Northern Lehigh and Notre Dame Green Pond are a pair of programs with championship aspirations.

The Bulldogs and Crusaders played like it on Friday night.

A fourth quarter score lifted undefeated Notre Dame Green Pond to a 34-27 win over Northern Lehigh in a game where momentum swung back-and-forth and playmakers on both sides routinely rose to the occasion.

“We had to do what it takes to win, and I thought our kids showed a lot of heart, a lot of guts, and that’s a good football team that we played,” said Crusaders’ coach Phil Stambaugh. “I think this game is going to go a long way for both teams as the season rolls on.

“I know this certainly prepares us to play in the Schuylkill League, because that’s exactly what we’re going to see for the next three weeks.”

In the first year of the Colonial League-Schuylkill League crossover, the Crusaders (4-0) - who will face Jim Thorpe, Tamaqua and North Schuylkill in their next three games - look the part of a squad that will be in the mix for a District 11 Class 3A title at the end of the season.

The Bulldogs (2-2) brought their own brand of physicality on both sides of the ball, out-gaining Notre Dame 416-356.

Trevor Amorim and Matt Frame combined for 274 yards rushing and a pair of long scores for Northern Lehigh.

Amorim (12 carries, 150 yards) bolted 80 yards for a touchdown that put the Bulldogs up 13-7 in the first quarter. Frame delivered a punishing 52-yard score that pushed the advantage to 20-7 with 7:52 left in the first half.

“I’m super proud of the effort,” said Northern Lehigh coach Joe Tout. “I don’t think they (Notre Dame) have seen that kind of physicality since North Schuylkill last year.”

That was a 49-36 loss to the Spartans in the district title game.

After a 58-yard interception return by Brett Misera on their first drive of the second half, Notre Dame was staring at a 27-14 deficit.

The Crusaders chipped away, taking advantage of getting the ball near midfield on their next drive and going 51 yards on eight plays, with quarterback Colin Quintano rushing for a 12-yard score to make it 27-20 with 9:08 left in the third period.

Still up by a touchdown late in the third, Northern Lehigh faced a fourth-and-three from its own 41-yardline, and Frame, who is also the team’s punter, took the snap and tried to run for the first on a designed fake but was stopped for a loss.

Notre Dame covered the 38 yards in 33 seconds, with Quintano going in from two yards out and Nick Garrido’s extra point knotting the score at 27-27.

The Crusaders got another stop on Northern Lehigh’s next drive, and took advantage of another short field, going 52 yards in 10 plays with Logan Castellano punching in the go-ahead score and Garrido adding the extra point to make it 34-27 with 6:01 left in the fourth quarter.

After being stopped on their next series, the Bulldogs got one more chance after Notre Dame missed a 40-yard field goal with 0:37 to play, and moved the ball to the Crusaders’ 48-yardline.

A heave from Dylan Smoyer toward Misera and Amorim near the end zone fell incomplete as the horn sounded.

Smoyer and Misera connected for a 15-yard score on the first drive of the game. Amorim converted a fourth-and-one at the NL 27 with a 10-yard carry to keep the series alive.

“I just told them to keep their heads up, keep buying in, something’s going to break,” said Tout. “We’re going to get one of these tough games.”

KEEP GRINDING

... Northern Lehigh’s other loss this season was a 34-33 setback against Northwestern in Week 2. The Bulldogs have lost two games by a total of eight points to teams that are a combined 8-0.

UP NEXT

... The Bulldogs have a shot at redemption next week against Palisades. The Pirates defeated Northern Lehigh twice last season, including 31-14 in the District 11 Class 2A title game.

KUDOS

... Notre Dame had been averaging 49 points per game, and Quintano had thrown just one pick before Misera and Nick Frame got him for two Friday. “I thought we had a nice scheme,” said Tout. “Our defensive coordinator Matt Davis did a nice job. We went from a 4-3 to a 3-4, but we were sending (pressure). We were comfortable. We rarely have this ability where we’ll say, ‘we’ll match up a lot of man with those guys, and we’re going to send things.’ Watching some of their players, it was physical. You could see it was taking a toll. But that’s what we pride ourselves on. They’re tough kids.”