Applying relentless pressure, the Hawks ground down two-time defending AFLW premiers North Melbourne on Friday night for a seven-point triumph in Cairns - 4.8 (32) to 3.7 (25).
The Kangaroos' previous loss was the 2023 grand final. They opened 2024 with a win and a draw, before starting their historic 32-game winning streak.
It is a great start to the weekend for Hawthorn, ahead of Saturday's AFL preliminary final against Brisbane at the MCG. The Hawks men will also start underdogs against the two-time defending premiers.
This is Hawthorn's greatest AFLW win since they joined the league in 2022, their victory taking them to a 4-2 win-loss record for the season.
Hawthorn lost captain Emily Bates to an ACL rupture last weekend, but fellow on-baller Jasmine Fleming stepped up with surely the best match of her 48-game career.
Fleming was Hawthorn's firestarter in the second half, quelling North captain Jasmine Garner and leading the charge as they overcame a 10-point deficit at the main break.
"That was just such a hard fourth quarter. The pressure was on that whole game with North, and really at the end we had to lock down," Fleming told Fox Footy after the game.
"I'm so proud of the group, that was amazing.
"I hope we made her (Bates) proud, I wish she was out there. It's bloody tough, what she's going through, but to get the win for her is pretty special.''
Mikayla Williamson kicked the only goal of the third term in blustery and humid conditions, bringing Hawthorn to within three points at the last break.
Four behinds put Hawthorn ahead for the first time since the opening term, before Cairns native Jacqueline Dupuy kicked a goal to give them a seven-point buffer.
Blaithin Bogue's goal brought it back to a one-point game, before Hawks ruck Lucy Wales snapped superbly inside the last two minutes for the sealer.
"I kicked my first goal a couple of weeks ago, so to think that went through, it's pretty unreal," Wales said.
North were clearly gettable, coming off a five-day break and playing in Cairns for the first time. They had held off Carlton last Sunday by 10 points with the lowest score in their streak.
They also had lost Libby Birch and Kate Shierlaw to injury and Emma Kearney was managed - all frontline North players.
Dupuy set the agenda in the first quarter with a brutal tackle on Ruby Tripodi that left the North player with a bandaged head for the rest of the game.
Hawthorn forward Poppy Stockwell, who kicked their opening goal, also returned to the field after needing treatment for a cut near her eye.
Fleming racked up 25 disposals and a team-high four clearances, while Tamara Smith was also outstanding in defence for the Hawks.
North on-baller Eilish Sheerin had a game-high 30 possessions, and Garner ended with 29, after amassing 21 in the first half.
Two team statistics were telling. North led tackles at halftime 35-29 and inside-50s 19-10.
By the end of the game, Hawthorn had squared tackles at 64-64 and won the inside-50s 34-30.
North also kicked their lowest score on Friday night since 2023, and coach Darren Crocker said their fundamental skills were "poor".
"Human nature is an interesting thing and we probably didn't play as well as would have liked. But all credit to Hawthorn," he said.
"In the second half, we were nowhere near good enough at being able to win contest, especially one-on-ones, pressure the opposition. It's now a matter of how we respond."
North (5-1) have a seven-day break before another massive game against Melbourne, who are unbeaten this season.
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