It may not have been difficult, but a playoff win is a steppingstone no matter what.

Bethlehem Catholic had no trouble dispatching East Stroudsburg North in a 42-7 mercy-rule win last Thursday night at BASD Stadium in the District 11 4A quarterfinals.

Quarterback Cayden Vassa ran for two scores and threw another touchdown in the lopsided win that saw the Hawks lead 35-0 at halftime against the Timberwolves (4-7).

After four straight losses heading into the postseason, getting back in the win column was a good feeling for the Hawks, who improved to 5-6 on the year.

“After the last couple weeks with a lot of disappointment, it’s good to feel good after a game,” said head coach Tyler Ward. “I thought we executed well and our goal this week was to earn another week. We’re at the point of the season where it’s not guaranteed anymore and I want to keep hanging out with this group.”

Becahi will now play another Thursday night showdown at home this week when they host Lehighton (5-6), who upset second-seeded Blue Mountain 29-28.

The Indians scored the upset with a touchdown pass from Jayse Lawrence to Joe Roth with 16.8 seconds left followed by a game-winning, two-point conversion.

Lehighton lost to Blue Mountain 55-14 in early October, so to reverse that type of outcome was the most shocking result of the District 11 playoffs.

“I know they had some injuries early in the season and I think they’re much better than their record,” Ward said. “They have some good size and a very good quarterback. We’ll have to look at the film and see what type of team they really are, but anytime we get to keep doing what we love, we’re going to be happy and excited to play next week.”

The Hawks are sailing a similar path to what they endured last year, where they lost five straight games to end the regular season before knocking off Blue Mountain and Central Catholic for the district title.

A win this week would give them a shot to defend their crown against either top-seeded Southern Lehigh (9-2) or Pottsville (6-5), who play each other in the top half of the bracket.

“I think we played some of the best teams in the state [this year],” said Ward. “We battled with a lot of those teams and those challenges really helps us and makes us never fear anybody. Our kids love playing the 6A teams in our conference and when we get to the playoffs and playing more schools like us, there just no fear factor.”