Despite the best efforts of Lucy Gates in net, the Thunderbirds could not overcome the Lakewomen who controlled the game in a 5-0 victory to advance to the finals.

“When we came in, we weren’t really sure what to expect,” Chautauqua Lake head coach Cole Gleason said about Wilson. “They just play so well together. You can just tell they how they’re experienced. We’re a young team so we knew we had a big task ahead of us. We tried our best, but it just wasn’t the outcome we were hoping for.”

Wilson set the tone early in the match when it scored in just the second minute. That goal set the pace at which Wilson intended to play and it was fast and constantly attacking the net.

As a result of the Lakewomen’s relentless pressure, the Thunderbirds were forced to rely on the counterattack, but that was not even working as Wilson led 2-0 at halftime.

The Thunderbirds’ Emma Wolcott (20) and a Wilson player pursue the ball. OBSERVER Photo by Ashleigh Brown

“Lucy is an exciting player because she’s only in ninth grade,” Gleason said about his goalkeeper. “She’s already seen so much tremendous growth in the last two years. She kept us in the game longer than we should have been, because she made some amazing saves.”

Chautauqua Lake needed a big boost to get back in the game in the second half, but instead it faced a similar result as the first half. Once again, Wilson opened with a bang by netting a goal in the opening minute to advance its lead to 3-0.

“In any sport, momentum is a huge thing,” Gleason stated. “It’s not the way you want to start, but I was so proud of my girls. Whether we were down right at the start they always bounced back and gave 100 percent, so you can’t be more proud. Kudos to Wilson. They did come out strong every second of that game.”

From there the Lakewomen continued to pour on the pressure and even with the hard defensive play and quality goaltending, Wilson was able to build a 5-0 lead which it took to the end.

Chautauqua Lake continued battling until the very end. Jada Cole did everything she could with inspired runs down the wing where she showcased her dribbling and speed, but the Wilson defense still managed to keep the Thunderbirds off the scoreboard.

“The biggest thing we try to stress with every game and every practice is that we play with purpose,” Gleason said about his team. “We give 100 percent no matter what, whether it’s 5-0 us or 5-0 them, we never give up. Jada is just one of those players that does that. She went down with injury, had a sore foot, we put her back in and she still never gave up.”

The loss became just the third of the season for the Thunderbirds who finish 10-3-1 overall and with the win Wilson (13-4-0) will get a chance at revenge against No. 3 Frewsburg. The Bears eliminated Wilson in last year’s final.