MECHANICSBURG - The Northwestern Lehigh boys soccer team had knocked on the state championship door before.

The Tigers broke through it Saturday when they downed Lancaster Catholic 2-1 for this year’s PIAA Class 2A title.

Unlike their last two appearances in the state final, this time the Tigers went into the game feeling like the favorite.

In 2016 and 2017, Northwestern met up with a powerhouse of a team in the finals, and went home with silver medals both years.

“We knew the two years when we were going up against Lower Dauphin they were a really strong (squad) and we had quite the uphill climb to defeat them,” said Northwestern head coach Nate Hunsicker. “We came in today knowing this was a winnable game, but we had to play well and we had to execute. I thought for the most part we did. It was just awesome.”

The Tigers have won five league crowns and six district titles over the past seven years. This year’s team was one of its deepest, and most talented.

That was obvious the past few months as they went 18-0 in the regular season. A stumble in the Colonial League Championship game ended Northwestern’s hopes of a perfect season. At the same time, it might have helped the team refocus heading into the win-or-go-home postseason.

After its lone loss of the season, Northwestern kept winning and sent a lot of teams home.

“We played well all year, then the league final when we lost it woke us up,” said sophomore central defender Nate Kinzell. “It sparked a fire, and that helped us throughout the entire postseason.

“It was really beneficial. We would probably still be here (in the state title game), but it was really beneficial to take that loss and know what adversity felt like.”

Hunsicker - who crossed the 200-win milestone as coach this season - knew he had the kind of team that could make a run to the state title, as the Tigers are strong up and down the roster.

“The group of kids we had this year was 100 percent the right group to get the job done,” said Hunsicker. “From senior leadership to freshmen and sophomores stepping up and playing big roles for us and doing it at a very high level on the biggest stage is just a testament to the culture that we have.

“Going forward, we’re looking to hopefully be back here again next year. We bring back a strong core, and we’ve got some good eighth-graders coming up next year.”

Northwestern’s senior group this year is strong. Cayden Fitch and Josh Zellner both have been part of the starting lineup most of their high school careers. Goalkeeper Damian Krapf was one of the best in the area this fall, and classmates Dartanyon DeLillo, Zachary Grohotolski and Jaylen Lowthert will all be missed next season. More importantly, they’ll always be remembered as part of the program’s first state title.

More than half-a-dozen starters will return next year. Expectations will be exponential for the next few years.

Both goal scorers in the state championship were sophomores. Center-midfielder Jack Mauro had the game-winner, while classmate Jake Van Lierop scored in another postseason game.

The team’s leading goal scorer, junior Matt Johnson, will also be back next season, along with the starting back line of Kinzell, junior Nick Krum and freshman Caelin Stangil.

“The bar should be set high,” said Kinzell. “We should be good coming up. I’m looking forward to it.”