Palmerton and Panther Valley will both be in action at Catasauqua High School Saturday as part of a Class 3A boys quarterfinal round doubleheader. The Bombers face Salisbury while the Panthers take on Notre Dame of Green Pond.

Also on Saturday, the Lehighton and Northwestern girls will battle in a girls Class 4A quarterfinal round game at Whitehall.

Boys Class 3A Quarterfinals

No. 3 Notre Dame (17-6) vs. No. 6 Panther Valley (12-10)

TIPOFF

- Saturday, Feb. 26, 2:30 p.m. at Catasauqua.

COACHES

- Notre Dame-Green Pond: Patrick Boyle. Panther Valley: Pat Crampsie.

LEADING SCORERS

- Notre Dame-Green Pond: Brendan Boyle (23.00 ppg), Sean Howlett (13.83), Zach Rodgers (9.91), Lucas Altmire (9.55); Panther Valley: Stephen Hood (15.19 ppg), Chase Weaver (12.00), Michael Pascoe (7.55), Bradley Hood (5.41).

GAME NOTES

­- These two teams are no stranger to each other in the District 11 playoffs as Notre Dame and Panther Valley will face each other for the third straight year. The Crusaders won 75-58 in the 3A quarterfinals last season, while the Panthers prevailed 59-53 in the 3A championship game in 2020 ... It’s been a turnaround season for Panther Valley, which started three freshmen and a sophomore last season and won just five games. The Panthers improved by seven wins from last year’s 5-17 season. Cramspie credits an improved defense, which has held opponents to about 14 points a game less this season to being the key ... Notre Dame has one of the most prolific scorers in Colonial League history in Brendan Boyle. Boyle is Notre Dame’s all-time scoring leader with over 1,700 career points - but his status for Saturday is unknown after suffering a broken hand late in the season. Boyle, who has signed to play for NCAA Division 2 Kutztown next season, did return to play in the CL semifinals last week against Wilson, but was extremely limited. He wasn’t able to finish the game and scored just one point ... Panther Valley is dealing with its own injury problems as leading scorer Stephen Hood has been out with a shoulder injury. Hood missed five of the Panthers’ last seven games and saw limited minutes in the two games he played during that span. According to Crampsie, Hood will play against the Crusaders ... The Panthers started the season 3-5, but then put together a six-game winning streak that propelled their run to a district playoff berth ... Three teams in Class 3A advance to the state tournament, so the winner of this game is guaranteed at least two more games.

QUOTABLE

- “We have a really tough bracket. As of the last state rankings, three of the top-10 teams in the state in Class 3A are in our bracket with Executive Charter, Dock Mennonite and Notre Dame. Obviously, we know we have our work cut out for us. That said, our expectation is to win and advance. To do that, we’re going to have play a very good game - probably our best game of the year, “ - Panther Valley coach Pat Crampsie.

Boys Class 3A Quarterfinals

No. 5 Salisbury (12-11) vs. No. 4 Palmerton (17-7)

TIPOFF

- Saturday, Feb. 26, 1 p.m. at Catasauqua.

COACHES

- Salisbury: Jason Weaver. Palmerton: Ken Termini.

LEADING SCORERS

- Salisbury: Kyle Artis (12.7 ppg), Jackson Lopez (8.7), Tyson Utesch (8.3), Hunter Bleam (7.6); Chase Fenstermaker (7.6); Palmerton: Matt Machalik (16.5 ppg), Brayden Hosier (13.3), Chase Reph (7.8), Zack Anthony (4.2), Jacob Grammes (3.3), Kyle Sebelin (2.8).

GAME NOTES

- Both Palmerton and Salisbury look to rebound from losses in the Colonial League playoffs. The Bombers advanced to the semifinals before suffering a 59-56 loss to top-seeded Southern Lehigh. The Falcons suffered a 45-38 loss to Wilson in the quarterfinals … Termini has guided the Bombers to five straight postseason appearances after missing out in his first season as coach … Palmerton and Salisbury met twice during the regular season with the Bombers coming out victorious in both games. They recorded a 54-37 win at home on Jan. 6 and a much tighter 39-38 victory on Jan. 21 at Salisbury … Artis missed the second contest against Palmerton with an injury but is back in the Falcons’ starting lineup. Artis is the Falcons’ lone returning starter from last season … The winner of this quarterfinal matchup will face No. 1 seed Executive Education Academy Charter School (11-7) in the semifinals on Wednesday, March 2 ... Three teams in Class 3A advance to the state tournament, so the winner of this game is guaranteed at least two more games.

QUOTABLE

- “I think our program is beginning to evolve from the point where we’re just happy being in districts to wanting to perform and win. So, while we’re honored and pleased to be here, I think this group is hungry for a little bit more,” – Palmerton coach Ken Termini.

Girls Class 4A Quarterfinals

No. 7 Lehighton (11-11) vs. No. 2 Northwestern (21-4)

TIPOFF

– Saturday, Feb. 26, 2:30 p.m. at Whitehall.

COACHES

- Lehighton: Joe Berezwick. Northwestern: Chris Deutsch.

LEADING SCORERS

- Lehighton: Hailey Miller (13.59 ppg), Charli McHugh (7.95), Aaliyah Fisher (7.64), Taylor Bowman (6.64). Northwestern: Paige Sevrain (15.00 ppg), Cara Thomas (11.72), Brook Balliet (5.36), Maci Fisher (4.32), Rylee McGinley (3.71), Sydney Nyce (3.24).

GAME NOTES

- Northwestern enters the game fresh off a Colonial League championship game victory over Palmerton. It was the second straight CL title for the Tigers … While Northwestern was playing three Colonial League playoff games over an eight-day span, Lehighton will enter Saturday’s game having not played in 15 days … Northwestern and Lehighton met in a non-league game on Jan. 15 with the Tigers pulling out a 41-38 victory ... This will be the first time that longtime friends Deutsch and Berezwick will face each other during the postseason. “I really respect Chris and his program, and we’re really good friends. We have stayed in touch through the years and helped each other out when we can.” … Northwestern enters the contest having won 14 of its last 15 games ... Meanwhile, the Indians won three of their last four to reach the .500 mark needed to qualify for districts, including a come-from-behind victory over Pocono Mountain East in their regular season finale that clinched the postseason berth … Saturday’s winner will face either No. 6 seed Pen Argyl or No. 3 seed Allentown Central Catholic.

QUOTABLE

- “No doubt about it, this is an important game. We look at it as a new part of our season. This is Part Two now. This is a big game because the winner of this game on Saturday is guaranteed two more playoff games, which means you get two shots to qualify for the State playoffs,” – Northwestern coach Chris Deutsch.

QUOTABLE

- “We’re 11-11 but we played two games each against a pair of powerhouse teams in Jim Thorpe and North Schuylkill. So, our record can be a little deceiving because in the other 18 games, we lost just seven times and we were competitive in all of them.” – Lehighton coach Joe Berezwick.