Northwestern boys soccer head coach Nathan Hunsicker was glad that his team’s nonconference matchup against District 3’s Fleetwood High School out was rescheduled from the beginning of the regular season to the final week of the schedule.

He just might not have been as happy battling to the final whistle with the Tigers.

Northwestern scored two goals in the first half, and after giving one back in the second half, held on for a 2-1 victory Monday afternoon at Tiger Stadium in Fleetwood.

The win keeps the Tigers (17-0 overall, 11-0 Colonial League) unbeaten on the year with one game left.

“Fleetwood has honestly been the best team that we’ve played all season,” said Hunsicker. “They’re a quality opponent and really make it tough. It was nice to get this game later on in the season instead of at the beginning when it was supposed to be. This was a good test going into postseason play.”

It didn’t look like the Tigers would be tested with the type of dominant play they had in possession and opportunities on net.

They took advantage of the 5-2 advantage in shots with goals in the first half by Noah Meyers and Kenny Gawelko to take a 2-0 lead into halftime.

Meyers (16 goals) and Gawelko (15 goals) are the team’s leading goal scorers.

“They are fantastic players,” Hunsicker said. “They’re different types of players and bring different tools to the field for us, which is great because they complement each other. Noah has the speed and Kenny has the strength and is good with the ball.”

When the second half whistle blew, Fleetwood looked was a more energized team. It outshot Northwestern 6-2 over the final 40 minutes, and cut the deficit in half with a goal by Lucas Graham just nine minutes in.

For the remainder of the half, the Tiger defense, although greatly tested, held firm and goalie Taylor Wanamaker (4 saves) allowed just the one goal while blocking away many other shots.

“It was a tale of two halves,” said Hunsicker. “I thought we did a fantastic job in the first half with the possession and scoring chances. But in the second half, I don’t know, their coach must have really inspired them.

“It was a different half, but we grinded it out and got the victory so that was important.”

Northwestern closed out the regular season Wednesday. A Tigers win would mean the first undefeated regular season in program history. Last year Northwestern finished 17-1-1 after falling in the PIAA state final.