WIND GAP - Northern Lehigh didn’t need a miracle, but it did need some magic.

Entering its Colonial League quarterfinal playoff game as an underdog against a Pen Argyl team that had handily defeated them during the regular season, the Bulldogs were on the verge of victory heading into the bottom of the seventh inning.

But just when it looked like the Green Knights were about to ruin those upset hopes, Northern Lehigh found a way to survive.

All it took was some incredibly clutch pitching, several outstanding defensive plays, and a coach playing the role of magician.

Because all of that happened, Northern Lehigh was able to pull out a 4-3 victory on Friday afternoon.

“The last several days, we have been working on things that I thought we needed to do better if we were going to win this game,” said Northern Lehigh coach Kate Farber. “Pen Argyl is an excellent team, but I didn’t think the 7-1 score that they beat us by the first time we played, was a true indication of how good a team we are.

“We set a goal of just playing better this time - playing up to our abilities. If that meant us winning, that would obviously be the ultimate goal. But win or lose, I just wanted to see us play better.”

The Bulldogs met Farber’s goal with their improved play - which also put them in position to get the win.

But that win seemed in jeopardy in the bottom of the seventh when the Green Knights’ Callie Schneck laced a double into the right-center field gap to lead off the inning.

Farber then made the first of her two bold seventh inning decision when she decided to intentionally walk Jillian Bradley - putting the potential winning run on base.

“Pen Argyl has a lot of really good hitters, but coming into the game, if you had asked me if there was one particular hitter I wouldn’t want to face with the game on the line, I would have picked Bradley,” explained Farber. “So even though she was potentially the winning run, I thought we needed to walk her.”

Following the walk to Bradley, Katie Knecht worked an unintentional walk to load the bases with nobody out.

Bulldog starting pitcher Emma Smith then got the game’s biggest out when she induced clean-up hitter Grace Weaver to hit a grounder to third baseman Jordyn Hemingway. Hemingway fielded the ball and threw a strike to catcher Kaitlyn Stock to get the force out at the plate.

Farber then made her second gutsy move, bringing in Lilyanah Watt to relieve Smith with the bases still loaded and one out.

Watt need just two pitches to make the move magical. Both of them produced ground balls to shortstop Bella Heintzelman. On the first, she charged and threw to Stock force out the runner at home. On the second, she fielded it and threw to first to retire the batter.

“No matter who is pitching in that situation, there are going to be some nerves,” said Farber about plugging Watt into the pressure-packed situation. “But I have total confidence in Lily, and I just felt with their hitters coming up for the fourth time in the game that giving them a different look would be to our advantage. Lily isn’t going to blow them away with her fastball, but she has good movement and hits her spots.

“I just felt it was the right move at that time. If it works, it’s magic. If it doesn’t, then it’s my fault. But it was a risk I was willing to take.”

The primary reason that the Bulldogs were able to have a lead to protect in the seventh inning was Kylee Snyder. The Bulldogs’ freshman leadoff batter went 3-for-3 with a walk and three runs scored.

Snyder was in the middle of all three Northern Lehigh scoring innings. In the two-run third, she walked and eventually scored on a Cadence Peters RBI single. In the fifth, she doubled and scored on a bases-loaded walk. In the sixth, she delivered a two-out single and eventually scored on a Hemingway RBI single.

The Bulldogs then just had to hang on - and they did - thanks to two clutch pitchers, three strong plays by the infield, and a pair of bold coaching moves. And maybe a little bit of magic as well.

UP NEXT ... Northern Lehigh will face Northwestern on Tuesday at 5 p.m. at Pates Park in Allentown in the CL semis.

THE HITTERS ... In addition to Snyder’s three hits, the Bulldogs got two hits from Peters and one each from Hemingway and Stock. Bradley had three hits for Pen Argyl.

No. Lehigh 002 011 0 - 4 7 1

Pen Argyl 101 100 0 - 3 8 1

Smith, Watt (7) and Stock; Bradley and A. Black. W-Smith. L-Bradley.