BETHLEHEM, Pa. - The Northampton Lady Spartans locked up the #2 seed for the upcoming Region XIX tournament with an 88-66 victory over Middlesex County College on Tuesday night.

Tiara Aziz (Easton) scored 25 points and pulled down 7 rebounds as NCC pulled away from a 9 point halftime lead to down the Colts and finish 20-2 in league play.

"This was a very important victory for us," stated Head Coach Art Wolfe, "we obviously wanted to lock up the #2 seed, but Middlesex is a very good team and I knew facing them without Alyssa Gibson (knee injury) would be a good test for us."

Gibson (Wilson), who has missed the last three games with a knee contusion, is expected back for the regional tournament, "She is a catalyst for us," remarked Wolfe, "her quickness and ball-handling are vital if we are going to make a run in the tournament."

Dee Brown (Emmaus) had 18 points and 4 steals, Halie Cintron (Allen) scored 13 points and dished out 6 assists and Michelle Thomas (Dieruff) added 10 points and 9 blocked shots.

Northampton, ranked 8th in the nation, finishes the regular season with an overall record of 21-4.

Middlesex drops to 14-11 overall and 12-9 in Region XIX.

The pairings for the Region XIX tournament will be announced late next week.

The game also marked the last regular season home game for sophomores Dee Brown, Halie Cintron, Michelle Thomas, Shana Clark, Rayna Vinson and Kiersten Young.  The six sophomores have gone 44-10 during their career, including a 38-4 mark in league play.