Girls Basketball: Rian Dotsey’s putback seals Central League title for Haverford

LOWER MERION — Twenty-seven seconds separated Haverford from its first Central League girls basketball championship in 11 years when Caroline Dotsey stood at the foul line with the Fords leading by one point Monday.

The senior forward made the first shot before Conestoga took a timeout in an attempt to ice the Fords’ outstanding senior forward.

In the midst of a dominating 23-point performance, Dotsey’s second free shot was short. Rian Dotsey, Caroline’s sophomore sister,  jumped inside the lane, raised her arms and grabbed the rebound. In one motion Rian sent the ball back in the air and into the basket.

The Fords’ bench and every one of their fans in attendance at Harriton High erupted.

Rian Dotsey’s shot sealed No. 1 Haverford’s 41-37 win over second-seeded Conestoga for the Central League title. In addition to claiming their first league crown since 2012, the Fords (24-0) have tied a program record for consecutive victories.

Caroline Dotsey, by far the Central League’s best player, also took home the tournament MVP trophy. She had a feeling when she missed the free throw that her little sis would have her back.

“I was a little bummed and my heart kind of sank for a second,” she said. “Then I saw Rian rip that rebound and then put it back up. I was so confident she was going to make that, so it was really amazing to see that especially at that point of the game.”

Rian Dotsey (six points, seven rebounds) was “definitely surprised” that nobody boxed her out.

“But I’m glad it went in,” she said.

The Fords and Pioneers (20-5) played their third barnburner of the season. The Fords, of course, managed to win all three but not without a fight to the end from the Pioneers, every single time.

Even after the Fords went in front 10-1 in the first quarter, the Pioneers responded and chipped away at the Fords’ sizable lead. Conestoga pulled within four points in the second quarter, three in the third and one in the fourth. Alas, they could never tie or jump ahead of the Fords, who always found a way to respond even when it seemed things were teetering in ‘Stoga’s direction.

“I think keeping our cool is important, especially on offense,” Caroline Dotsey said. “And defensively, that’s where a lot of our calmness kind of stems from. We always say that our defense dictates our offense.”

Haverford coach Lauren Pellicane knows all about Conestoga. Before taking over at Haverford, she was a 200-game winner at Lower Merion. For the better part of two decades Pellicane has been involved in several close battles with the Pioneers.

“They’re a young and very talented team,” Pellicane said of the Pioneers. “I think they’re going to be the team to beat next year. I think they’re going to make some noise in districts this year, too.”

Haverford is the No. 2 seed and Conestoga is the 10th seed in the District 1 Class 6A tournament, which begins Friday.

Pellicane is never not amazed by her Fords. Did she ever imagine going 24-0? No way, with a group led by senior captains Caroline Dotsey and Mollie Carpenter, Pellicane believed they would be better than the team that was upset in the Central League semifinals a year ago, a team that also won 20 games and advanced to the second round of the PIAA tournament.

“This senior group, their dedication to the program … this whole team has bought in this year,” Pelicane said. “I can’t tell you how happy I am for them.”

Conestoga trailed by four points going into the final period. Maggie Neary’s 3-point basket pulled the Pioneers within a point at 36-35. On Haverford’s next possession Caroline Dotsey caught an inbound pass and hit a reverse lay up under the basket, one of her signature shots, to make it a three-point game again.

“I joke with her about that shot,” said Carpenter, the Fords’ power forward, who had seven rebounds and a steal. “Every time she makes it she kind of gets further out each times and it still seems to go in. She has the confidence in herself and it carries throughout the team on that shot.”

Aniya Eberhart (seven points, three assists) drilled a 3-pointer to extend Haverford’s lead to seven points in the third quarter, silencing a Conestoga rally. The junior guard and her backcourt mate Sky Newman (three points, two assists) were solid all night on defense.

Conestoga junior Marisa Francione had another sensational game with 10 points and four steals. Freshman wing Ryann Jennings also scored 10 points.

The Fords danced to DJ Khaled’s “All I Do Is Win” and celebrated into the night. They will take a day or two to enjoy this before setting their sights on bigger goals.

“This means everything,” Carpenter said. “We’ve worked so hard to get back here after coming up short last year. We still think about that loss to Garnet Valley, it still sits with me and my entire team. So to come out here and win means so much to us.”