It’s that time of year again where the battle for Bethlehem comes down to a Saturday afternoon at BASD Stadium when Freedom and Liberty meet at 1 p.m.

The city title is on the line for both teams, but there’s also other things at stake for two programs that have already clinched District 11 6A playoff berths.

After being heralded as the best team in the area through the first eight weeks of the season, Freedom (8-1) is now coming off their first loss of the season last week following a 25-21 defeat by a rolling Easton squad that put everyone on notice.

It was a loss that head coach Jason Roeder hopes can galvanize a team a week before a rivalry showdown with the Hurricanes, but also provide some lessons in their quest for a district title.

“It’s kind of hard to pin point one thing in a loss like this,” said Roeder. “Turnovers, special teams play and giving up too much in the run game. We’re up two scores and they return the kickoff and you felt the momentum shift. That was a tough one.”

Freedom led 21-12 with 1:24 left in the third quarter following a 17-yard touchdown reception by Aaron Beete to push the Pates on the verge of control in last week’s game against Easton and then the Rovers got a jolt of life when Will Day returned the ensuing kickoff 83-yards to the Freedom three-yard line. Dorian Thomas punched it in for a score on the next play and suddenly Easton (8-1) had the wind under their sails trailing 21-19 entering the fourth.

Thomas scored his third touchdown of the night with 9:05 left in the fourth quarter to put Easton ahead for good and shift the balance of power in the EPC.

“We haven’t lost a football game and we got to see how we handle it,” said Roeder. “We got to stick together and see what we’re made of now. Other teams have lost and faced adversity and answered the call and we have to do the same thing.”

Liberty (7-2) overcame a late deficit against Bethlehem Catholic last week to pull out a 12-7 win in the city championship series. Jaxon Barlok’s 70-yard TD reception with 2:40 left in the fourth quarter was the game-winner and gives the Hurricanes an opportunity to win the city championship if they can overcome Freedom on Saturday afternoon.

BASD Stadium has been packed the past two weeks with Easton visiting to play both Liberty and Freedom, but this weekend’s contest will certainly be a different animal, as this is the first time since 2008 that both teams have entered this contest with a combined 15 wins between them,

“This game is its own world,” said Liberty head coach Shawn Daignault. “It’s always a pretty crazy atmosphere and now that it’s two quality teams it raises the ante a little bit.”

Daignault acknowledged the vibe around his team heading into the game is certainly different when you enter with seven wins, compared to the past few seasons where the ‘Canes struggled to win games. Now, they need to show it on the field against their biggest rival if they’re capable of making this more than a feel good story and come out with a coveted win and city championship.

“The line of scrimmage is going to be really important,” said Daignault. “We need to run the ball and defend the run. Freedom’s big up front and strong. Think that’s going to be really vital for us.

“Like any other team the process of improvement never stops and that’s going to continue to be the case for us this week. We’re feeling good about who we are as a team and excited to get back on the field.”