Nazareth clinches North Division title

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Proms and playoffs are not a good mix in girls softball.

Many quality teams have lost big games either because they were looking ahead, or trying to get over prom nights.

That's why Nazareth was happy to take care of business Thursday night and nail down the Lehigh Valley Conference's North Division title without requiring a playoff.

The Blue Eagles clinched the crown with a 6-2 victory over host Northampton.

''There was going to be a playoff with Parkland at 4 o'clock Saturday if we lost this one,'' said Nazareth coach Michelle Schoeneberger. ''We didn't want that because we have a prom on Friday night. That was a little extra incentive for us tonight. We really played that up.

''It doesn't matter if they're softball players or not, they're still teenage girls and the prom is a big deal to them.''

Winning softball titles can be a big deal, too, and Nazareth (14-6, 10-4) hopes that the division title is the start of several honors to come its way.

The Blue Eagles have won four straight after dropping six of eight.

They look like the team that began the spring 8-0 and will be as tough to beat as anyone in the league tournament that begins Monday night at Pates Park and will include Emmaus, Easton and Liberty.

Nazareth banged out 13 hits and got a three-hit, 11-strikeout performance from sophomore ace Sarah Faust.

''We had a lull in the season when our confidence was down and I think the girls lost faith in themselves and each other,'' Schoeneberger said. ''But they have shown a lot of character to push through that. We kept telling them they need to trust in the process and all the work that they put in. Now, their goals are much closer than they realized.''

Northampton, another team that has had its share of ups and downs, took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first when it bunched all three of its off Faust.

But the K-Kids didn't get another hit after Emily Clancy's RBI single.

Nazareth, meanwhile, tied it up with a pair of runs in the second and broke it open with a three-run fifth inning with the big hit being Lindsay Mastro's run-scoring double. Mastro was 4-for-4.

''I've never played in a better game than this one,'' Mastro, a junior center fielder, said. ''I loved it. It was an experience I'll never forget. We came together as one and it feels so good.''

Mastro believes her team is at its strongest at just the right time.

''We lost to Parkland last week 11-0 and that was a real eye-opener,'' she said. ''That really woke everybody up. Tonight, we didn't panic when we got down 2-0. Actually, it was good for us because we knew we had to do it. We hit well from top to bottom and Sarah pitched great.''

Molly Calabrese and Hilary Dilsaver also had two hits for the Blue Eagles, who have outscored their last four foes by a combined total of 39-4.

''They're a good team and they just shut us down after the first inning,'' said Northampton coach Sally-Whittaker-Kahan. ''Sarah Faust was a little shaky at first, but she got herself together in the middle and the end of the game and we couldn't touch her.

''We got some hits early and took advantage of it, but once a pitcher gets in a groove like that, they're tough.''

The K-Kids, who honored seniors Clancy, AnnMarie Dalton and Alex Cowell before the game, now have nearly two weeks off before they'll participate in the District 11 4A tournament.

And that tournament, like the entire season to this point, figures to be unpredictable.

''We just have to play better,'' Whittaker-Kahan said. ''I can take losing, but not with the number of errors we had tonight. This was only the second time all season we've lost by more than two runs. We can play better softball.''

Nazareth 020 031 0 -- 6 13 1

Northampton 200 000 0 -- 2 3 3

Faust and Ammon; J. Weber, Schaffer (6) and Cowell.

FROM KEITH GROLLER