District 11 Football: North Schuylkill challenges Northwestern Lehigh for Class 3A title
North Schuylkill's Sander Stokes sacks Lehighton's Jayse Lawrence during their game Oct. 18. (Photo by Justin Reed / Skook News)
Nobody has touched Northwestern Lehigh so far this season. Few have even made a game out of it against the Tigers.
Undefeated at 11-0 with four shutouts, Northwestern Lehigh ranks at or near the top of all the major polls and is the top seed for the District 11 Class 3A playoffs.
In tonight’s championship game, third-seeded North Schuylkill (8-3) gets another crack at taming the Tigers. T-102 will broadcast the game live with pregame at 6:30 p.m. and kickoff set for 7:10 p.m. at Lehighton Multi-Purpose Stadium.
When the teams met Sept. 27 in Week 6, it was all Northwestern Lehigh in a 49-7 victory.
In last week’s semifinals, Northwestern Lehigh routed Saucon Valley 40-12 and North Schuylkill edged Notre Dame-Green Pond 26-23 in overtime.
What’s the Spartans’ mindset this time around against the Tigers?
“We have to play mistake-free to not give them any advantages,’’ North Schuylkill coach Wally Hall said.
Senior running back Eli Zimmerman leads the Tigers on both sides of the ball. Offensively, the elusive Zimmerman has rushed 130 times for 1,624 yards and 18 touchdowns. He’s also caught 16 passes for 194 yards and 3 TDs. On defense, Zimmerman has made five interceptions.
Junior quarterback Shane Leh runs the show. He’s completed 75-of-133 passes for 1,191 yards with 19 TDs and four interceptions.
Junior Mason Bollinger (32-495, 6 TDs) and senior Landen Matson (12-289, 3 TDs) are the top receivers.
Senior defensive end Bryer Reichard, 6-foot-4, 240-pounder, has seven sacks, 16 tackles for loss and three fumble recoveries. Sophomore safety Brady Zimmerman adds 88 tackles, two sacks and two interceptions.
“They are a very athletic, well-coached team that executes and makes few mistakes,’’ Hall said.
For the second straight week, North Schuylkill likely will have to go without the injured Luke Miller. On the season, Miller has carried 202 times for 1,283 yards with 20 TDs; caught 31 passes for 441 yards and four scores; and intercepted four passes.
