Pioneers Not Enough for Surging Wildcats [PHOTOS, VIDEO]

Lynnfield's top-seeded boys hockey team needed two ingredients to advance past battle tested Wilmington in Friday's North Division 2 quarterfinal. Unfortunately for the Pioneers, they only got one.

"It’s a game of hard work and bounces," said Lynnfield head coach Vin Mirasolo after the team's 2-1 loss at Stoneham Arena. "We had the hard work. Maybe with a bounce or two it’s a different outcome."

Both teams played a strong first period with the Pioneers finding more chances early before Wilmington began finding a groove late. But the game was scoreless after one.

Defenseman Brian Pickett gave Wilmington the lead early in the middle frame with a blast from the point. Late in the period, it appeared for a brief moment that Lynnfield had evened the score.

Dylan Costa redirected a Jeremy Young shot in close, and in the mass of bodies, it looked like the puck had crossed the goal line. The nearby Lynnfield student section began to cheer, but Wilmington goalie Drew Foley froze the play before it lit the lamp.

Then just 59 seconds into the third period, Cam Owens dealt a major blow to the Pioneers' chance when he scored from Jake Rogers and Pickett.

Critical seconds ticked off the clock before Alex Ganter cracked Foley, broke up the shut out and gave his team hope, scoring a goal with 4:00 to play.

"This team all year has been really resilient. When we were down 2-0 I thought we really took the play to them and carried the play into their zone," said Mirasolo. "When we made it 2-1 we really felt confident and felt like we had the momentum."

Ganter's goal would be all Lynnfield could muster, and No. 8 Wilmington advanced to face North Andover on Tuesday night in Chelmsford in the North Division 2 semifinal.

The Pioneers campaign ends after they racked 17-3-1 regular season en route to the top seed and a 5-1 first round victory over No. 16 St. Bernards.

While Lynnfield's mentor was disappointed by the result, he didn't classify it as an upset. Wilmington plays in the Middlesex League against top tier competition, so the team's seed wasn't indicative of their skill level.

As far as his own team's play, Mirasolo had no complaints.

"They never stopped," said Mirasolo. "When you’re down 2-0 to a very good team it’s easy to feel sorry for yourself and not give your maximum effort, but our kids gave their maximum effort right to the final buzzer. I’m really proud of them."