The Northwestern girls cross country team has been unbeatable for as long as most on the team can remember.

The Lady Tigers haven't lost a duel meet since 2010, and have won the last four Colonial League regular season and league meet championships in convincing fashion en route to three straight District 11 Class AA titles.

But a fourth district crown seemed unlikely last Thursday after Allentown Central Catholic took the top three spots in the race, with Colleen Dady finishing first in 19:17.

Northwestern was able to offset the Vikettes sweep of the top three spots by placing six of its runners in the top-21, led by Carly Pierce's 11th-place finish in 20:25, to claim the Class AA championship by a 73-78 margin over Wilson.

"It took a total team effort today," said Northwestern coach Chris Stitzel. "We had girls really step up. We didn't have our best race, but we were still able to do it.

"I'm just so proud of them. They got pushed, and they came through. I'm just so happy for them. They ran their hearts out. All seven of them came through today."

Pierce was happy to be able to share another milestone with a group of seniors that has gone 102-0 during their tenure.

"It just means a lot to know that all four years I've gone (to states) with my team," the senior said. "It makes me feel very proud of my team and proud to be a part of Northwestern cross country. I'm so excited that we'll have another chance."

Molly Tarvin (13th), Abigail Supplee (14th), Hannah Herzon (16th), Paige Stitzel (19th), Rachele Cerrone (21st) and Abigail Smith (32nd) will join Pierce at this Saturday's PIAA Cross Country Championships.

Unlike many of the girls on the team, Tarvin will be making her first appearance in Hershey for the state meet, an opportunity the freshman is looking forward to.

"It's amazing. I can't believe I'm here," she said. "I just really wasn't expecting this at all. Coming in, I knew that we had a good chance to do well.

"But after the race I was a little nervous knowing that they (Central Catholic) got the top-three."

Stitzel hopes the close call will serve as motivation for a Northwestern squad that finished fourth in Hershey last year.

"We're gonna go for broke," the coach said. "We've come so close the last couple of years that to come home with the team trophy next week would be huge for these girls.

"For how close this group is, and for how well we've run together ... we didn't have a girl in the top-10 but were still able to win as a team. That's big. That just goes to show the girls that you need a total team effort to do it."

Four Northwestern seniors (Pierrce, Cerrone, Abby Kemmerer and Julie Duffy) have been part of the team four all four years and don't know the feeling of losing a dual meet or taking anything but first at a league championship. Pierce and Cerrone have been part of the line up since ninth grade. The team's dual-meet record in those four years is 102-0. It won four league titles and three district crowns, taking second to Parkland as a Class AAA team in 2011, which in itself is an amazing feat for one of the smallest schools in the Class AAA field that yaer.

The girls team placed 20th in Class AAA states in 2011 and ninth in Class AA in 2012 before it's fourth place last season.

While the Northwestern girls will carry on the tradition of sending a team to the state meet, the boys were unable to continue their trend after winning the District 11 Class AA championship the last two years.

The Tigers took fourth in the team classification, which was won this year by Allentown Central Catholic.

Brayden Heller paced Northwestern with a fourth-place finish in 17:19, an improvement on his seventh place result in 2013.

"I'm happy," the senior said. "I was going more for a place more than a time and fourth place was my goal. I almost got third, but ended up in fourth, so it was good."

Heller was less than a minute behind Salisbury's Kyle Gonoude, who took the top spot in the Class AA boys race for the second year in a row.

"I'm happy for Brayden because this was his goal," Stitzel said. "He trained like a beast this summer and this was his goal, to get back to states.

"It would have been nice to get back there as a team again. But going individually, hopefully he'll do well and we'll see what he has for one more race."

Phillip Castrine (19th), Alec Consuelos (32nd), Josh Kromer (33rd), Zachary Hancharik (44th), Matthew Grim (58th) and Anthony Vennera (66th) rounded out the Northwestern boys contingent.