The Northwestern Lehigh High School boys soccer team recently finished a perfect summer offseason as the Tigers ran through the Lehigh Valley Summer Soccer League unbeaten, winning the championship last month.

Tiger head coach Nathan Hunsicker was proud of how his team performed each and every game, even though it was never really at full strength.

“This summer went really well, at least in terms of wins and losses,” said Hunsicker. “We went undefeated in the regular season (and won our division) and then ultimately ran the table in playoffs to win the championship. We had some tough games and matches along the way.

“The one thing that was tough this summer is that we were never at full strength, between vacations and injuries we never had our full slate of kids there on any single night this summer, but the kids did a great job stepping up and adjusting as needed.”

Northwestern finished group play at 10-0 overall, earning the top seed in the 16-team playoff tournament. The Tigers scored 33 goals in the 10 games and only allowed six. The Tigers then defeated Liberty in the first round, Bangor in the quarterfinals, Pennridge in the semifinals and Easton in the championship game.

“This was a very resilient group,” Hunsicker said. “We had a bunch of injuries we had to manage this summer and move kids around a lot, sometimes playing positions they weren’t familiar with. We also had to call up a bunch of younger players to help fill gaps. The kids all responded great and did everything they were asked to do and more. It gave some of our younger, inexperienced players a chance to get a taste of play at the varsity level.”

Northwestern, which is looking to defend its District 11 2A title, opens this season on the road at Pennsbury on Friday morning, August 23.

“We’re looking forward to this upcoming season,” said Hunsicker. “We return a strong team, blended with some new names in the lineup hungry and ready for the opportunity to prove themselves. We have high hopes to make a run at league, district and hopefully state titles. Each day we’ll work hard to get better and stay focused on our goals.”