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ABINGTON - This was a win for the ages.
Council Rock North coach Lou Palkovics has seen his teams win plenty of big games over the course of a 20-year career on the bench. Few, if any, compared to Tuesday’s gutsy 49-42 come-from-behind win that clinched sole possession of the SOL National Conference title for the Indians.
“Coaching for 20 years, there have been big wins and district championships, and this is probably the most special championship because of the way we did it,” the Indians’ coach said.
‘The way they did it’ was nothing short of amazing, and what might have been an ordinary feat for the defending conference champs under ordinary circumstances was nothing short of remarkable in circumstances that were anything but ordinary.Everything changed in a heartbeat for the Indians when – early in the opening quarter – senior co-captain Sarah Kiely limped off the court and took a seat on the bench where she remained for the duration of the game. In that brief moment, the Indians went from favorites to underdog and had a built-in excuse to lose.
“Sarah came out so quickly, and it wasn’t even an accident,” senior co-captain Kelly Scull said of a knee injury that no one had known about.“It was a shock, and the fact that our shots weren’t falling – it felt like nothing was working.
“The only thing we had left was heart, and that pulled us through.”
It looked as though it would take more than heart after the Indians staggered through a two-point first quarter, and it didn’t seem as though heart could save them when they fell behind by double-digits in the third quarter.
“We were nervous,” senior Jodi Marrazzo said. “We came off a little shaky, and it showed, but it didn’t take long for us to come together and realize it’s not all about one player.
“We’re definitely a team, and we played as a team.”
The win was the second come-from-behind win in as many outings for the Indians over the Ghosts, and this one left the Ghosts reeling.
“It’s disappointing,” said senior Emily Leer, who led the Ghosts with 15 points. “For this to happen two times – the last time we played them we had a lead of 11 points with three minutes left.
“Two times in a row is a little rough, especially when we should have had the upper hand with Sarah (Kiely) out of the game. We did have the upper hand, and we were winning the whole game, and to blow it like that when you feel like you deserve to win.”
The Ghosts, who led 6-2 at the end of one quarter, went on top 17-10 after a Leer hook shot. After a Rock North miss, Leer found teammate Jamie Shectman cutting to the basket for an easy deuce to put the Ghosts on top by nine late in the second quarter.
They still led 22-14 after a Shectman bucket at the end of the press, but with time about to expire in the half, Marrazzo hit nothing but net on a baseline three, igniting the Rock North’s bench and sending the Indians into halftime trailing by just five (22-17).
“That was a complete confidence boost for the team,” Marrazzo said of her only basket in the game. “It just changed the game. We knew we were in it. We knew we could handle it.
“I think we were a little scared with what happened to Sarah, but we definitely knew we could come together as a team and do it.”
Palkovics acknowledged that Marrazzo’s big trey changed the tone.
“It changed my halftime talk,” he said. “It changed our approach.
“We were just looking to get close to even, and then we would spread the floor a little more.”
The Ghosts responded to Marrazzo’s basket by opening the third quarter with a 9-4 run that was capped by a Leer hook shot that put Abington on top 31-21. They still led by 10 (33-23) after a bucket by Aiyannah Peal. But sophomore Megan Cunningham answered with a basket at the end of a drive, and after an Abington miss, Emily Grundman scored on a putback. The 6-2 sophomore scored 10 points in a stellar showing off the bench.
“The fact that we have all these underclassmen stepping up and Jodi - who’s in her first year of playing varsity – it shows that we’re not a four-man team,” Scull said. “We can go deep, and everyone is playing their roles and is important to us.”
Grundman’s bucket not only trimmed the Ghosts’ lead to 33-27, it also gave the Indians some much-needed momentum.
“At the end of the third quarter, we just started to panic – which my team has a habit of doing that we really need to kick,” Leer said.
Devin Gold buried a trey to open the fourth quarter, and after another Ghost miss, Scull – who was fouled after pulling down an offensive board – converted a pair of foul shots to make it a one-point game.
An Abington turnover resulted in a pair of Lauren Gold foul shots, giving the Indians their very first lead of the game, 34-33. The Ghosts misfired on a pair from the charity stripe, and the Indians led 36-33 after Grundman sank a pair from the foul line.
“We work on foul shots every single day,” said Grundman, who was a perfect 4-for-4 from the stripe. “I’ve been having some problems with my foul shots recently.
“Today I realized it was more of a mental thing than it is the actual motion of it. They went in, and I was able to help my team.”
The Indians’ game is defense, and their relentless pressure began to take its toll on the Ghosts, who pulled to within one (38-37) after Leer converted an offensive rebound into a basket.
Scull answered with an outside jumper to put the Indians on top by three.
“I’m not going to lie – I was cold the entire game,” the senior co-captain said. “I’ve been in a little slump, but that last one I shot – I would like to think – broke my slump.”
Peal answered with a putback at the other end to make it a 40-39 game with two minutes remaining. Again, the Indians responded with a big basket – this time it was Cunningham connecting from the outside.
Back-to-back Lauren Gold steals on the press resulted in four more Rock North points, and in a deadly 30-second span, the Indians had tacked six points onto their lead.
“They just took advantage that Sarah was out, and they gave it to Emily Leer the whole first half, but we decided we needed to step it up and play the way we know how to play,” Lauren Gold said. “Everybody stepped up.
“Once we got a lead we got really hyped and started playing our game.”
A Leer three pulled the Ghosts to within four, but they would get no closer as the Indians went on to earn the emotional win.
“It’s amazing,” Grundman said. “I can’t even describe the feeling.
“When we stepped off the court and the clock said zero, it was euphoric. It was amazing.”
The emotions on Abington’s side of the court were decidedly different.
“It’s extremely frustrating,” coach Dan Marsh said. “I don’t even know what to say.
“The last game they did turn up the (defensive) intensity, but this game we played scared. We played not to lose as opposed to win.
“I do think this team can do well in districts if we play the right way, but if we don’t, we could be done in the first round.”
While the Indians improved to 13-0 in league play, the Ghosts fell to 10-3.
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 48, ABINGTON 42
Council Rock North (48) – Marrazzo 1 0-0 3; D.Gold 5 1-1 12; L.Gold 2 9-10 13; Scull 2 2-2 6; Grundman 3 4-4 10; Cunningham 2 0-3 4; Gimmell 0 0-0 0; Dumont 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 15 16-20 48.
Abington (42) – Shectman 4 0-0 10; West 0 1-2 1; Peal 5 1-4 11; Schmidt 2 0-0 5; Leer 7 0-1 15; Long 0 0-0 0; Fitzgerald 0 0-0 0; Faison 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 18 2-7 42.
Council Rock North 6 16 11 9-42
Abington 2 15 10 21-48
3-point goals: CR North – Marrazzo, D.Gold. Abington – Shectman 2, Schmidt, Leer.
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