A year ago Northampton's softball team was in the same predicament as it is this year.

The Konkrete Kids lost to Parkland 10-0 in last year's Lehigh Valley Conference semifinals, and this year the Kids lost 9-0 to Liberty in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference semifinals on Tuesday afternoon.

That means Coach Kevin Mann's Kids have to re-examine their abilities and try to outdo last year's team which lost in the District 11 semifinals.

The Kids must wait - and practice - until the 2015 District 11 tournament begins next Tuesday.

Northampton "looked flat" against Liberty, said Mann.

"We should have been ready after beating No. 3 seed Pleasant Valley 13-4 on Monday," said Mann. "Against PV we strung together our hits (Northampton had 16), but we got only two against Liberty (the EPC's No.2 seed)."

Two controversial calls that went against Northampton (one wiped out a run in the third inning and another snuffed a potential rally in the fourth) didn't help. But, that aside, Liberty scored five runs in the fourth off losing pitcher Jillian Muthard - three on bases-loaded double by EPC MVP Reyna DeJesus and another on a "bleeder" single by Michaela Brunnabend.

Catcher Precious Torres added a two-run double in the fifth to push Liberty into Thursday's EPC title game against top-seeded Parkland.

Liberty reached the semifinals Monday by blanking Bethlehem Catholic 3-0 on Vicky Schmidt's three-run double and Schmidt followed that with Tuesday's two-hitter against Northampton.

The Kids, who dropped their regular season finale 3-2 in 10 innings to Bethlehem Catholic last Wednesday, regrouped in the EPC tourney opener as Muthard went 4-for-4 at the plate and Kendal Reed went 3-for-4 with a double.

"I told the girls we're still alive and will probably face some of the same teams we beat or lost to in the regular season," said Mann.

Meanwhile, the Kids lost their No. 2 pitcher Taylor Keeney for the remainder of the season due to shin splints and concerns over a possible stress fracture.

As for good news, junior third baseman Auria Enright, who is batting over .500, was a first team All-EPC selection along with Liberty's Torres and DeJesus, and Liberty's Sam Carrodo was coach of the year.