BETHLEHEM — The adage “looks can be deceiving” can often be applied in sports.

They certainly were Thursday night for Lehighton’s football team.

The final score showed that favored Bethlehem Catholic gained a 35-14 victory over the Tribe in their District 11 Class 4A semifinal contest.

But if not for two unfortunate miscues, the game would have been neck-and-neck to the wire.

The Golden Hawks were not overwhelming. In fact, the upstart Indians were in the trenches, battling until a pair of late touchdowns by the hosts finally sealed the deal.

Sure, Lehighton watched Becahi score a pair of touchdowns with 3:42 before intermission that sprung the eventual winners to a 21-0 halftime lead.

But the Indians scored early in the second half and were never out of the game until the end.

Before that, Bethlehem Catholic marched 67 yards on the game’s first series. Sophomore running back Jeziah Gregroy capped an eight-play drive to the end zone, and Ethan Wiles booted the PAT for the quick 7-0 lead. That occurred with 6:20 on the stadium clock in the first quarter.

After that, however, it was nada for the home team for quite a while. The Indians tightened their belts and kept throwing haymakers at the eventual winners.

When the Indians used all of four downs on their first possession — a gambler’s move with nothing to lose — on the Lehighton 47, it was pressed dearly with its defense.

Lehighton didn’t’ flinch. It stuck its defense in the gut of the Hawks, forcing a stall out at its 17.

The Tribe’s head coach — Tom McCarroll — played the game like a Mississippi Gambler, throwing everything at the other guy to see if it sticks.

“I can’t say anything bad about our kids, we battled,” McCarroll said in a very positive tone.

To be sure, this was a do-or-die game. McCarroll knew it, and so did his players.

There was less than four minutes remaining until the intermission, when a punt attempt was botched. That set the table for the Hawks to capitalize on their second touchdown, needing but 16 yards to hit the end zone.

On the very first play after the miscue, Gregory ducked around the left end and raced untouched into the end zone. In a jiffy, it was 14-0 with 3:42 showing in the second quarter.

And then things got deeper in debt for Lehighton, as the Hawks stifled the Tribe on their next possession.

Lehighton came up empty one more time on a fourth-down play at its 41-yard line with 1:30 on the clock. Four plays later, quarterback Cayden Vassa ducked into the end zone from 1-yard out. That made it 21-0, and it seemed like the Indians were going to need a miracle to overcome three touchdowns.

Standout running back Lukas Croizier tried to carry the load and help bring his team back. The tough sophomore runner was outstanding, as he rushed for 100 yards on 20 carries while helping to set up both of his team’s touchdowns.

Croizier carried nine times in a 12-play drive before Jayse Lawrence flung a nifty 23-yard touchdown pass to Caden Meek to cut the gap to 21-7.

“He’s just a good football player,” Carroll said of Croizier. “You know what Coal Region football is all about … that’s (Lukas). He’s just so tough, physical and a great player to coach.”

Later, in the fourth quarter, Lawrence flipped another touchdown pass to Joe Roth — a 12-yard completion.

But by that time, the winners were in command.

Justin Martinez scored on an 11-yard run, and teammate Gregory plunged into the end zone with 2:49 to play from a yard out.

HE SAID IT … “I’m so proud of the group. We had our struggles early in the season … these kids put it together when it was most important,” said McCarroll.

CROIZIER ... The sophomore has a great knack with his footing, is very difficult to bring down one-on-one, and is a balanced runner.

BY THE NUMBERS … The Indians piled up 217 total yards, 93 by air as Lawrence went 8 of 16. Roth gained 51 yards on five catches. Becahi had a total of 232 yards. Cayden Vassa ran for 44 yards, and Gregory 31. Cayden’s brother, Carter, had 76 yards on seven catches.

NEXT UP … Becahi meets Southern Lehigh, which rallied from a 21-point deficit to defeat Pottsville 41-34, for the district championship next week.

Becahi 35, Lehighton 14

Lehighton 0 0 7 7 - 14

Bethlehem Cath. 7 14 7 7 - 35

BC - Gregory 8 pass from Cay. Vassa (Wiles kick)

BC - Gregory 16 run (Wiles kick)

BC - Cay. Vassa 16 run (Wiles kick)

L - Meek 23 pass from Lawrence (Ebbert kick)

BC - Martinez 11 run (Wiles kick)

BC - Gregory 1 run (Wiles kick)

L - Roth 12 pass from Lawrence (Ebbert kick)