BUFFALO — Niagara-Wheatfield wasn't expected to defend its Section VI Division I title this season. Having lost a large crop of seniors, few picked the Falcons to return back to KeyBank Center to play for their second straight championship. 

But after Austin Durandetto and Ben Foster gave the Falcons the lead in the second period, it started to set in they could be headed back to KeyBank Center. After an empty netter from Foster in the third period, the Falcons held on for a 4-1 win at HarborCenter and a chance to defend their title. 

Ben Shapiro opened the scoring in the first period for N-W, the fourth seed in Division I. 

"We had a tough stretch after Christmas through January and I think our confidence started to shake," N-W coach Rick Wrazin said after the game. "... We decided that our schedule was fortunate and it was going to help us."

This season has been a one of ups and downs for the Falcons (12-10). After a 4-0 loss to St. Joe's on Jan. 6, N-W was looking for any sort of confidence boost to carry it through the rest of the regular season and post season. 

One thing the Falcons took away from the loss to Joe's is that they managed to hang with one of the top programs in the state for a bit. When they got a second chance at the Marauders, the Falcons handed them their only loss to a Western New York team this season, 4-3 on Feb. 9.

"When I looked at schedule early in the season, I wasn't real happy with it," Wrazin said. "But down the stretch, it was the best thing for us."

Losing nine seniors, including Nick Peters, Chase Woods and defender Zack Belter — who's playing lacrosse at St. Bonaventure — meant the Falcons had a lot of gaps to fill and a lot of goals to replace. 

That's where Chris Caccitore came in. 

He leads the Falcons with 26 points (13 goals, 13 assists) during the regular season. Taking on that scoring role was a challenge for him, but it was a role he needed to play for Nia.-Wheatfield. He took on the challenge and succeeded. 

"No one expects to come in and score points. They just come in and play a role and I was just coming in and playing whatever role I could to help the team," Caccitore said. "... Those guys (last year) were great and especially our record last year. Those guys were awesome and it's leading into this year. It's just a tradition."

But the offense wasn't the only gaping hole the Falcons needed to replace. 

With Belter anchoring the defense last season, goalie Peyton Siegmann's job was a bit easier — not too much, but slightly.

He became an even more crucial part of the Falcons and that held true in Tuesday's game. Siegmann made 34 saves and had just one go by him in the semifinal. 

But that's expected of him and that's been his role all season. Sure, he's had some pressure being the last man on defense. But Wrazin said a lot of that pressure Siegmann might of put on himself just because of the hefty 2018 class. 

"I felt like I had to do too much and I be kind of selfish I guess," Siegmann said. "It's a team sport. You've got to rely on your boys. ... When I mess up they've got my back and when they mess up, I've got their back."

Now that all of the Falcons' hard work is paying off, they are going to continue to surprise people. They are going to carry that into Sunday's game. And most importantly, they get to fight to defend their sectional title.

"We knew we could do it," Wrazin said. "Everybody was really close down the stretch, so right now it's a coin toss every game. Everybody is evenly matched and this was part of our goal coming in and it's great to be back."