SCHUYLKILL HAVEN – Underdogs usually lay in wait, and try and strike at the right moment.

In this case, Northern Lehigh’s chance at usurping higher-seeded Schuylkill Haven never materialized.

Haven’s quick defense kept the hustling Bulldogs off the scoreboard, and its offense scored a goal in both halves to claim a 2-0 victory in the quarterfinal round of the District 11 Class 1A boys soccer tournament on Tuesday.

Third-seeded Haven (11-7-1) now moves into the semifinal round to face Palisades, which defeated Pine Grove 1-0 last night. As for the Bulldogs, the loss ends their season with a 3-13-3 record.

“We had our opportunities, but we just couldn’t connect,” said Northern Lehigh coach John Murray.

Northern Lehigh’s defense had the tourniquet squeezing a few times and kept the heavily-favored Hurricanes in check. But with exactly seven minutes to play in the opening half, Haven struck for a score.

Logan Schaeffer, the team’s top player, made amends for an off night in the Schuylkill League playoffs one week earlier when he recorded the goal that broke the scoreless tie.

Schaeffer broke free at the 20-yard line, raced uncontested toward goalkeeper Ethan Kunkle, and deposited his shot in the back of the net for a 1-0 Hurricane advantage.

“Believe it or not, I wasn’t going to start him today,” said Haven coach Andre V. Gerogevic. “I was not thrilled with his performance in the league playoffs. I had a chat with him before the game.”

Schaeffer surely got the message, and was a big reason for the win. In addition to scoring the first goal for his team, he added Schuylkill Haven’s second-half insurance goal.

The second score was the way coaches draw it up. Kyle Lipp broke through the Northern Lehigh defenders, raced down the field, stopped on a dime, then passed the ball to a trailing Schaeffer, who banged it home.

Schaeffer’s second goal came at the 22:14 mark, and his teammates clamped down on the Bulldogs the rest of the way.

“Our defense was solid today,” Georgevic said. “They’ve got a couple of really fast boys up front, and I thought we did a really good job of containing them.”

DOGS PUSHED EARLY … Northern Lehigh got off to a good start when it pushed Haven to the max, and at times seemed to have the home club reeling.

CHANCES … The Bulldogs had five shots on goals - two in the early stages of the first half - but failed to convert. Haven had seven shots on goal. Bulldog goalie Kunkle had a solid night with four saves.

STANDING OUT … Murray signaled out forwards Bryce LoPinto and Mike Wilk for playing strong games. He also called Wilk tenacious for his overall play.