Laconia, n.h.
From there it was Sunapee that took flight, as Austin netted all the goals in the No. 1 Lakers’ 4-0 win over the fourth-ranked Engineers at Laconia High’s Bank of New Hampshire Stadium.
All four of Austin’s shots on net landed in the back of it, including her second on a 34th-minute penalty kick that was her 100th career goal.
“We come out in a geese ‘V’ formation during warm-ups, so we were definitely pumped up when we saw them fly over,” said Austin, who is committed to play at Southern New Hampshire University next fall. “It always seems to happen when we play here.”
Sunapee (15-4-1) will vie for its second straight title and third in five years at noon on Sunday against No. 2 Newmarket, a 3-1 winner over No. 6 Epping in Thursday’s early semi.
Woodsville (16-4) was bounced by the Lakers for the second straight postseason and fourth time in seven years.
Austin scored twice in each half, securing her 99th career goal in the 31st minute from the far right side past Woodsville goalie McKenzie Dennis. Less than three minutes later, Austin was bumped in the box by Engineers defender Lilly Kinder and beat Dennis’s right for a 2-0 Laker lead and goal No. 100.
The milestone is particularly impressive, since Austin missed most of her freshman season with a knee injury. She has struck twine 45 times this season.
“Hearing that announcement on (the public address system) was pretty cool,” she said. “I knew I was close to getting it. It’s the result of a lot of hard work by our team.”
Scoring chances were scarce in a dense fog in the early going, many of the few shots Sunapee generated sailing awry. On the other end, Woodsville appeared to overcompensate for the slickness of Laconia’s turf field, surrendering possession frequently and managing just one shot in the first half.
“We knew we had to do a good job marking their players, which we did,” Woodsville coach Ann Loud said. “But we were so tight on them that we had trouble going the other way.
“The turf field, I think, is pretty challenging for us. We’re so used to kicking the ball hard to get it up the field. Here you barely have to touch it and it gets away from you. It would be nice to find a way to play more games on turf (in the regular season) because it’s been an issue here multiple times for us.”
The Lakers themselves were guilty at times of striking the ball at distance and chasing it rather than controlling through possession.
“At the start of the game, we just had trouble with our feet in space and played too much boom ball,” Austin said. “I think we were a little nervous and it took a while to settle in.”
Determined to get back in it, the Engineers were spirited out of the gate in the second half. Freshman Olivia Sarkis had a chance in the box disrupted by Sunapee defender Jackie Balch, and Molly Clough launched one in from 40 yards that forced a chest save by Lakers keeper Suzanne Rickard.
Woodsville’s Suzy Bazzell fed Sarkis for a chance pushed wide in the 51st minute, and Austin soon after scored twice in a span of 5:45 to all but put the game away.
Austin made it 3-0 on a header off of a corner kick delivery from Hannah Cooney at 52:24, then lifted one to the upper left corner on a feed from Kalleigh Durkee with 21:51 to play.
“Maddie is a simply a stud in the middle of the field,” Lakers coach Myles Cooney said. “You’ve got to cover her every second to have a chance at stopping her.”
The Lakers also were bolstered by the play of its back line and midfield, with especially active performances from senior Balch and junior Elizabeth Bennett.
It was the 11th shutout of the season and third straight for the Lakers.
“Our defense was as great as it’s been all year,” Austin said. “They hit all of their marks.”
In Sunday’s final, the Lakers will try to take the rubber match against Newmarket after the road team won both regular season meetings.
The Mules (16-2) earned a 3-2 win in Sunapee the last time they met, part of a late-season, two-game skid that forced Sunapee to refocus.
“We’re going to have to do a better job getting behind their defenders,” Myles Cooney said.
Free Kicks: The geese were camped in a foggy gaggle on a field above the stadium before eliciting a cheer from the Lakers in flight. … Sunapee held a 13-9 advantage in shots and 4-2 edge in corner kicks. … Sunapee was whistled for 10 fouls to two for the Engineers. … Sunapee freshman Abigail Pollari left the game after being struck in the nose by a hard-hit ball 4:40 before halftime, but returned in the second half. … Woodsville goalie Dennis was injured in a collision with Austin with 11:51 to play and was replaced for the rest of the game by freshman Kaylynn Reagan (one save). … Woodsville loses nine seniors, including scoring leader Bazzell (21 goals, seven assists) and assists leader Clough (9 goals, 18 assists).
Jared Pendak can be reached at jpendak@vnews.com or 603-727-3225.