This scholastic sports season at Whitehall High School was characterized by strong performances from beginning to end.

They claimed some league championships, sent a number of student-athletes to the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association championships, and found themselves in the district finals in three events during the year.

"It was another good year," said Whitehall Athletic Director Bob Hartman. "We've been on a good run here at Whitehall for the last few years."

Hartman said that all of their sports are growing, thanks in large part to a "group of kids who play hard and coaches who work hard."

With the start of the year, the football team unveiled a new coach in Brian Gilbert who immediately molded the team into one of the best in the area. They went 8-1 in the conference, earning a share of the Lehigh Valley Conference title. Their superb season also merited them a trip to the playoffs, narrowly missing a spot in the district semifinals when they lost to Delaware Valley High School, 46-45 in overtime.

Fall also meant district berths for field hockey, as well as boys and girls soccer, the latter culminating in district final appearance by the girls at J. Birney Crum Stadium against Parkland High School. Hartman said the boys soccer team made an appearance in the D-11 playoffs for the first time.

Fall success continued at Whitehall with a state qualifying performance in cross country by Gabe Lamm.

Golfer Loran Pritchard carded a 139 in district play, good enough for the third spot in the championship round. However, she lost a one-hole playoff to Emily Unrue from Easton Area High School that prevented her from advancing to the regional round.

Winter sports saw a trio of Whitehall swimmers make a big splash. Brooke Gilson, Mina Feyrer and Alexus Merkert all earned a trip to the PIAA Championships, with Gilson entering the state tourney as the District 11 winner in the 500-yard freestyle. Gilson ended her Zephyr swimming career with an eighth-place finish in the 500 at states.

The boys basketball team once again qualified for the district tournament, and wrestler Matt Bonshak finished third in the District 11 tournament at 160, and fourth at the Regional tournament.

Winter also saw the Whitehall cheerleading squad place second at the District 11 Competitive Spirit Championships, then followed that with a fourth-place at the inaugural PIAA Championships.

"That was an incredible accomplishment," said Hartman.

In the spring, the Zephyrs continued to build on a strong year, winning an LVC championship in baseball, their first league title in 29 years. It was also their first title as a member of the LVC which formed in 2001. From that championship they earned a trip to the district tourney, eventually playing for a district title against Parkland at Coca-Cola Park.

The boys volleyball team also made it to the district finals, losing 3-2 to Emmaus High School in the championships.

The girls softball team continued their excellence, making the playoffs again under coach Alexis Berg-Townsend.

In track and field, Angela Stella's fleet feet took her to Shippensburg to compete in the 800 meters at the PIAA championships, while the record-setting boys 4x800 team (Michael Leonhardt, J.C. Falcon, Michael Eible and Brian Plucinsky) also earned a trip to states.

With football sharing a league title, and baseball claiming an LVC championship this year, the Zephs completed two- thirds of the triple crown, with basketball the last link in that chain. Hartman said the last time the school achieved that rare feat of wining all three was in 1968-69, an indication of how tough it is to do in a highly competitive scholastic sports arena.

Still, winning two of those championships is a big accomplishment especially since Whitehall is the smallest public school in the conference. While having a smaller student body might seem like a handicap to most observers, Hartman doesn't see their enrollment as an issue.

"This is not a big adversity in our book," said Hartman. "We don't consider ourselves underdogs. We just have to do things better."

Hartman said that the mentality of the kids who don the maroon and gold uniform is to work hard and maintain a fierce commitment. He also said the kids are coached well and they earn everything they get.

This has led them to become good ambassadors of the school, a byproduct of what is taught on the field and in the classroom. It's what allowed them to have successful years like they did during 2012-2013.

Hartman said the athletic programs are guided by one principle.

"We hang ourselves on the mantra, Zephyr tough," he said.