Coaches will tell you a lot of times that important games are won in the trenches.

That was definitely the case on Friday night as Southern Lehigh dominated up front to hand Northern Lehigh a 49-12 Colonial League setback that finished under the "Mercy Rule".The Bulldogs kept things in check for a while in the first half, but left the Spartans score twice in the last 2:36 before intermission as things unraveled.They put a nice 12-play drive together that ended on a 13-yard touchdown pass from Chad Cederberg to Austin Hemingway to pull within 7-6 entering the second quarter.Meanwhile, the Spartans scored with 2:35 left in the half when Ethan David Price caught a seven-yard pass from Blake Levengood.The Spartans then saw Dylan Niedbralski pick up a fumble and take it 62 yards into the end zone putting his team ahead 21-6 at the half."They ate us up up front," said Northern Lehigh head coach Joe Tout afterwards. "In the first half, we didn't capitalize when we had opportunities offensively. And then the scoop and score killed us there. Three scoop and scores in two games is pretty hard to do, but we're finding ways to do it."I thought we emphasized being more disciplined and not turning the ball over and it didn't happen so we have to emphasize that again this week."The Bulldogs turned the ball over in the first half on downs after being faced with a fourth-and-goal at the Solehi one.In the third quarter, the Spartans were pinned back on their own five before Timmy Walter raced 75 yards for the score that put the Bulldogs behind the eight ball.C.J. Young scored for the Bulldogs on the first play of the fourth quarter, but the Spartans scored two more touchdowns to put the game away."Price had a heckuva game for them," Tout said about the Spartans. "We had it in or game plan that he was a focus. They just had speed. We're a slow team. That's been our Achilles all year. We don't have the speed and we have to ground out drives or we aren't able to finish."We have to find a way to regroup. We have a couple of kids who are injured, and if we get some kids who can play next week, we'll be alright."PRICE IS RIGHT ... Southern Lehigh's Ethan David Price showed some impressive stuff on offense, catching six passes for 71 yards and two touchdowns. The 6-2 205-pound senior recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff after his 12-yard TD reception and ran it all the way down to the Northern Lehigh 14 setting up the final score.BULLDOGS AIR IT OUT ... Northern Lehigh has been known for its running game, but on this night, with the Spartans line pretty solid, aired it out. Starting quarterback Chad Cederberg attempted 22 passes and completed 10 for 84 yards and Tekoah Guedes came on to attempt one pass on the final drive of the game.WHERE THEY STAND ... The Bulldogs are now 4-4 with games remaining at home against Northwestern and on the road at Palmerton. The Spartans are 6-2 and travel to Catasauqua next week before hosting Salisbury in the regular season finale. The Bulldogs sit fifth in the District 11 2A ratings, behind Notre Dame, Northwestern, Salisbury and North Schuylkill. Despite their record, the Spartans sit seventh in District 11 3A.