By Kim J. Harmon

REDDING – There was unfinished business to take care of.

The Lady Nighthawks all knew it. The ride down to Redding would have given them plenty of time to dwell on it, to think over and over about that 1-1 tie at Bruce Jenner Stadium on October 6 that really should have been a 4-1 win if goals were awarded on pure effort.

They could have dwelled on it and dwelled on the upcoming game with Joel Barlow – if they had allowed themselves.

“It was total relaxation (on the ride down),” said co-captain Erin Macknight. “There were no mental games at all. We had the music on and everything. We didn’t think about anything.”

Oh, it worked – like a charm. The Lady Nighthawks crushed the Lady Falcons, 3-0 – thanks to a hat trick from Caitlin Collier - to secure their second win of the season and to pump a little life into their dying state tournament hopes.

And those hopes got another nifty jolt when the ‘Hawks defeated Masuk, 1-0, on Monday night to push their record to 3-6-3 with two games remaining. With Bethel on Wednesday and Shepaug on Monday, a win and a tie would be their ticket to a second consecutive state tournament berth.

“I know we can do it,” Macknight said after the win over Joel Barlow. “I have faith in my team.”

It seems, now, as if that faith certainly is not misplaced. Despite riding down to Redding last week with a 1-6-3 record, the ‘Hawks were well aware that just a tiny bit of luck (in a tie with New Fairfield, in that tie with Joel Barlow) would have put a better face on that won-lost record.

And they played like their record was simply an incongruity. They immediately began putting pressure on the Barlow goal. Collier was there the first time to turn a pass into the circle into a shot on the cage and a 1-0 Newtown lead.

Later, off a penalty corner, Lauren Bass punched a hard shot from outside the circle and Collier tapped it into the cage for the 2-0 Newtown lead. This came after a long stretch when Barlow futilely tried to clear a loose ball out of the circle.

That second goal – still in the first half – gave the ‘Hawks their biggest output of the 1999 season.

But they weren’t finished.

In the second half, Morgan Pacheco took a ball to the end line. She crossed a shot into the circle that was kicked by the Barlow goaltender. Another quick shot was once again kicked by the Barlow goaltender, but Collier grabbed that rebound and pushed the ball into the cage.

Newtown 3, Joel Barlow 0.

It was a stunning offensive effort for a team that had struggled to score goals all season long. Those problems – they could only be called woes – weighed heavily on the ‘Hawks.

“It’s frustrating,” said Macknight, “because we’re right there and the momentum is up, but it’s just not happening. But I know we can do it. Coach is always telling us to get our hearts out of it and our heads into it.”

The ‘Hawks unloaded 15 shots on goal while their own cage minder, Kari Levinson, was scarcely challenged.

In the win over Masuk, Kristen Bandura scored off a penalty corner in the first half for the lone goal. Rebecca Mitchell had taken the corner, knocking it to Bandura, who scored the goal at the 15:36 mark. Levinson recorded the shutout in the cage while facing 14 shots.

Brittany McClure and Betsy Carlson-Bancroft all had strong games.