The Northampton boys soccer team hosted Liberty in the opening round of the EPC playoffs on Monday night.

The Kids escaped and moved on thanks to a 1-0 win.

The boys have had a potent offense this season and have been used to scoring, seemingly whenever they wanted at times. But on Monday, the defense helped to lead the way against the Hurricanes.

“I thought we moved the ball well and created a lot of chances,” said head coach Chris Bastidas. “Unfortunately, we couldn’t put any shots in the net.

“I like that we didn’t get discouraged and just kept creating opportunities.”

The Kids scored a goal after a great bicycle kick by Brady Dolak. Mason Haupt was in the right spot at the right time to finish it off.

“We generated a goal by keeping the ball around the net,” Bastidas said. “Mason was in the perfect spot for the follow. It wasn’t an easy goal, but Mason put it right in the corner.”

Bastidas pointed to Antonio Del Priore to helped to lead the way on defense. He was also pleased the Kids offense was able to keep the pressure on Liberty.

“I like that we didn’t sit on the lead, and we kept trying to score,” Bastidas added. “We didn’t score, but the pressure kept them from generating good chances on our net.”

BETWEEN THE LINES ... The Kids will take on a surprise, but familiar opponent in Whitehall. The eighth-seeded Zephs shocked top-seeded Emmaus 1-0 on penalty kicks after the teams played to a 0-0 tie through two overtimes ... EPC semifinals take place Wednesday, Oct. 18, at Pleasant Valley, which is after Press deadlines ... The NHS-WHS game is at 5:30 p.m. ... Back on Oct. 11, the Kids blew out the Zephs 8-1 ... Liberty’s boys played well this year and were seeded fifth, collecting a 12-4-1 record. The NHS boys were 14-2-1 this season and seeded fourth ... There weren’t any other surprises as three-seed Freedom blanked Pleasant Valley 3-0. The Pates will play second-seeded Parkland, which was a 4-2 winner over seven-seed Central ... That game is at PV at 7:30 p.m. ... Freedom was one of two teams to beat NHS this season ... Northampton boys soccer leading scorers: Jackson Vajda - 45 goals, 13 assists; Delali Tsome - 18 goals, 18 assists; Sebastian Mello- 9 goals, 11 assists; Mason Haupt - 0 goals, 16 assists (plays left defender); Brady Dolak - 7 goals, 5 assists.