Augur had the ‘it factor’ for the T-Birds

Alison Foley said Allie Augur has “the it factor.”

That can carry plenty of different definitions, so let’s let the Boston College women’s soccer coach define it for us.

“I’m telling you, the more I do this, the more the old adage, ‘Hard work outweighs talent’ makes sense,” Foley said. “Allie is quiet, a quiet kind of competitive. She lets in a goal, she takes it personally.”

Boston College just doesn’t recruit anyone. Not everyone can compete and succeed in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Foley believes Augur can, and will, succeed.

As for Augur, the Register’s Area MVP out of North Branford, the realization that she will be playing Division I women’s soccer next fall really hit once her senior season ended, then signed her national letter of intent on Nov. 14.

“The reality has hit me now. I’ve looked forward to the moment for three years

now. It’s surreal. It’s so exciting that it’s right around the corner,” Augur said.

Augur posted nine shutouts for the Thunderbirds this season. Only four opponents scored more than one goal. North Branford placed second in the Shoreline Conference, earned a bye into the semifinals, but their title defense ended there.

North Branford also advanced to the second round of the Class M state tournament for the second straight season. And for the second straight season, Morgan eliminated its league rival and this time ended Augur’s career with 35 shutouts and a goals against average of 0.753, both school records.

“We were definitely uspet not to have gone as far as we would have liked in the postseason,” Augur said. “Looking back, we came with some huge plays and huge wins, battling Old Lyme, battling Law and Woodstock. Those games

tested us and I am happy with the results. Sometimes, things don’t go your way. Ultimately, it’s about how we played and how we performed as (a) team.”

Augur was a starter at North Branford from day one. She actually missed a game this year due to a knee injury — she admitted ‘it felt weird’ being on the sidelines — and not out leading her team.

She’s a pretty wellrounded individual. President of her senior class and the environmental club, member of the National Honor Society, holds a 3.77 GPA. Augur is taking several AP courses and during her study hall period, she goes to Totoket Valley Elementary School to tutor fourth graders.

“Our high school allows us to get involved with the younger kids,” Augur said. “Since my freshman year, I’ve gone to visit the school and help them in any way possible. It’s awesome to see how happy the kids get when the older kids come in. It’s an unbelievable feeling.”

Augur earned Shoreline Conference Player of the

Year and All-American laurels for the second time. She’s on the inaugural GameTimeCT all-state team and has been recognized for the Register All-Area team, coaches all-state team and All-New England three times.

Augur never wavered in her verbal commitment to play for Boston College, making the choice in the summer before her sophomore year. Now the 17 year old gets a chance to follow in the footsteps of another state goalkeeper who played at BC.

Jillian Mastroianni played at Choate Rosemary Hall, then went on to a pro career after graduating from BC. Foley sees some similar qualities in the two keepers.

“This kid has a competitive spirit, similar to Jill in a lot of ways,” Foley said. “I’ve seen Allie make saves in the upper 90 (where the crossbar and post meet) that goes over the heads of goalkeepers in our conference. It’s desire, intuition and her competitive spirit that separates her. She is good with her feet, reads the game well, organizes the forwards, the entire front third of the field.”

Augur is in the midst of her premier season. She continues to work with both her goalkeeper coach (Paul Dellostritto) and fitness coach (Mike Legates) to get ready for the next level. Will she be able to start right away?

“She does, but she has competition,” Foley said. “Our goalkeeper coach, James Thorpe, one of the best in the country, totally hit it off with Allie. He was very instrumental in the recruiting process. He has been waiting to get Allie full time.”

And Augur can’t wait to make an impact in the ACC.

“I want to continue to work my hardest, be in the best shape I can be and hopefully, help the team be as successful as they can be,” Augur said. “I’m so excited to play against highlevel players. That’s all anyone can ask for. It truly will be an honor to take the field with those players (at BC).”