If there was ever a better match to have before the start of the wrestling postseason, Bethlehem Catholic got that in last Saturday’s 21-18 thriller over nationally ranked Malvern Prep.

The Hawks (10-0) won seven of 13 bouts against the fifth ranked Friars to give them the perfect boost of confidence before this weekend’s District 11 3A dual tournament gets underway at Freedom.

“It was a huge win for the program,” said head coach Jeff Karam. “It will definitely go a long way in preparing us for the upcoming weeks.”

In a match where no bonus points were awarded, the Hawks jumped out with the first two wins by Keanu Dillard (107) and Nate Desmond (114) to grab a 6-0 lead.

Desmond knocked off nationally ranked Lukas Littleton-Mascaro 3-1 in a rematch of his championship bout at the Escape the Rock a few weeks ago.

From there, Malvern ran off three straight wins before the Hawks came away with their own streak of five straight victories from 139-172, capped off by Luke Thomas’ 1-0 decision over Duncan Christensen [at 172].

From there Malvern took the final three bouts, but all were decisions to solidify the captivating win and give this constructed roster a glimpse of what they’re capable of heading into the next two weeks of the team postseason.

“Wrestling a team of that quality with multiple nationally ranked guys will only help our guys as the competition will get better each week,” said Karam.

Now the Hawks have their sights set on winning their seventh District 11 3A title this weekend, as they enter the district tournament as favorites, but also know that Nazareth (11-1) will be the team, most likely, standing in their way.

Becahi and Nazareth are both ranked 1-2 in the state respectively, as the Hawks are the defending PIAA champions as well.

Freedom (12-6) could be the likely first opponent for the Hawks this weekend, as they look to lock up the eighth seed of the district seeding with a win over East Stroudsburg South on Wednesday night.

The Pates are looking to hold off Stroudsburg (14-5) for the final spot, who they just defeated 41-21 last week to give them an edge in the district power ratings.

Liberty (9-8) looks like they won’t be able to make up enough ground to sneak into the tournament. The Hurricanes close out the season on Wednesday night against Pocono Mountain West.