WILSON — Over the past two years, the Wilson High School girls’s soccer team has fallen short in the postseason. If the Elia sisters have anything to say about it, this year will be different.
This season is the third consecutive year that there have been three Elia sisters on the squad with Addison, Kylee and Colbie all making an appearance for the Lakewomen.
“It’s amazing. I got to play with my older sister last year and Addison as well, but getting to play with my younger sister and … being the oldest, it just feels amazing to be able to play with all of them,” Kylee said.
This year, seventh-grader Colbie is making her varsity debut and filling the Elia quota left behind by the graduated McKenzie, the oldest of the four sisters. Lakewomen head coach Jeff Hart said he made the decision to call up Colbie to the varsity roster because of the relationship the sisters have and their ability to push each other to be better.
Addison said the three sisters have really bonded over their shared love of the sport.
Colbie added, “It’s really fun. Playing time is whatever I get. But it’s nice to be able to play with my sisters for a couple years.”
In 2023, the Lakewomen headed into the Section VI tournament as the No. 1 seed and made it all the way to the title game, where they lost in a shootout to Frewsburg. They followed that with a second-round loss to Frewsburg in the sectional tournament.
Over the last three seasons, Hart said he has seen his team work hard to wash the bad taste of playoff losses from their mouths.
“(We are) very motivated, everyone wants it,” Addison said. “Even the new girls coming up that didn’t experience all of that know how bad we want it and everyone’s working so hard. As you can tell throughout the season, every girl can go on the field and make a difference; everyone cares so much.”
As of Tuesday, Addison leads the team with 17 goals and two assists, good for a tie for fourth on the team. In her six games, Colbie has two assists while Kylee has two goals and three assists.
Since making varsity as a seventh-grader, Addison has compiled a total stat line of 84 goals and 32 assists in 51 games. Kylee, who is a junior, has played in 42 games in her career, scoring three goals and adding four assists.
“We definitely have to keep her spirit up,” Kylee said of Addision. “She gets down on herself but we just have to tell her that it’s gonna happen, you’re not gonna have the best game but at the end of the day you give your heart out on the field and that’s all you can do.”
When Addison’s not in school, the sophomore is also playing for the Western New York Flash club team and she worked with the United States under-15 team during their training camp this past summer.
“The fact that she’s only a sophomore, she’s top five already for career goals for us,” Hart said. “The work that kid puts in in the offseason, she spends all year playing soccer. She’s a three-sport athlete at the school. … What’s crazy is that she’s one of those rare instances where all the talent meets probably the hardest worker that I’ve ever coached in any sport.”
This season, Addison is one of three captains on her team alongside Abbie Faery and Rowan Simpson.
While she plays forward for the Lakewomen, Addison plays as a defender for the Flash. Hart said Elia’s versatility helps him game plan because he knows she can score when they need her to and defend when they have a lead.
“I think (my versatility) helps a lot because a lot of the defense can also start from your forward line and then it brings it all the way back,” Addison said. “But knowing … how to keep the ball up top, learning that from defense really helps out as an offender here.”
The Lakewomen are 6-1 overall and they are in first place in the Niagara Orleans League.
When he looks at the last nine games of the season, Hart said he wants the Elia trio and his entire team to take it one half at a time and continue to improve so that they will be able to make a run.
Colbie also has a recipe for a deep postseason run.
“We just gotta be able to work with each other, understand each other if we mess up, encourage each other and make sure we can get back on our feet and get back into the game.”