Lake Placid’s Kendra Levitt takes a shot on net during the playoff game against Indian Lake/Long Lake on Oct. 22. (News photo — Parker O’Brien)

CHAZY — The Lake Placid girls soccer team’s hopes of making a run at the Section VII, Class D title came to a heartbreaking end on Oct. 27 as the Blue Bombers lost to the host Chazy Eagles in penalty kicks.

The Eagles won 4-2 in the penalty shootout in the sectional semifinal round after the game finished 0-0. The young Blue Bombers squad had battled all evening, but just couldn’t find the back of the net.

“Ella Moodey and Kendra Levitt are two very talented players up front for Lake Placid and put pressure on us all night,” Chazy head coach John Tregan said in a statement. “They both show experience far beyond their grade.”

The Blue Bombers finished with an 8-7 advantage in shots as Chazy’s goalie Calleigh Clark had nine saves and Lake Placid’s Emma Clark stopped seven.

“Both goalies made some big stops multiple times during the game. Emma Clark is always aggressive in the box and is fearless,” Tregan stated. “Calleigh Clark made some really dangerous balls over the top seem routine by coming early and calling balls early and often. She also made a save, trapping a hard shot against the crossbar.”

Lake Placid’s Eliza Fitzsimmons dribbles the ball during the Section VII, Class D semifinal game against Indian Lake/Long Lake on Oct. 22. (News photo — Parker O’Brien)

Lake Placid, which ended its season with an 11-5-2 overall record, had won 10 of its last 12 games prior to this semifinal match.

“It really is unfortunate in some ways that it ended this way in a shootout,” Tregan stated. “Two really well-organized and skilled teams. As the score shows, there really wasn’t much between us.”

The Eagles, which claimed the Section VII, Class D crown last season, will return to the title game once again, where they will face the Boquet Valley Griffins at Plattsburgh High School. The Griffins are the top seed in the sectional tournament.

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Quarterfinal round

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The Lake Placid girls soccer team earned a 3-0 home victory over the Indian Lake/Long Lake Orange on Oct. 22 in the quarterfinal round of the Section VII, Class D playoffs.

Sophomore Kendra Levitt scored twice for Lake Placid, while freshman Ella Moodey added a goal and two assists. The Blue Bombers previously beat the Orange twice during the regular season.

While the team had been on a roll, they got off to a bit of a slow start — for them — on Oct. 22. But Lake Placid’s head coach, Heather Brewer, suspected that might happen.

“I think it’s hard when you beat a team twice, to really be set (the next time),” she said.

The Blue Bombers broke through on the scoreboard when Moodey connected on a direct kick in the first half. After the intermission, Levitt buried a shot over the head of Indian Lake/Long Lake’s goalie, Daphne Seaman to push the advantage to 2-0.

Levitt then capped off the scoring with a goal from in close with just around seven minutes left in the match.

Lake Placid’s junior goalie, Emma Clark, recorded five saves en route to her fifth shutout this season. Seaman had 13 stops for the Orange.

The Blue Bombers controlled possession throughout most of the contest and finished with an 18-6 advantage in shots. However, Brewer thought they should have had more goals.

“Long Lake definitely showed up today, but I also think we were a little bit better than the final score,” she said. “So it was a good team effort on our part to go out there (and win because) we’re young.”

Brewer added that it was good to get some of the playoff jitters out of the way, especially since more than half of the team’s roster is made up of sophomores and freshmen.