Northwestern competed in the District 11 team wrestling tournament last week.

The Tigers, which earned the fifth seed in Class AA, beat 12-seed Williams Valley, 40-30 in the opener before losing to Northern Lehigh last Thursday at Panther Valley High School in Lansford.

The Tigers returned to battle through the losers bracket Saturday at Freedom High School in Bethlehem. They survived two matches with wins over Panther Valley, 40-25, and North Schuylkill, 39-22, before falling to top-seeded Saucon Valley in the loser's bracket final.

In the opening round against Williams Valley, it took Northwestern a few bouts to get into a rhythm.

The Vikings' won three of the first four bouts by fall and enjoyed a somewhat surprising 18-3 early advantage. Northwestern reeled off six straight victories during the middle of the match, which propelled them to the victory.

Northwestern immediately was back on the mat against fourth seeded Northern Lehigh, which earned a first-round bye and went on to win the team title over Tri-Valley.

Northwestern earned victories in five of the first seven bouts against the Bulldogs and enjoyed a 20-9 advantage midway.

"At this point in the season, our conditioning shouldn't be an issue," said Northwestern head coach Jim Moll. "They (Northern Lehigh) beat us by nine during the regular season, and we closed the gap tonight. We know each other very well."

"Anthony Fillis (182) and Jacob Murray (220) both lost during our previous match (against Northern Lehigh). For them to both come back and win tonight is huge."

Northern Lehigh took five of the last seven bouts, including a Nate Farber pin during the 12th bout that gave his team a 27-26 lead.

"We've seen them two times in less than a week," said Northern Lehigh head coach Steve Hluschak. "They're a young and talented team with great coaching. We knew we would have our hands full, but we did what we had to do."

Austin Arnold came up big for the 'Dawgs in the bout immediately following the Farber pin. Arnold was able to outwrestle Andrew Sorensen and extend the Northern Lehigh lead to four points (30-26) heading into the final bout.

Northwestern's Fillis defeated decisioned Cederburg in the final bout (182), but it wasn't enough to even up the contest. Arnold's gutsy performance in the previous bout proved to be one of the big differences in the match as the Bulldogs clung to the one-point win.

The Tigers headed to Bethlehem Saturday and started their losers bracket run against Panther Valley.

Northwestern's Quin Moyer (285) Matt Peters (106), Baily Wehr (113), Quentin Bernhard (120), Jarret White (126), Dalton Webster (132) and Caleb Clymer (138) earned wins in the match's last seven bouts to seal the victory.

"We needed those guys to come through and they did," said Northwestern head coach Jim Moll. "That gave us a lot of confidence and we used that to close it out."

The Panthers opened a 13-0 lead, but Northwestern started to turn the momentum when Andrew Sorensen (170) and Alex Russo (195) picked up wins before Moyer kick-started the final push.

Northwestern used another late surge when the lineup turned over to down North Schuylkill.

The Tigers got pins from Baily Wehr (113), Quentin Bernahrd (120), Jarret White (126) and Dalton Webster (132) in consecutive bouts before Caleb Clymer (138) and David VanBlargan (145) each picked up decisions.

Jason Hottinger (152) finished the match with a pin for the final tally.

The Tigers also got decisions from Andrew Sorensen (170) and Alex Russo (220).

But Northwestern's chances of advancing to Hershey were dashed when it ran into Saucon Valley in the consolation finals.

Northwestern's contest against Saucon Valley was a rematch of a bout in the Colonial League team championships on Tuesday, which the Tigers lost 30-25.

Despite leading late, Northwestern was unable to hold on.

"We won the flip and got the matches we wanted, but they just got the wins," Northwestern head coach Jim Moll said. "We just didn't do our jobs."

The Tigers held a 7-6 advantage after the first three bouts following Andrew Sorensen's (170) decision and Alex Russo's (195) major decision.

Trailing 15-7 heading to the lighter weights, Northwestern won three of the next four matches, as Matt Peters (106) got a decision while Quentin Bernhard (120) and Jarret White (126) each picked up pins to give the Tigers a 22-19 lead.

