BETHLEHEM — Northern Lehigh soccer coach Jay Ohland and goalie Gus Rosario shared a chest bump midfield, and why not?

The Bulldogs shut out Wilson, 4-0, in a District 11 Class 2A semifinal on Tuesday at Bethlehem Area School District Stadium for a berth in the district final.

“We preached from the beginning of the year discipline, smart soccer, stay compact,” Ohland said. “You don’t need to score four goals to win a game. You just need to score one and keep the other team from scoring. It hasn’t always happened that way for us, but tonight was our night.”

The Bulldogs left everything on the pitch, literally, as some players dropped to the ground at game’s end; short-lived, however, because Northern Lehigh fans were waiting for the victory lap on the other side of the field.

“It felt great, putting all the work in from August to now every single day after school for two hours straight, and then displaying it on the field for the fans and everyone, it’s really, really fun for us and to bring it home for our town,” said Keelin Moore, who scored the Bulldogs’ third goal in the 45th minute.

“In past years, soccer was the smallest thing and football was the biggest, but it’s nice seeing football, field hockey, and everyone come together to show up and support us for a big game.”

Moore was the first to get to the ball on Kellen Bauer’s throw-in to the far post.

“We’d been working on set pieces the entire off-season, and it finally worked,” Moore said. “We’ve been proving it all regular season with that same play. I got up to it, and put it in the back of the net.”

Moore and Bauer worked in tandem for the fourth and final goal of the night.

“We did a little give-and-go with Cooper (Glatfelter), and I used my pace to get by the kid,” said Moore. “Shot it the first time at the keeper. He saved it. Shot it again. He saved it again. Rolled out to my striker Kellen, and he just slotted it in.”

Tyler Azzaro’s header put the Bulldogs on the scoreboard in the 15th minute on an assist by Ryan Barchini.

“I was looking for [Tyler] in the middle,” Barchini said, “and I kind of just placed it on anyone’s head.”

Said Azzaro, “The guy guarding me was pretty short, and Ryan just spoon fed me the ball, and I buried it top right. I think that was huge.

“Starting off with a strong mindset going into the rest of the game was definitely big. We know we’re better on turf, so that was a big help for us because that’s what we’re used to, and that win against Palisades definitely lit a fire under us for more victories.”

In its district quarterfinal against Palisades, Northern Lehigh had a 3-0 lead before conceding two goals to the Pirates.

The Bulldogs made sure it wouldn’t happen again.

“The only thing we changed (at halftime) was playing more defensive and making sure we’re marking all the players we can,” said Barchini.

Soon after Azzaro’s goal, Wilson’s Justin Hetrick attempted the equalizer, but the ball landed on top of the net.

Then, Wilson keeper Logan Moore stopped a shot on goal but lost the ball when Michael Bauer scored on an assist by Onsard Charles in the 25th minute.

Other shots by the Warriors went wide, although Rosario made five saves for the Bulldogs.

Moore made eight saves for Wilson.

“It’s hard to quantify stats for defenders, and the offense usually gets the limelight, so I was thrilled to see us close it out and get that clean sheet,” Ohland said. “We have some really tough competitors back there.

“It’s a point of pride, and I’m happy about that. Our pressure was unbelievable. The effort these guys gave, they ran their butts off. I couldn’t ask for any more from them. Phenomenal.”

UP NEXT ... Northern Lehigh will return to BASD Stadium to take on Northwestern Lehigh for the District 11 Class 2A soccer championship on Thursday.

Northern Lehigh 4, Wilson 0

Wilson 0 0 - 0

Northern Lehigh 2 2 - 4

Goals: Wilson - None; Northern Lehigh - Tyler Azzaro 1, Michael Bauer 1, Keelin Moore 1, Kellen Bauer 1; Assists: Northern Lehigh - Ryan Barchini 1, Onsard Charles 1, Kellen Bauer 1. Saves: Wilson - Logan Moore 8; Northern Lehigh - Gus Rosario 5.

Records: Wilson (10-8-1); Northern Lehigh (10-6-5).