The Northampton softball team put their first loss of the season in the rearview mirror as they bounced back from a 10-8, extra innings loss to Liberty on Friday to vanquish old division rival Parkland 8-5 on Tuesday.

After surrendering 3 hits and a pair of runs in the top of the first inning, sophomore Rylee Gable settled in and scattered only three more hits over the final six innings to pick up the complete game win with seven strikeouts.

Gable described putting the rocky first inning behind her, “I just needed to take a breath and just center myself and make sure I’m focusing in on what I have to do. I have a lot of trust in my defense, so that helps a lot.”

She continued, “I really have to keep myself calm in order to throw the way that I do. (Catcher) Hannah’s (Duerr) a big help in that and coach Jen (Getz-Shellhammer) and coach Kristy (Henritzy).”

“I don’t think people understand that from a catching standpoint, Hannah does a really good job of calling the game. Hannah helps her with where to set up and coaching her through that. It’s like having another coach on the field,” Henritzy explained.

The way Duerr produces eye-popping numbers at the plate, it is sometimes easy to forget that she also plays the most demanding defensive position on the field as well.

Against the Trojans, the junior was 4 for 4 with a pair of home runs and scored four runs. Her two-run homer in the fourth inning put the K-Kids up 6-3 and proved to be the game-winning hit. She also launched a moonshot in the sixth.

Claire Lack was 2 for 4 and provided a key 2-out 2-run double in the third inning that gave Northampton its first lead of the game at 3-2.

Ro Echevarria reached base four times including with a single and a double.

First baseman Avery Deibert missed the game with a knee injury that has her on crutches, but it is fortunately not an ACL tear and her likelihood of returning this season is high.

Northampton is 5-1 for the season and 4-1 in the EPC.

The team enters a tough stretch of their campaign with five road games in the next week including four contests in the next 5 days. Stroudsburg, Freedom, and Hazleton host the K-Kids the next three afternoons. Northampton travels to Nazareth on Monday and Bethlehem Catholic on Wednesday.