Bethlehem Catholic might be using the District 11 tournament as a redemption tour.

After losing in the EPC finals to Emmaus to stifle their undefeated record and close their chance at the first piece of gold hardware this season, the Hawks are on a mission to reach this week’s district championship and get the gold that counts.

That journey continued on Monday night following a 3-0 sweep over Northwestern in the District 11 3A semifinals to set them up with a showdown against Southern Lehigh in Thursday’s 5 p.m. championship at Catasauqua.

Getting past the Tigers was just part of the process for the Hawks and head coach Jess Attieh, as they now look to secure the programs first district championship since 2022.

“Northwestern is a really solid team,” said Attieh. “They’re scrappy and they do not let a ball hit the floor easily. Beating the two seed shows exactly what kind of fight and resilience they bring to the game. They play with a lot of energy and confidence, so we needed to play sharp, controlled, and composed throughout the match.”

The Hawks (22-1) now face an undefeated Spartans (18-0) squad that took down their first EPC opponent of the season with a win over Central Catholic in Monday’s semis. Being back in the finals is a chance for the Hawks to flip the script from their disappointing EPC finale.

“Since the EPC tournament, I’ve been really proud of how our group has responded,” Attieh said. “Losing in the finals lit a fire under them. They’ve shown a higher level of focus in practice, better communication on the court, and a real commitment to cleaning up the little details. The team understands what it takes to finish strong, and they’ve used the loss as motivation to grow and come back even stronger for districts.”

Freedom (16-4) needed to overcome a major challenge on Tuesday, past Press deadlines, taking on Parkland (16-5) in the 4A semifinals.

Head coach Lori Guman knows that despite Parkland having an off year from their blue-chip standard, defeating them in the postseason is always difficult.

“The challenge of playing Parkland is that it is Parkland,” she said. “Parkland is a well-coached team and I feel like everyone has a little mental block when they go up against them. We have not seen Parkland in the regular season for years, so it is very exciting to face them at this time of the year especially with the team we have this year.”

Emmaus (20-3) is the favorite coming into the 4A tournament and already owns a victory over Freedom this year. The Hornets took on Nazareth in Tuesday’s other semifinal, but Guman would welcome the opportunity to have her team play spoiler against the EPC champs.

“I don’t know if there is any key to beating any team this season except for just playing our side of the court, control what you can control,” said Guman. “We just need to concentrate on what we do. Do our job to the best of our ability and good things will happen. This game is so fast that we need to forget about mistakes quickly and move onto the next play. I always stress to them to do your best as a team, rely on and trust each other, and always leave the court with no regrets.”

Liberty saw their season come to an end in the quarterfinals, losing to Emmaus in four games. The Hurricanes wrapped up their season with an 8-9 record.