There’s no denying the importance of pitching - especially in the postseason.

Northwestern found that out the hard way on Tuesday.

Saucon Valley’s Cole Hubert pitched a masterpiece against the top-seeded Tigers in a District 11 Class 3A quarterfinal match-up, leading the Panthers to a shocking 5-0 victory.

Hubert tossed a two-hitter and struck out 12 to eliminate Northwestern and propel No. 8 seed Saucon into the semifinals.

The Tigers, who finished 17-6, had a few opportunities to get on the scoreboard but failed to capitalize. The Panthers, meanwhile, made the most of one big frame, scoring five times in the fourth to account for all the scoring.

“I think we’re a lot better team than they are, but that happens when you have the best player on the field,” Northwestern head coach Brian Poloha said. “(In the) first inning, he walked a guy and we had a little opportunity. After that, he really settled in and threw a lot of strikes. It was a challenge, and we haven’t faced anyone like him all year. I wish we would’ve seen him in the regular season. He was the story today. He had like two or three hits. He’s a fantastic player, and the best player in the league in my opinion. When you’re a pitcher like that, you can control the game.”

“I think we’re a lot better team than they are, but that happens when you have the best player on the field,” Northwestern head coach Brian Poloha said. “First inning, he walked a guy and we got a little opportunity. After that, he really settled in and threw a lot of strikes. It was a challenge, and we haven’t faced anyone like him all year. I wish we would’ve seen him in the regular season.

“He was the story today. We had like two or three hits. He’s a fantastic player, and the best player in the league in my opinion. When you’re a pitcher like that, you can control the game.”

Hubert and Tiger starter Shaun O’Donnell were locked in a scoreless tie until the Saucon bats broke free in the fourth inning. Karter Beller delivered the biggest hit of the frame - a two-run double, while Zack Male also added a run-scoring hit during the five-run outburst.

Northwestern tried to rally in the sixth, getting runners on first and second and no outs, but Hubert worked his way out of the jam to keep the shutout intact.

“Cole Hubert has had a heck of a season so far this year,” said Saucon Valley head coach Gary Laub, whose team improved to 11-9. “He’s very efficient, and gets plenty of strikeouts. Even when he gets into a little bit of trouble, he works his way out of it. He stays composed and doesn’t get rattled too much. We played well today.”

Hubert also collected three hits at the plate - one more than he allowed. Andrew Gilbert also had a pair for the winners, who will face Pine Grove in Saturday’s semifinal round.

The loss is a bitter pill for the Tigers to swallow after having a stellar season.

“At one point, we had a 13-game winning streak and won 16 out of 17,” Poloha said. “The last few days are obviously disappointing. We had high expectations coming in ... It was just a bad draw running into him.

“Overall, we were 14-2 in the conference and we were the No. 1 seed for districts. Any other matchup I would’ve loved to have. I just didn’t want to face him ... I thought we battled and competed. It’s just really hard to win when you know you might not be able to give up any runs.”

SHUTOUT ... Of Northwestern’s six losses on the season, three were by shutout. The Tigers were also blanked by Blue Mountain (5-0) in the second game of the season, and by Southern Lehigh (7-0) on May 1.

DOMINANT ... Hubert, just a junior, is now 8-2 this season with an ERA of just 0.56 (five earned runs in 62 2/3 innings). Tuesday was his seventh game of double-digit strikeouts. He now has 132 Ks, while walking just 17.

Saucon Valley 000 500 0 - 5 8 0

Northwestern 000 000 0 - 0 2 4

Hubert and Male; O’Donnell, Moyer (4), Farber (5) and Augustus. W - Hubert. L - O’Donnell.