CRANBERRY TWP — In a spirited “Battle of 228” matchup, the North Catholic girls’ soccer team held off a hard-charging Knoch squad Tuesday night, earning a 2–1 Class 2A Section 2 win in front of a lively crowd.
Knoch came out aggressive on offense, pushing the pace and creating chances, but it was North Catholic’s disciplined defense and timely execution that made the difference.
A pivotal moment came midway through the first half with a penalty when Knoch’s Allison Cristallino shoved North Catholic’s Frankie Liberati in the back. Senior Simone Sharpless calmly buried the penalty kick to even the score at 1–1 right before halftime. Sharpless struck again in the second half, finishing off an assist from Liberati that proved to be the game-winner.
From there, North Catholic leaned on its back line and goalkeeper to fend off relentless Knoch pressure.
“Our defenders didn’t get enough credit tonight, but they were outstanding,” said head coach D.J. Sharpless. “If they don’t defend like that, we don’t win this game. Bre (Rock) on the back line played awesome, and our keeper (Jules Tralongo) came up big, too.” Tralongo had 10 saves.
Sharpless praised the entire squad for grinding out the program’s first section win of the season.
“It feels good to start strong,” he said. “Every section game is tough, and Knoch is always a good, feisty team. We had some players out with injuries and one sick, so this was a real team effort.”
The victory moves North Catholic one step closer to establishing itself as a contender in one of the region’s most competitive sections, while Knoch showed it has the offensive firepower to challenge anyone along the Route 228 corridor.
