The trifecta.

Northwestern will look to capture its third straight District 11 3A championship tomorrow night at Lehighton as the Tigers take on North Schuylkill for the 3A gold.

The matchup between the two teams is a rematch from earlier in the season, where Northwestern was able to handle the Spartans on the road in Fountain Springs for an impressive 49-7 victory.

Eli Zimmerman ran wild in that one, rushing for 271 yards and two touchdowns, setting a Northwestern single-game rushing record in the process.

The Tigers have been on an amazing run of late. Over the past four seasons, which includes three 10-0 regular seasons, Northwestern is a combined 48-5.

“It’s incredible what our program has been able to do, and what our players have accomplished,” said Northwestern head coach Josh Snyder.

“This team has really been playing with a heavy weight on their shoulders all season long. One of their teammates tragically passes away over the summer and then you add in all the high expectations, these kids have worked hard to live up to those expectations. For us, we just need to continue to worry about us, and ignore any of the outside noise and just play good football and advance. At this point in the season, every team you’re going to play is going to be a good football team. And we’re going to make mistakes, but we always tell our guys to go out there and have fun.

“When things get tough, pull together as a team and keep moving on.”

Both the Tigers and Spartans came through with big wins in the District 11 3A semifinals last week.

Northwestern (11-0) defeated No. 4 seed Saucon Valley 40-12. The Tigers did have a few miscues against a tough Panthers squad, but still rushed for 301 yards and came through with 432 yards of total offense. The Northwestern defense was once again impressive, as it held Saucon Valley to 192 total yards. Zimmerman had another big night in the run game, rushing for 192 yards and two scores.

The Spartans defeated a really good Notre Dame offense for the second time this season to advance to the 3A championship. North Schuylkill quarterback Caden Mengel rushed for 207 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winning rushing score in overtime (26-23). The Spartans were without starting running back and leading rushing Luke Miller, but were still able to utilize their size up front to grind out yards in the run game, rushing for 325 yards on 63 carries. In the first game against Northwestern, Miller rushed for 82 yards on 13 carries. His status is unknown for Friday’s game.

“We have been able to be very productive on the ground throughout the year, and at times through the air as well. Obviously, they’re a team where you want to keep their offense off the field,” said North Schuylkill head coach Wally Hall.

“I was really proud of the way our guys played last week. We had some guys out and some guys go down, so it was a next-man-up mentality that our guys embraced, and we had guys step up and make plays. That’s the same mentality we need to bring to the table this week as well.

“We have worked hard watching a lot of film. The first meeting we had with them was not a good one for us, but I think we learned a lot from that game. I think we grew a lot as well. A few things we need to focus on is first, trying to slow down their run game. We have to do a better job of getting off blocks. And then as always, we need to be able to run the football and lean on our offensive line.”

Running the football on offense, while stopping the run on defense, has been a winning formula for Northwestern this season. The Tigers held the Spartans to 155 rushing yards in the first meeting, while rushing for an incredible 426 yards. On the season, Northwestern is giving up just 76.6 rushing yards per game, and on the offensive side of the ball averages 280.9 rushing yards per game.

“That was an impressive win for North Schuylkill last week. We know they’re playing good football, and they’re playing confident after big wins over Blue Mountain, Lehighton and Pottsville to wrap-up the regular season as well,” said Snyder.

“We know they’re going to come in and try to run the football. The running back was out, but their quarterback is a really slippery and nifty runner. They’re going to look to control the clock and keep it on the ground.

“Again, for us we just need to be OK with putting together the 15-16 play drives. We have been an explosive team all season long, so our guys get a little frustrated at times if we don’t have the big scoring plays. Against teams of this caliber late in the season, sometimes it takes a little time to settle in. There might be a negative play here or there, but you need to have that next play mentality, and that’s one of the things we’re going to be focused on moving forward.”