When the River Hill girls soccer team won a state championship in 1999, goalie Erin Ferguson was a freshman, so excuse her for getting caught up in the moment.

"I remember saying that I wanted to do this all four years," Ferguson said.

Even though that might have been said with the innocence of a freshman, Ferguson's words are nearing reality.

The top-ranked Hawks play in the 3A East regional semifinals at 2:45 p.m. tomorrow at Long Reach and are four games from their fourth consecutive state title. That would cap a run that has seen the team go from a near fledgling program into one of the state's elite.

"It's funny that the opportunity is finally here," Ferguson said. "I really can't ask for anything more. The only other thing would've been to go undefeated all four years, but that's pretty unrealistic."

Just how impressive has River Hill's reign been?

Since 1999 - Joan Kelso Smedley's second year as coach at River Hill - the Hawks have lost three games in four seasons while adding those three 3A titles to the school's suddenly cramped trophy case.

Ferguson, midfielder Jamie Goertler and stopper Megan Buescher are the three Hawks who have played on all of those state championship teams, which have compiled a 64-3-3 record.

"I never imagined this when they were freshmen," said Kelso Smedley, who was at the school when it opened in 1996 and was the program's first JV coach before taking over the varsity team in 1998. Her varsity record is 77-7-3. "I knew they were all going to be great players, but I think we've been very lucky with the girls that have come in after them."

Goertler and Buescher suggested that this year's team is the best yet, even a notch above the 18-0 squad they played on as sophomores.

In soaring to another Howard County title and a 14-0 record this season, the Hawks have outscored their opponents, 60-7. Along the way, they've beaten No. 3 Centennial, No. 8 John Carroll and No. 9 Arundel, along with highly regarded Urbana, the Ijamsville school that dealt River Hill one of its three losses the last four years.

The Hawks are ranked fourth in the nation in the latest National Soccer Coaches Association of America/Adidas poll.

"For most of us, this is our second or third year together, and we all feel very comfortable," said the Florida State-bound Goertler. "I think that's what helps us win most of our games."

If River Hill has a weakness, its opponents have yet to find it. The defense, anchored by Ferguson and junior sweeper Shelley McDuff, has posted shutouts in seven of the last 10 games.

The midfield, directed by Goertler, has controlled the pace of the game and constantly put junior forwards Kara Lewis (13 goals, nine assists) and Jackie Stromberg (11 goals, seven assists) in position to score.

And the Hawks have a weapon in the 6-foot Buescher, who doubles as a defensive stopper and offensive threat, with four goals and 12 assists. Buescher's long throw-ins and ability to get her head or foot on crosses and corner kicks has terrorized defenses.

"We're smaller, but we finish better than other teams we've had," said Buescher, who has orally committed to North Carolina State. "I think our defense is also a little better and I feel that this year we're all a lot closer."

Players admitted that wasn't always the case last year, where the first taste of losing caused some unrest. With an early-season loss to Urbana - the Hawks' first setback in about a season and a half - already on its record, River Hill endured a midseason stretch where it was defeated by neighborhood rival Wilde Lake and settled for three straight ties, all to county opponents.

The result, according to player accounts, was finger pointing among teammates, a lack of intensity at practice and a lingering feeling of doubt surrounding the team's future.

"It was almost like we didn't feel we were losing," Buescher said. "We thought those games must have been scrimmages. People were like, 'We're not supposed to be losing.' Nobody wanted to take the blame."

While the season ended with the Hawks sporting another state crown, several of the Hawks called that four-game winless streak the low point of their high school career.

"We all look back and say, 'Gosh, it was hard,' but for a young team, we had a great season," said Kelso Smedley, who played at Wilde Lake and the University of Maryland. "The girls look at it differently than I do. I saw it as part of their growing process. I think what they went through is why they've been so successful this year."

At times this season, the Hawks' toughest challenge has been keeping its focus, and when her team has wavered, Kelso Smedley quickly reminds them about last season.

"We haven't lost yet, but there's always that feeling that it could happen, so we have to stay focused," McDuff said.

Said Goertler: "It's been our goal from the start, but to be undefeated and to win a state title, that would make it that much better. We didn't want another team to look at us and say, 'They might be state champs, but we beat them.' We want all the glory."