Fresh off a runner-up finish to Bethlehem Catholic in the EPC tournament, the Northampton girls basketball team will look to capture their first District XI 6A title since 2008.

The Kids earned the top seed on the virtue of their 19-3 regular season record. Coach Jeff Jacksits has the best “Big 3” in the district tournament with his triumvirate of all-EPC performers: Victoria Keenan (1st team, EPC MVP), Jenna Rogers (1st team), and Morgan Sterner (3rd team).

The tournament shapes up as a four-team race. Northampton, Freedom, Nazareth, and Parkland are the highest seeds and there is a significant gap between those four teams and the other qualifiers.

Northampton’s quarterfinal opponent is #8 seed Easton. The Kids trailed the Rovers 24-21 at the half on Jan. 15 before storming back to a 55-41 win. The game is at 7:30 at Whitehall on Thursday, Feb. 21.

In the semifinals (Tuesday, Feb. 26, TBD), Northampton will play the winner of the Parkland-Pleasant Valley quarterfinal. Parkland beat PV 55-40 on Jan. 18.

The Kids ran the Bears off the court in their Jan. 5 regular season meeting. Northampton scored a season high in points in the 92-65 thrashing and would love to see PV pull off the upset.

The Trojans handed the Kids their worst loss of the season, 53-34, on Feb. 4. Northampton won the first regular season game 43-40 at Parkland on Dec. 18. The Trojans were inconsistent this year, splitting with top teams Nazareth and Northampton, but they also split with a mediocre Central Catholic team and lost to Easton at home.

NHS and Parkland play contrasting styles. The Kids feature an up-tempo pace utilizing their speed whereas the Trojans slow it down and use their height.

The other side of the bracket features #2 Freedom and #3 Nazareth in the likely semifinal matchup.

Freedom’s four losses this season were to Bethlehem Catholic twice, Central Catholic, and to Northampton 58-57 at Pete Schneider Gymnasium on Jan. 8. The Patriots rely on their quickness and balance to offset their lack of an inside presence. Rogers should have an exploitable mismatch down low. The Kids need to do a better job getting to rebounds and loose balls than they did in the early game.

A matchup in the final with Nazareth would mark the fourth game between the Blue Eagles and the Kids this season, so neither team will have any surprises for the other. Nazareth won the first meeting 59-50 on Dec. 21. Northampton went on the road for a 58-57 2OT win on Feb. 1. The Kids knocked the Blue Eagles out of the EPC tournament with a 49-47 win in the semifinals on Valentine’s Day.

The district finals are scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 28, weather permitting.