But that's when the Panthers turned it on, winning the last five matches, gaining bonus points in three of them.

"In the beginning of the season, our goal was to qualify for the league tournament and qualify for district duals," Moll said. "But about halfway through the season, we kind of changed our goals and we wanted to be in the top two at districts.

"Some of our kids had to wrestle some tough, tough matches this week. And that's the kind of stuff that helps you prepare for districts, regionals and states.

"That's the stuff you take out of this type of tournament. We're going to see these guys again, and hopefully we'll get them then."

Consolation Finals

Saucon Valley 40, Northwestern 22

106 - Matt Peters (NW) dec. Paul Miller, 6-0

113 - Jack Hill (SV) maj. dec. Baily Wehr, 14-6

120 - Quentin Bernhard (NW) pinned Angelo Mahaffey in 0:59

126 - Jarret White (NW) pinned Ty Drunkenmiller in 1:05

132 - Jason Jones (SV) maj. dec. Dalton Webster, 11-0

138 - Nick Schneider (SV) dec. David VanBlargan, 6-3

145 - Dylan Yonney (SV) dec. Caleb Clymer, 5-2

152 - Nathan Harka (SV) tech. fall Jason Hottinger, 16-1 (5:57)

160 - Ben Suites (SV) pinned Sam Day in 0:12

*170 - Andrew Sorensen (NW) dec. Blayne Hirshbeck, 6-3

182 - Jason Lynch (SV) pinned Anthony Fillis in 1:34

195 - Alex Russo (NW) maj. dec. Devon VanVliet, 24-11

220 - Sam Sheetz (SV) dec. Jacob Murray, 10-5

285 - Trey Polak (SV) pinned Quin Moyer in 0:39

* Match started at 170.

Consolation Semifinals

Northwestern 45, No. Schuylkill 22

106 - Matt Peters (NW) dec. Owen Boyer, 10-8

113 - Baily Wehr (NW) pinned Mason Madden-Edwards in 3:58

120 - Quentin Bernhard (NW) pinned DJ Zahanick in 0:29

126 - Jarret White (NW) pinned Zach Griffin in 0:52

132 - Dalton Webster (NW) pinned Corbin Kessler in 1:56

138 - Caleb Clymer (NW) dec. Jess Wetzel, 1-0

145 - David VanBlargan (NW) dec. Joe Alexander, 5-3 (SV)

152 - Jason Hottinger (NW) pinned Nick Price in 1:36

*160 - Craig Fisher (NS) pinned Sam Day in 0:13

170 - Andrew Sorensen (NW) dec. Brady Mickatavage, 2-1

182 - CJ Steinhilber (NS) pinned Anthony Fillis in 1:19

195 - Alek Hummel (NS) won by forfeit

220 - Alex Russo (NW) dec. Dane Tarantelli, 6-5

285 - Nate Gadinski (NS) maj. dec. Jacob Murray, 12-0

* Match started at 160

Consolation Quarterfinals

Northwestern 43, Panther Valley 25

106 - Matt Peters (NW) pinned Justin Ogozalek in 0:36

113 - Baily Wehr (NW) maj. dec. Mike Lazar, 15-2

120 - Quentin Bernahrd (NW) dec. Tanner Kennedy, 8-3

126 - Jarret White (NW) dec. Darren Goida, 6-2

132 - Dalton Webster (NW) pinned Hunter Kennedy in 5:16

138 - Caleb Clymer (NW) dec. Ali Capobianco, 6-2

*145 - Hunter Davidyock (PV) dec. David VanBlargan, 6-3

152 - Zachary Glassic (PV) maj. dec. Jason Hottinger, 14-4

160 - Xander Kern (PV) pinned Sam Day in 2:38

170 - Andrew Sorensen (NW) pinned Grant Lorkowski in 0:33

182 - Dylan Moyer (PV) pinned Anthony Fillis in 3:37

195 - Alex Russo (NW) won by forfeit

220 - Rian Shubeck (PV) pinned Jacob Murray in 2:59

285 - Quin Moyer (NW) won by forfeit

* - Match started at 145.