On paper, the EPC quarterfinal softball matchup between Northampton and Emmaus looked to be the most compelling of the four games scheduled last Thursday. The Kids and Hornets had split their regular season contests in a pair of pitching duels between the top two hurlers in the league, Northampton’s Emma Fraley and Emmaus’ Danika Barthol.

However, several key Hornets’ players were held out of the lineup for disciplinary reasons, casting a pall over the proceedings. Nevertheless, a spot in the EPC semifinals was at stake and the K-Kids took care of business 5-1.

Head coach Kristy Henritzy was pragmatic in her assessment, “You want to face a team when they’re at full strength, but sometimes things don’t happen that way. It’s unfortunate. The main thing is we got the W and we’re moving on.”

The Hornets were not only shorthanded, but they were also clearly distracted. They committed 7 errors with many of them contributing directly to Northampton runs.

The K-Kids’ first run scored when Ava Cascario scampered home from second base on a 2-out throwing error in the second inning.

Nicole Yellen continued her torrid hitting in May, going the opposite way for a two-run double in the third and then adding an RBI single in the sixth to cap off the scoring.

Ryley Colburn went 2 for 4 out of the nine hole, but Northampton really won the game with pitching and defense.

Through 6 and 2/3 innings, Emma Fraley surrendered only 3 hits. She had a streak of 16 hitless batters in a row, including retiring 10 straight at one point. It was the Kids’ outfield that got the majority of the work. The trio of Yellen, Hannah Makovsky, and Sam Barber recorded 9 total putouts, with 5 of those settling into Makovsky’s glove in left field.

“I think we played really well. We put a lot of work in at practice and I think it showed off today. If we keep this up with the fielding and the hitting, I think we’ll do really well,” Makovsky opined.

The EPC named their All-Conference team last week and the K-Kids led all schools with 6 honorees. Angela Fisher, Makovsky, Fraley, and Hannah Duerr were named to the first team. Avery Deibert and Cascario were second-team selections. Freedom’s Madison Glick was awarded MVP.