AUBURN – St. Dom’s refused to buckle on a windy Saturday afternoon.

Mary Lewis scored midway through the second half and a strong defensive effort held up as the Saints remained unbeaten with a 1-0 victory over Sacopee Valley in the Western Class C semifinals.

The Saints, who defeated the Hawks 2-1 and 2-0 during the season, entered the action with respect for the Hawks.

“We knew this (game) was the third time around,” Lewis said. “They knew us and we knew them, so it came to a few adjustments. Our defense really stepped it up today.”

No. 1 Saint Dom’s (16-0) will host Livermore Falls in a regional final on Wednesday.

The Saints defense has allowed four goals and have 12 shutouts.

The lone goal came off a penalty corner when Lewis redirected a shot past Hawks goalie Brittany Sterling. Saints co-captain Katie Landry (16 assists) drilled a pass to Lewis, who was unmarked on the right post The Saints led 1-0 with 14:08 to go in the game.

“At that point, I was thinking that I had to score,” said Lewis, who leads the team with 13 goals. “We didn’t want to go into overtime with them. The defense and midfield had worked hard to get the ball up the field.”

Sacopee Valley didn’t back down and extended its offensive pressure for the next 10 minutes. The best opportunity came when Sarah Lane was open on the left side, but goalie Austyn Carolin (four saves) came out from the goal mouth and kicked the ball away.

Saints co-captain Chelsea St Onge-May cleared away another ball, and the Hawks never seriously threatened again.

“We really had picked it up in the second half,” Saints coach Brian Kay said. “I had made a few minor adjustments, but the key for us was moving Chelsea St. Onge-May up front. She is a fullback, but I’ve moved her forward before and it helped the offense.”

The Hawks controlled most of the first half and had scoring chances from Alleece Dalo and Kayla Crowley. The defense was firm with Monica Morrison, Adri Valente and Rachel Freedline help prevent the Saints from advancing the ball.

St. Dom’s led in penalty corners, but hurt itself with numerous infractions.

“It might have been jitters,” Kay said. “But, we had practiced inside and our transition game just wasn’t working. In the second half, the defense stepped up big.”