Sometimes a solution calls for using the basics. Sometimes it takes a little creativity.

Northern Lehigh used both Saturday night to earn a thrilling 29-28 overtime win over Palisades in a District 11 Class 2A football playoff game.

With the score tied at 21 entering overtime, the Bulldogs won the coin toss and chose to let Palisades start on offense at the 10-yard line.

Pirates quarterback Jack Trickel, an athletic 6-foot-2, 173-pound senior, took the first snap and scored easily, slicing up the middle and into the end zone. The PAT made it 28-21.

Then came Northern Lehigh’s turn.

On the first play, the Bulldogs lost a yard. A pass play followed, but the Pirates were flagged for a 5-yard penalty, setting up second-and-goal.

Quarterback Garrett Smoyer, a gutsy 5-10, 165-pound junior, ran a basic trap play up the middle to score and make it 28-27.

That’s when the creativity came.

Coach Joe Tout decided to go for the two-point conversion — and the win. He had just the play in mind.

Smoyer instantly lateraled to Grady Newhard on his left, who then lateraled to Colin Karetsky to his right. Karetsky lofted a perfect pass to junior Ryan Zambo, who was tightly covered but made the catch and fell into the end zone for the winning points.

Tout called it the Philly Special.

“We stole it from the Eagles against the Patriots,” he said with a grin.

Karetsky, a junior wide receiver, said, “We practice it about once or twice a week the whole season. Coach Tout is an Eagles fan, so he likes to play Philly.”

Of the decisive catch, Karetsky said of his teammate and classmate Zambo, “I saw him catch it. He was in. I was super excited. I love Ryan. He’s a great player. I’m super excited for him because it was a big play.”

The Bulldogs had to fight back more than once to make that moment possible.

They trailed 14-0 in the first half, and again 21-14 in the fourth quarter before forcing overtime.

Both Zambo and Karetsky were key reasons the game went beyond regulation.

Midway through the fourth quarter, trailing 21-14, the Bulldogs drove to the Palisades 19, facing fourth-and-seven. Smoyer connected with Zambo on the left sideline for a first down at the 3-yard line. Three plays later, Smoyer scored from the 1 to tie the game at 21 with 2:01 remaining.

Palisades answered with one final threat, reaching the Northern Lehigh 37 as time wound down. Trickel launched a pass toward the end zone, but Zambo again came up big, leaping in front of the receiver for an interception to send the game to overtime.

“We said it all week — we thought it was a very even matchup,” Tout said. “The first time we played (at Palisades) we thought the advantage was being home.”

The Pirates won that first meeting, 28-14.

“It looked like it could have been an ugly game for a little bit there,” Tout added. “But our guys, down 14, fought back. It was just a hard-fought game, and a pretty even matchup.”

Palisades came out firing. On its first possession, the Pirates drove 70 yards on four plays, capped by a 51-yard touchdown run from Max Woerner. Blake Oglialoro added the first of his four PATs to make it 7-0.

Late in the first quarter, a 92-yard drive carried into the second. It ended with a 34-yard touchdown pass from Trickel to Silas Day, pushing the lead to 14-0.

Northern Lehigh finally responded with a scoring drive of its own. Starting from the Pirate 45, the Bulldogs finished the possession when Chris Vargas caught a 6-yard pass from Smoyer and carried it into the end zone. Anthony Hanna converted the first of his three extra points.

Moments before halftime, Karetsky intercepted a pass at the Northern Lehigh 30, then hauled in a 35-yard completion to the Palisades 23. Two plays later, Mason Rothrock, a junior, ran the final 16 yards for the score, tying the game 14-14.

Palisades regained the lead in the third quarter on a 52-yard touchdown run by Trickel.

Pirates coach Bobby Smith praised both teams after the game.

“Northern Lehigh is always a tough team, you know,” Smith said. “It was tough. It was a great game for both teams.”

Smith said he didn’t second-guess the call to kick the extra point in overtime.

“I think one point — that’s a great call,” he said. “Blake’s a great kicker. We had a pretty good block planned if they went for one. When we saw they went for two — sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t. I think everybody gave everything they possibly could.”

DISTRICT 11 SEMIFINALS AWAIT ... The fourth-seeded Bulldogs advance to face top-seeded Schuylkill Haven at 6 p.m. Saturday in Schuylkill Haven. The Hurricanes advanced with a 62-14 win over Catasauqua. Northern Lehigh defeated Catty 42-12 in the regular season.

TEAM STATISTICS ... The first quarter belonged to Palisades, which totaled 143 yards (67 rushing, 76 passing) to Northern Lehigh’s 29 (nine rushing, 20 passing). In the second quarter, the Bulldogs outgained the Pirates 96-71. Overall, Northern Lehigh finished with 177 rushing yards and 130 passing, while Palisades had 196 on the ground and 140 through the air. Smoyer gained 76 yards on 18 carries for the Bulldogs.

TOUT CREDITS EXECUTION ... Coach Tout praised his team’s composure and execution on the decisive play.

“That was our Philly Special,” he said. “I give Colin (Karetsky) a lot of credit because Garrett (Smoyer), our quarterback, is our primary. (Palisades) was on that. Ryan (Zambo) was the guy who had a little bit of an opening. Their kids played it well, but our guys made the play.”

No. Lehigh 29, Palisades 28

Palisades 7 7 7 0 7 - 28

No. Lehigh 0 14 0 7 8 - 29

P - Woerner 51 run (Oglialoro kick)

P - Day 34 pass from Trickel (Oglialoro kick)

NL - Vargas 6 pass from Smoyer (Hanna kick)

NL - Rothrock 16 run (Hanna kick)

P - Trickel 52 run (Oglialoro kick)

NL - Smoyer 1 run (Hanna kick)

P - Trickel 10 run (Oglialoro kick)

NL - Smoyer 6 run (Zambo pass from Karetsky)