This had the symptoms of a trap game - an unusual Saturday night contest against a struggling team after four weeks of dominating, emotional performances.

But after giving up the first touchdown 17 seconds in, Parkland scored the next 45 points en route to a 51-13 win over Bethlehem Catholic at Bethlehem Area School District Stadium. The win was their sixth straight.

It may have looked as if the Trojans were looking past Becahi. A lackluster start has not been the M.O. of this Parkland team, who have beaten three strong Lehigh Valley Conference teams in the past three weeks.

On the opening kickoff, Tyler Horton bobbled the ball, but picked it up and ran 92 yards down field for an early 7-0 Golden Hawks lead.

On the ensuing Trojans possession, a fumble gave Bethlehem Catholic the ball back in Parkland territory.

That was all senior Jarel Elder could handle.

He restored order midway through the first quarter when he picked off a pass from Nick Cortopossi, catching the ball with his left hand, and took it 64 yards to the house.

"I have no idea what happened," Elder said about the slow start. "Our kickoff teams have been dominant lately, but it's like kind of what happened with Allen last year. We just knew we had to get it back together."

Parkland (6-2, 6-1 LVC) did get it back together from there. The Trojans outmatched the Golden Hawks (1-7, 1-6) athletically on all sides of the ball.

Elder added his first of two rushing touchdowns late in the first quarter. Quarterback Tim Baranek, the leading rusher of the night with 67 yards, found the end zone with his arm, connecting with Jarey Elder for 15 yards for the first score of the second half.

With Becahi in the midst of a 50-yard drive, Andrew Fuehrer put the brakes on it. He joined Elder in the Pick Six party and returned an interception 79 yards with five seconds left in the half. The Trojans led 31-7 at halftime.

Elder and Kareem Williams added touchdown runs of 35 and one yard, respectively, in the second half. Eli Redmond, having somewhat of a quiet night, broke free for a 56 yard punt return, his only score of the night.

After the opening kickoff, the Parkland defense hadn't allowed a touchdown. Becahi scored its lone offensive TD in the fourth quarter with the Trojans reserves in getting some experience.

"We know that our defense ignites our offense," said Elder. "Even though we had a slow start, once our defense gets going, the offense starts rolling. We knew we started slower than usual, but we brought it back together."

Parkland has two games remaining in the regular season. A home matchup against Central Catholic looms large this Friday night. The Vikings are coming off arguably their biggest win of the year last Saturday night, defeating Nazareth 27-21.

"It's nothing different than a regular week," said Elder on the shortened week. "Central and Emmaus are two of our biggest rivals. You really can't prepare any differently. We have to come out like we always do."