Portville, which won Class C last year, is in first place, while Chautauqua Lake of Class D is in 7th place.

Chautauqua Lake, with its increased class size, was immediately tested in the pre-quarterfinal against No. 10 Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Athletic Association Division champion Gowanda. The Eagles showed they are ready for the challenge by defeating the Panthers 25-6, 26-24, 25-23 on Monday.

“Going into the play-offs this year, we knew there were no bad teams in group ‘C’ for the play-offs.” said Chautauqua Lake head coach Joanne Meadows. “This is something completely different. Sometimes you play an underdog in the first round, and we knew going into Gowanda this year that he wasn’t an underdog. “This is a tough first draw for the pre-quarters.”

Chautauqua Lake was nearly perfect in the opening set, giving up consecutive points only once in the frame and even recording an eight-point run that featured three aces from seventh-grader Brina Jacobson.

Gowanda’s Envy Cross (8) blocks the surge of Chautauqua Lake’s Sydney Williams. OBSERVER Photo: Christian Storms

“We talked before in the locker room that this was the first step, so I think they’re pretty focused on that.” Meadows talked about the team’s title defense. “They started the first set without making too many mistakes, so I think that was an important way to set the tone for the rest of the night.”

The Eagles took a 7-2 lead in the second set and it looked like the night would end early, but the visiting Panthers had shown why they were Class C2 finalists a year ago.

Gowanda began to hold its own and scored a few short points to take a 9-8 lead and show Chautauqua Lake that this was not a simple game.

“I was so proud of the girls after suffering such a bad defeat in the first one.” said Gowanda head coach Brenda Gernatt. “Instead of giving up, they fought back to nearly win in the second and then again in the third. “I was proud of the girls for having the mentality of refusing to lose, especially after going through such a tough first defeat.”

Chautauqua Lake’s offense struggled to find the points it had easily achieved in the first set, and a big part of that was the Gowanda defense at the net. Eventually with senior Lauren Kelly and freshman Envy Cross serving as middle hitters, the duo combined for 12 blocks, with Cross recording five kills and four digs to go along with seven in her first varsity playoff game.

Chautauqua Lake’s Kinslee Motter blocks a shot from Gowanda’s Elizabeth Green. OBSERVER Photo: Christian Storms

“He did an outstanding job for us tonight.” Gernatt mentioned Cross. “I couldn’t be more proud of him. We took it off Jayvee. His dream is to play in college one day, and that’s something that needs to be worked on to get him there. She’s only in the ninth grade and she led our team in blocks, she was a force to be reckoned with at the net and I know all the girls fed off of that. Envy will be a great player.”

For a while it looked like the Panthers would steal the second set after a dismal first frame. The Eagles continued to stall until their offense found a way to take back the lead. Trailing 22-19, Chautauqua Lake defeated Gowanda 6-2 and took a 2-0 lead.

While the second set was close from start to finish, Gowanda took control of the third set and ended the season. The Panthers took a 7-4 lead and soon had their longest streak of the night, scoring six straight goals, including a pair of aces by Addison Kota, to take a 15-11 lead.

Chautauqua Lake recovered by taking a timeout to slow the momentum of the Panthers, led by Holland Browning with six kills, 10 digs and one block, Kota finished with two aces, one assist and five digs, Kelly had five blocks, two digs Jill Gernatt had seven assists and Liz Green added five digs and a kill.

While many Chautauqua Lake players have seasoned experience and have already been crowned champions, the young team showed how well it plays when trailing. The Eagles went on a five-point run to take a 17-16 lead and then closed out the 25-23 victory.

Gowanda’s Lauren Kelly blocks Chautauqua Lake’s Jeanine Group during Monday’s pre-Section VI Class C quarterfinal volleyball match at Chautauqua Lake Central School. OBSERVER Photo: Christian Storms

“We are so young” Meadows said of his team. “We have one senior, two juniors, five sophomores, one freshman, two eighth graders and one seventh grader. One of the things I think about when I’m raising kids, besides talent, is, are they going to be able to handle the pressure of being on the varsity team and the pressure that comes with that? “These kids play a lot of club, we have a pretty good club team here, so they were playing a lot of high-level volleyball until we got them.”

Chautauqua Lake was led by Jacobson with three aces, seven kills, 14 digs and 13 assists, while Jeanine Group had 10 kills, two aces and six digs, Alice Scarpine had 16 digs and two aces and Kinslee Motter added eight kills and two digs.

“We are carrying out an attack that I made up myself” Meadows stated. “It’s a modified 4-2 or 6-2 because I didn’t want to take any of my kids out of batting. Even my setters hit really well, which is nice to have. For example, if Kinslee is really in the game, let’s keep giving him the ball, or if Noli is really in the game, let’s give him the ball. “I really like being in a position where the other team can’t block a single person.”

Gowanda finished its season with a 13-5 overall record and a share of the CCAA D2 title.

“Class C is stacked” Gernatt added. “We knew this was going to be a tough game no matter how you look at it, no matter who we lined up with. … No matter how you look at it, we’re strong and we’re facing the previous state champion. They’re a good team. Exceptional defense, and we knew this was coming.”

Brina Jacobson of Chautauqua Lake is preparing for a spike. OBSERVER Photo: Christian Storms

It will not be easy for the Eagles, who go to 2nd Eden (13-3) on Wednesday, in the quarter-finals.