.
Despite the loss, South coach Alan Nicholl was pleased with the way his team hung in the game. “We were very much in it,” he said after the game. “Their physicality and their style of play in the first forty minutes was difficult, but then to sit down at half time and have a chat about it then to come out and have them respond speaks to their resiliency and their ability to step up and meet a challenge.”
South’s other losses on the season have been against top opponents. Pennsbury is ranked number 2 in the district’s latest power rankings, and Archbishop Wood opened their PCL season with big wins over LaSalle and St. Joseph’s Prep, who also beat North.
“Playing in the SOL, there’s no easy games,” he said. “We’re going to play a dozen of these games this year. I think we’re always well-seasoned by the time playoffs roll around, and there’s not a team in the district that’ll want to see us, regardless of what the rank is.”
In two games against their rival, South’s All-League First Team keeper Noah Selekman could easily have been named Player of the Match and the 2026 series, something that didn’t surprise Nicholl. “His leadership, his communication, his ability, all you do is watch him. He’s terrific.” The senior goalkeeper made some outstanding saves from close range, but his box presence made it difficult for North to find the end of corners and long free kicks.
“He’s really owning the team and taking responsibilities and barking orders and not just being a player and goalkeeper, but a coach at times. So he’s invaluable.”
On the North side, Purcaro could have just as easily been named the Player of the Match. The senior midfielder also had an assist in the opening minutes of the draw against South three weeks ago and was a focal point of North’s attack down the sides.
“We have a lot of tenacity,” he said when asked about what’s led to his team’s strong start to the season. “We have a lot of chemistry together, and I feel like we can do good things with that.”
“He’s played well all year,” North coach Joe Stackhouse said after the game about Purcaro. “He’s a workhorse number one. He’s strong on the ball, and that was one of the things we talked about with quite a few of them in the off season.”
Stackhouse credited his team for creating more of the game’s chances and for winning many of the fifty-fifty challenges. Since the early week draws, he said his team had been working on shooting from tighter spaces, which would have led to more goals than in the previous games if not for Selekman’s performance. But as his team enters the heart of the season, progressing some of his younger players, he’s happy for the much-needed win over his rival.
“We only have one loss. Ties, it’s going to hurt us with the points the way the ranking system works, but just about every game we’ve played up to our capabilities.”
North will have another tough divisional matchup this week when they play Pennsbury on Tuesday, followed by games against CB South and defending state champs Abington next week.
South will square up against Bensalem this week then face Souderton and Wissahickon on the road next week.
CR North 0, CR South, 0
Council Rock South’s Madison Hyams made a great save in the first half, while her counterpart Sophia Mills made a point-blank stop in the second half for CR North to preserve a 0-0 draw in the first game of the 2026 derby.
The first matchup was postponed due to inclement weather, but nothing stopped the two rivals from locking up in a back and forth game decided by two strong defenses and timely saves by their keepers.
South (5-1-2, 3-1-2 SOL) entered the match with a five-game winning streak after taking down Neshaminy, Truman, and Quakertown earlier in the week. Lylah Day had a goal in all three games and added an assist in the Quakertown win. North (4-0-1, 3-0-1 SOL) was coming off wins against Bensalem and Neshaminy and has yet to concede a goal in the early part of their season. Sarina Igval had four goals and two assists in those two wins.
Both teams came out strong in the midfield, with each team asserting a physical presence to prevent the other from building any rhythm. In the opening minute, South’s Gulianna Conetta got behind the North defense on a long cross from wide left, but her redirection fell to Mills for an early save. Three minutes later, North’s Keegan Terry tested Hyams from distance, but the South keeper corralled the slow roller. Fifteen minutes in, North had their best chance of the game when Terry played Igval through the central defense on the right. Igval fought off a South challenge and blasted a volley that Hyams pushed away before Lianna Shikhvarger cleared it away. Another long distance shot from South that Mills easily saved provided the only real threats on either goal the rest of the half.
The second half opened up with both teams advancing more players forward as the mid-day temperature on the turf began to have an impact. Terry found some space down the left side and slipped a ball across to Isabel Diaz, who was making a surging run from deep, but Hyams came out to the top of the box and intervened before Diaz could get the final touch. Three minutes later, South’s Day and Conetta combined well down the right, and Conetta beat her defender to the end, but North’s Addison Martin deflected her cutback pass, and the North defenders shifted to the ball to keep away any follow-up on the far end.
Five minutes later, Igval dribbled deep into the left corner and crossed the ball to Terry, who settled before laying off to Sophia Cozza at the top of the box. Cozza created space for a shot with a deft Cruyff but couldn’t find the frame. Ten minutes later, Igval sent in an early cross to the near post that Brynn Rodgers just missed with a header wide.
After North created several more-half chances midway through the half, South had their best opportunity of the game when Claire Vizza chased down a through-ball down the left then slid a roller to Riley O’Halloran in front with only Mills to beat. O’Halloran struck it well with the inside of her foot, but Mills made a strong reaction save to keep the game scoreless.
Late in the game, Igval made several dangerous runs down the right side, but North couldn’t get the final touch, and Diaz one final chance off a throw-in, but her volley sailed over the bar.
“I think the outcome was fair,” North coach Gavin Flanagan said after the game. “South were probably better in the first half, more physical, more aggressive, but we had a majority of the play in the second half. They definitely had a great chance at the end, and Soph came up big for us.”
Though North created plenty of build-ups into the attacking third, the final passes may have hindered some of those chances from becoming shots on goal. “We feel like with the attacking players we have, we just want to connect to feet a lot. When we can connect in space, that’s great, but sometimes it’s too early and we force it. We need that extra touch or the extra moment to develop the play.”
North’s season started a little slower than most teams in terms of games played, but Flanagan is happy his team is still unbeaten while giving some younger players a chance to gel. “We’re still finding ourselves a little bit. We’ve got a lot of new girls, but we’ve got players who haven’t played a lot of varsity minutes, and some girls got into the game today for the first time.” Flanagan praised his back four and his keeper, who now have five clean sheets to start the season.
South head coach Nick Heim agreed with the Flanagan that the result was expected. “Both goalies had to make one real big save, and it’s what you come to expect in these games,” he said. Heim said that with him teaching some of the North players and Flanagan coaching some of the South players with Patriot FC, each were pretty familiar with what the other coach was going to do. And with South playing their rival after a busy week of action, the result was well-earned.
“This was our fourth game this week, so I’m really proud of the effort to match the intensity.”
Both teams will play their postponed game this Thursday at CR North. South will play upcoming games against Bensalem and CB South, while North will go up against Pennsbury and Pennridge in the next week. And as the team enter the heart of their league schedule, Heim sees the next few weeks as a mental challenge, something he feels is team is ready for.
“This group in particular has been in big moments. A lot of these kids have been starting for a couple years, and we have good leadership. So we’re just looking to do the things that we do well. I was proud of the defensive effort.” South has now gone six-straight games without conceding a goal.
North will host South Thursday night at Walt Snyder Stadium. Kickoff is at 7:00 p.m.
