Chautauqua Lake catcher Karagan Fairbank tags out Bloomfield’s Sydney Falsone at the plate after trying to stretch a triple into a home run during Friday’s Class C Far West Regional at Frontier High School. P-J photo by Braden Carmen

HAMBURG — As the saying goes, “It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.”

But for Chautauqua Lake on Friday night, the way the game started determined how it finished.

The Bloomfield Bombers scored four runs in the top of the first inning and never looked back on the way to a 6-0 win over the Chautauqua Lake Eagles in a Class C Far West Regional softball game at Frontier High School.

“It just wasn’t our day, and that’s the way it goes sometimes,” said Chautauqua Lake head coach Katie Yudin.

Bloomfield (22-1, Section V Champion) wasted no time pulling ahead, as the leadoff batter, Sydney Falsone, reached on an error. After advancing on a fielder’s choice, she later scored the first run of the game on a one-out single to right field by Calla McCombs. That hit was the first of four consecutive singles in the inning, three of which drove in runs. A fourth run came in on a groundout to put the Bombers ahead 4-0 before Chautauqua Lake (15-4, Section VI Champion) even came to the plate.

Four runs normally would not be an insurmountable deficit, but it seemed like the game was over before it began.

Bloomfield pitcher Ashlyn Wright was absolutely dominant. Entering the contest with an earned run average of 0.39 on the season, Wright somehow made that number shrink even more thanks to an overpowering mix of heaters and offspeed pitches.

“(Wright) did a great job throwing today. She threw strikes, and their fielders backed her up and made some good plays when we did put it into play a few times,” Yudin said.

Wright took a perfect game into the fourth inning and never let a runner advance beyond second base. She struck out 14 batters, including the final three of the game, while only allowing two hits and three walks.

Bloomfield added a run in the third inning and another in the fourth inning on the only extra base hit of the game. After the nine-hitter, Sawyer Gallup, reached on an error, Sydney Falsone hit a line drive to left field. Cameron Mackey dove for the ball and missed, sending both baserunners off to the races. Gallup came around to score, then Falsone attempted to stretch the triple into an inside-the-park home run. The relay throw was on target and catcher Karagan Fairbank placed the tag on a diving Falsone for the out.

Chautauqua Lake pitcher Cayzlee Johnson settled in nicely from that point on, as she did not allow a run the rest of the way. Thanks to the relay throw to nab Falsone at the plate, only two runs scored after the first inning. The Eagles’ offense just could not solve Wright.

“I was happy that after that first inning we only gave up two runs the rest of the way. Our girls kind of settled in and got those jitters out,” Yudin said.

Johnson managed one of only two hits off Wright — a two-out line drive to left field that was arguably the hardest hit ball of the game by Chautauqua Lake. That sixth-inning single came in Johnson’s final high school at-bat.

In the circle, Johnson allowed nine hits and two walks, and she recorded two strikeouts. Only one of the nine hits went for extra bases, and even that runner was thrown out at the plate. The first-inning barrage from the Bombers was just too much to overcome.

“I’ve got to give my girls credit, they didn’t get down on themselves after going down 4-0. It’s not ideal to start the first inning off giving up four runs, but they went up to the plate and gave it all they’ve got all seven innings,” Yudin said.

Johnson is the only senior on this season’s Class C sectional champion team. She will play collegiately next year at SUNY Fredonia, just as her coach, Yudin, did when she was a student.

“We’ll miss her next year,” Yudin said. “Overall, she’s a great player — very humble, a great teammate, and the girls will miss her a lot.”

Up next, Bloomfield heads to the New York State Public High School Athletic Association final four in Binghamton next weekend to face Deposit-Hancock, the Section IV champion, in the semifinals. Chautauqua Lake’s 11 of 12 likely returners will hope for a better result next year.

“There’s a lot to be proud of. We accomplished a lot this season,” Yudin said. “… Nothing to hang our heads about.”