WELLS — After falling behind 2-0 early, the Wells girls soccer team would bounce back and top visiting Poland 4-2 on Monday evening.

Poland would get back-to-back corner kick goals, both by Aly Gagne, and both off Wells defenders, to take the early 2-0 lead with 26:53 remaining in the first half.

The Warriors would respond fast though, scoring three straight goals less than five minutes later to take the lead which would be sustained the rest of the way.

Hannah Cottis knocked in the first goal, and Sydney Belanger would score the next two to push the Warriors past Poland. Belanger added one more goal to complete the hat trick in the final minutes of the first half.

“We fell in a hole early but it was incredible how they stuck in and settled down and played hard … that’s all I could ask for,” said Wells coach Doug Cottis. “I think it shows how tough they are, last year this team would’ve crumbled, those two goals go in and we’d be done.”

Poland did not go down without a fight, and set the pace for the second half. Although Poland forced many opportunities late, the Wells defense proved to be too much and held of the attack. Wells goalie Lauren Bartlett racked up five saves on the day.

“They marked (Hannah Cottis) in the midfield and they kind of took away our midfield, which I believe is the strength of this team. They had more numbers so changing the formation and having the extra player slowed us down,” said Cottis.

Belanger was happy to get the win, and felt that team chemistry was a big part of the her performance.

“Well we put a lot of work in at practice, and it’s important that you’re not only friends on the field but you also have to come together and be friends off the field. I couldn’t have done it without these guys,” said Belanger. “It’s really going to boost our confidence going into the rest of the season, it’ll help us have a successful season.”

The Warriors now improve to 3-0 to start the fall, after failing to win a single game in 2016. Cottis has been impressed with his club so far, and feels that the solid start will pay dividends down the road.

“Especially since we didn’t win a game last season, for our confidence, it means everything,” said Cottis. “This team is much different this year — the leadership in this team has really come out and they follow that leadership. They battle, they never give up.”

— Associate Sports Editor Alex Sponseller can be reached at asponseller@journaltribune.com or at 282-1535 ext. 323. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @JournalTsports.