Northampton's softball team not only spoiled Nazareth's Senior Night Tuesday, but also virtually wrapped up a playoff berth in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference's championship tourney.

Coach Kevin Mann's Kids rode a nine-run third inning to a 12-2 victory at Nazareth's Tuskes Field and in doing so pushed their EPC record to 11-5 and "virtually got us into the playoffs" said Mann.

The Kids ran their overall record to 13-6 with a three-game winning streak and only have a nonleague game with Bethlehem Catholic remaining. That game was played Wednesday, too late for this edition.

"I told the girls we controlled our own destiny. Our bats are coming along," he added after the Kids pounded out 15 hits Tuesday - seven in the nine-run third.

With a District 11 berth already assured, the Kids the win over Nazareth and a Whitehall loss to Parkland and that occurred.

"The skill level in our league is close," said Mann when talking about the EPC, where Northampton finished 6-4 in the Skyline Division.

Sophomores Taylor Keeney (6 innings) and Jillian Muthard (the seventh) held the Blue Eagles to four hits - one was Kelly Setzer's two run double in the fifth that cut the score to 11-2 and forced sixth and seventh innings.

The Kids' big third came about as the first seven Kids reached base before there was an out.

Haley Muffley started it with a double and Amber Saylor singled before Auria Enright reached base on an error. Muthard singled in a run and Kendall Reed singled in two more. Another run scored on Lindsay Stuhldreher's fielder's choice grounder on which all runners were safe. Ali Reppert singled before an out and Emily Schwartz's groundout brought in another. Muffley reached on an error and Saylor and Enright doubled home runs.

The Kids got two more runs in the fifth on hits by Enright and Muthard and added a 12th in the seventh on an RBI double by Maura Moser after Deidre Person's double.

Earlier last week the Kids fell 6-2 to Whitehall on Northampton's Senior Night, then trounced Central Catholic 9-1 in an EPC game before shutting out Kutztown 10-0 in a nonleague game as Saylor picked up four hits.