They haven't made much noise in the mainstream but they have found a way to become two of the most successful and entertaining teams this season.

UANL Tigres and Atlante are on pace to qualify for the "liguilla," or playoffs, and both teams meet Saturday in Week 12 of the Mexican Clausura tournament match-up.

The host team, Tigres, led by coach Ricardo "Tuca" Ferreti is in second place in the standings and has only lost one game during the tournament.

Tigres' loss was a 1-0 outing Jan. 29 against Toluca at home. Since then, Tigres has won three of its six last matches while playing to three ties. Tigres has become a legitimate contender to clinch the league title.

Tigres has outscored its opponents 8-to-1 during the six-game unbeaten streak.

Meanwhile, Los Potros of Atlante have produced surprising results.

They beat Pachuca 4-0 then routed Chiapas Jaguares 5-1. Those two wins put Atlante on track to reach the postseason.

And much of the credit can be given to Francisco "Kikin" Fonseca, who was signed by the team three weeks ago. Fonseca has scored four goals since joining coach Miguel "Piojo" Herrera's squad.

Ironically, Fonseca faces his former team, Tigres, where he spent four seasons. He didn't score a goal last year with the Tigres.

Atlante features the league's leading scorer in Christian Bermudez, who many say should be selected to the Mexican national team.

Los Potros have had a tough time winning at the Tigres home, Estadio Tecnológico in Nuevo León. Atlante last won there in 2007, beating Tigres 3-2.

Both teams have faced each other 67 times since 1975 with UANL leading the series 26-21-20.

The Xolos

Cuauhtemoc Blanco showed some signs of life last Saturday when the former Mexican national team star scored twice in a 2-0 Freseros del Irapuato win against Xoloizcuintles de Tijuana.

It was another road loss for the Xolos.

That leaves Tijuana with 20 points in the standings while Irapuato took the top spot in the Liga de Ascenso standings with 27 points.

The Xolos will try to bounce back when they face an Atlante affiliate at home in Estadio Caliente de Tijuana in a Week 13 match up of the 2011 Clausura Tournament. The match is slated for a Sunday, 1 p.m. kickoff.