Dowd sparks Souderton past CR North in District 1-6A quarterfinal

FRANCONIA >> It was the one thing Council Rock North wasn’t ready for.

On Souderton’s first possession of the game, Megan Walbrandt passed to Tori Dowd and the senior point guard went to the rim with determination. Toward the end of the first quarter, Dowd did it again and this time drew a foul.

Dowd only scored eight points, but her determination to attack was an early difference maker as No. 1 Souderton topped visiting No. 8 Council Rock North 49-39 in the quarterfinals of the District I 6A girls basketball tournament Saturday afternoon.

“I give Tori credit, we scouted kids and I didn’t think Tori was as offensive-minded,” CR North coach Lou Palkovics said. “I knew she could play, but I didn’t think she was that offensive minded and she was a factor in why they won today. Tori turned it up a notch and it got us on our heels.”

A lot of people around the district shared the sentiment that CR North is much better than an 8-seed and Souderton expected a team as tough on the defensive end as it is. While both teams have a lot of terrific players, many of them didn’t get the chance to be on the floor very much.

The officials’ whistles were a significant and ever-present factor during the game, with 19 fouls being called between the teams in the first half and close to that number in the second half. It kept the game from gaining much flow in the first half and had key players from both teams sitting crucial stretches.

“It was hard for either team to really get into a flow because there were so many stoppages,” Souderton coach Lynn Carroll said. “I’m glad nobody fouled out on either team and it was the same final five (players) in the end but you really have to grit your way through it, understand what’s being called and play the right way.”

Dowd has made her name as a relentless defender and energy player but has taken steps to be more of a factor on offense this season. Aside from her usual rugged defense, mostly spent guarding CR North’s own standout senior point guard in Becca Margolis, Dowd contributed six rebounds, two steals and a block.

For Dowd, it’s a matter of finding the right spots to attack and when she does, committing to it. It’s a team-wide approach that when one of the Indians attacks the rim, they want to finish what they start.

“It’s based on how teams are playing me, if they’re playing off, then make them regret it,” Dowd said. “If not, be there for my team. If other players are being overplayed, I have to be there to relieve them. The more I attack, the more they’ll come back to me and the more my teammates will be open for their shots.”

Souderton led 14-12 after the first quarter, even with senior forward Alana Cardona picking up two fouls in the frame and sitting the rest of the half. Kate Connolly also picked up two fouls in the second quarter and stayed seated the last few minutes of the opening half. In their stead, the Indians’ bench filled in the gaps.

Junior Megan O’Donnell had a clutch three in the second quarter while her sister Curran, just back off a knee injury, was pressed into big early minutes off the bench and Erica Stephens was ready when her number was called. Senior Sami Falencki, usually the first player off Souderton’s bench, got in but didn’t play in the second half after taking the worst of a collision under the basket in the second quarter.

Dowd put Souderton up 21-14 on a second quarter drive, a seven-point edge they would take into the half at 26-19. CR North had to do some rotation management of its own in the first half, with Margolis, Dana Bandurick and Mackenzie Tinner all battling foul trouble.

Still, Palkovics was impressed by Souderton.

“They are just a good defensive team, it’s almost like facing Syracuse but playing man to man,” Palkovics said. “Syracuse plays that zone because they’re long and lanky, well Souderton is long and lanky and they play man tough.”

Cardona felt Souderton gave away too many points at the foul line in the first half and some of the team’s halftime talk was about scaling back on defense to avoid picking up any extra fouls. The Indians are a good shot-blocking team but as Cardona noted, if they don’t get a block, it’s probably getting called as a foul.

After sitting most of the first half, Cardona scored all 10 of her points in the second half and avoided any more foul issues.

“We bailed them out way too much in the beginning and fouled them when we didn’t have to,” Cardona said. “In the second half, we relaxed a little and just contested their shots. We like to block the ball but when the blocks aren’t there, it turns into a foul so it made a different and we had to adjust the way we defended.”

Megan Bealer’s trey put Souderton up 35-21, but CR North managed to hang around despite its own foul issues and the visitors chopped the lead down to 35-27 going into the final quarter. Margolis hit a three of her own, getting North within 37-32 with 6:33 left.

Souderton responded with a 6-0 run, capped when Cardona found Dowd for a layup off a ghost cut with 4:00 left on the clock. Souderton didn’t shoot great at the foul line, but made enough down the stretch to hold off CR North from there and advance to the semifinals.

“Just with how the game was going, I figured I might as well take it,” Dowd said. “We needed anybody to score who could to win that game, so if it’s open I have to be there for my team.”

Souderton will face No. 4 Garnet Valley in the semifinals Wednesday night at Bensalem in a 7:30 p.m. start. CR North will play No. 5 Abington in a state playoff seeding game the same night.

“They did everything I asked,” Palkovics said. “The fourth quarter, it’s tough. It’s hard to play the aggressive, trapping type of defense we want to play when you have starters with four fouls, four fouls and four fouls.”

SOUDERTON 14 12 9 14 – 49

COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 12 7 8 12 – 39

S: Megan Bealer 3 4-4 11, Tori Dowd 3 2-5 8, Alana Cardona 3 4-4 10, Megan Walbrandt 4 2-2 11, Kate Connolly 2 1-7 3, Megan O’Donnell 1 1-2 3. Nonscoring: Curran O’Donnell, Sami Falencki, Erica Stephens. Totals: 16 14-24 49

CRN: Becca Margolis 3 0-0 11, Dana Bandurick 2 5-6 9, Olivia Boyle 2 0-0 4, Mackenzie Tinner 2 7-8 11, Kaelin Mealey 1 0-0 2, Sydney Blum 0 2-2 2. Nonscoring: Juliana Shields, Anna Cairone. Totals: 11 14-16 39

3-pointers: S – Bealer, M O’Donnell, Walbrandt; CRN – Margolis 3