Just six weeks ago, after a 21-14 loss to Southern Lehigh, Northern Lehigh found itself at 0-2.

It wasn’t the start that a talented Bulldogs team was looking for, but as the old saying goes - it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.

Northern Lehigh (4-3) proved on Saturday that it’s far from finished, showcasing its impressive rushing attack in a 49-19 victory over Schuylkill Haven in the quarterfinal round of the District 11 2A playoffs.

The key to the Bulldogs’ turnaround was the improved play of their offensive line group, and from the onset against the Hurricanes, Northern Lehigh controlled the line of scrimmage and dominated in the trenches.

The Bulldogs scored on every one of their offensive possessions in the ballgame except one, with speedster Joe Abidelli getting their offense started midway through the first quarter. A seven-play drive the first time Northern Lehigh had the ball ended in a 35-yard explosive Abidelli scamper, which set the tone.

The Bulldogs would keep their momentum going, churning out impressive drives throughout the half, adding two more scores on a 3-yard plunge from Matt Frame and a 15-yard dash from Mike Repsher to give Northern Lehigh a 21-6 lead at the half.

It was evident that the Bulldogs were getting a significant push up front that the Hurricanes didn’t have an answer for.

“Just time and practice has really helped our offensive line group and they have gotten better and more confident every game, every week,” said Northern Lehigh head coach Joe Tout. “We have three sophomores that start in that group and then in our two tight end sets, we have a sophomore there as well. You can just see that group maturing and they’ve been playing well for us, and they certainly did a great job tonight.”

To start the third quarter, Northern Lehigh didn’t any waste time building off its strong second quarter.

The Bulldogs ran just five plays in the third and tacked on two more touchdowns.

A 55-yard sprint from Abidelli at the 11:18 mark and a 27-yard nifty run from Frame, where he bounced off a few defenders and then made a few guys miss for the score, with two minutes remaining in the period upped the Bulldogs’ advantage to 23 points (35-12).

“Our offensive line took care of business tonight,” said Abidelli. “They were opening up the holes and me, Matt and Mike were able to run through them and make big plays.

“The credit definitely has to go to our offensive line tonight for opening up the holes for us.”

In the fourth, Northern Lehigh’s scoring barrage continued. A 2-yard touchdown run by Trevor Amorim, which was set up by a 35-yard pitch and catch from Dylan Smoyer to Amorim, and a really nice 40-yard run by reserve running back Jovannie Avila capped off the Bulldogs’ impressive performance.

THE DAWG POUND ... The Northern Lehigh rushing attack compiled 320 rushing yards at almost 12 yards per carry. Abidelli led the way with 115 yards and two scores, Repsher added 85 yards and a touchdown and Frame came through with 54 yards and two scores.

HARD EARNED ... Schuylkill Haven rushed for 172 yards in the game, but it took them 51 carries to do so (3.37 yards per carry).

NEXT UP ... The No. 2 seeded Bulldogs will take on their rivals, third-seeded Palmerton, at home on Saturday at 1:40 p.m. in the Class 2A semifinals. The winner will reach the championship game to face either Palisades or Catasauqua.