On the game’s first drive, Chautauqua Lake/Westfield/Brocton (2-2, 2-2) sustained a long drive that chewed up more than eight minutes of the first quarter, thanks to four first downs on the ground before the Thunderbirds even attempted a pass.

“Our line did a phenomenal job, because it got into some obvious running down situations,” said Thunderbirds coach Bryan Bongiovanni. “Our line was able to win the line of scrimmage to move the ball and eat up some of the clock.”

However, Cassadaga Valley/Falconer (0-4, 0-3) forced a turnover on downs at its own 23-yard line to finally get the ball for the first time.

The Golden Cougars certainly made the most of their first opportunity. While the 8:09 drive for the Thunderbirds did not result in points, it took just two plays and 40 seconds for the Golden Cougars to find the end zone. Noah Abram, the Golden Cougars’ leading rusher on the season, broke free from the Thunderbirds defense and took off for a 77-yard touchdown run to put the visitors on top 6-0.

Thunderbirds running back Ryan Jafarjian (24) is brought down by Golden Cougars defender Noah Abram (22) during Saturday’s game in Mayville. OBSERVER Photo by Braden Carmen.

“I thought we were off and running,” said Cassadaga Valley/Falconer coach Joel Sopak. “I thought it was going to all come together.”

After the touchdown, however, the Golden Cougars were unable to convert on a two-point conversion and the score remained at 6-0.

“We knew Noah (Abram) is a tough back. We watched the tape and we know what he’s capable of,” said Bongiovanni. “That was kind of a hit to us, but we’ve got to give our boys credit. They didn’t really give up anything after that. That was a good play by them, but credit to us for buckling down and not letting it affect us.”

The Thunderbirds were unable to answer on the next drive, as a 4th-and-3 resulted in a turnover on downs. The Thunderbirds fumbled on the next drive, as star running back Ryan Jafarjian couldn’t hold on to a slippery football as the rain started to lightly fall.

As the first half wound down, the Thunderbirds had one last opportunity to score before the break. On fourth down in the red zone, Chautauqua Lake’s Zach Martin connected with Brendon Rowe on a 7-yard touchdown pass to tie the score at 6-6. Then came the extra point attempt, in a slight rain, where Nick Putcher (of Brocton) connected to give the Thunderbirds a 7-6 lead with under a minute to go in the first half.

Thunderbirds running back Ryan Jafarjian is hit in the backfield in the pouring rain during Saturday’s game in Mayville. OBSERVER Photo by Braden Carmen.

“In a low-scoring game, those extra points are huge,” said Bongiovanni. “Putcher came through huge for us.”

At halftime, what was a slight, consistent drizzle turned into a much heavier rainfall. The second half became much more difficult playing conditions for both sides, which resulted in each team not being able to use its passing attack as much as each coach would have liked.

“We were going to try to throw a little bit more … but when it started raining like that, we went back to the run,” said Sopak.

The Thunderbirds missed out on an opportunity to extend the lead in the third quarter, after a 3rd-and-4 from just inside the Cassadaga Valley/Falconer 5-yard line resulted in a bad snap that Chautauqua Lake’s Martin was forced to fall on all the way back at the 23-yard line. One of the few passing attempts of the game sailed high over a receiver in the end zone on the next play to end the drive. The rest of the quarter did not see a major scoring opportunity for either side.

In the fourth quarter, the Thunderbirds had the ball in prime field position again with hopes of extending the lead. However, yet again the opportunity did not turn into points. The Golden Cougars came up with an interception of Martin in the red zone to get the ball back, down just a point, with just under six minutes remaining in the contest.

The Golden Cougars were forced into a 4th-and-long situation in their own territory, and rather than punting it away, Cassadaga Valley/Falconer went for the first down. The Thunderbirds were able to force a turnover on downs to regain possession, then found themselves in a fourth down situation of their own. Needing a first down to ice the game, Chautauqua Lake’s senior quarterback playing on his home field for the final time, was told by Coach Bongiovanni to go win the game. Needing four yards, Martin took the quarterback keeper up the middle to convert on fourth down to put the game away.

“We just needed those quick-hit plays. We wanted to get away from the mentality of trying to hit a home run on every play,” said Bongiovanni. “On that last run, I told (Martin) on senior night to go get us a first down and he got it. It’s great to see that from one of your leaders.”

Chautauqua Lake/Westfield/Brocton improves to 2-2 on the season and faces another 2-2 team in Class C South, Fredonia, next week. Fredonia comes in off a 42-0 loss to Southwestern, which was the same exact score when the Thunderbirds faced the same foe. Coach Bongiovanni’s Thunderbirds will host Fredonia – the team he played for in high school and the former host school of both Westfield and Brocton – on Friday at Westfield Academy. Westfield and Brocton seniors will celebrate their senior night on Friday.

With Saturday’s loss, Cassadaga Valley/Falconer falls to 0-4 overall, with each of the last three wins all coming by fewer than six points. The Golden Cougars travel to Gowanda, who is also 0-4, on Friday night.

“It seems like every week, we’re right there. We just can’t finish,” said Sopak. “We always seem to just not pull it out. … It’s just tough.”

In the end, it was a quarterback sneak to seal the victory for the Thunderbirds, after getting a crucial push at the line of scrimmage by the offensive line. The difference on the scoreboard wound up being the extra point that the Thunderbirds were able to convert. In the pouring rain on Saturday night, all of those little things – from one extra point to four yards on a quarterback sneak – were the difference in the outcome.

“Being a merged team, having three schools come together playing as one, it was great to see everybody have everyone’s back,” said Bongiovanni.