No. 3 Lawrence North falls

Franklin Central pulls off the upset, next must face unbeaten No. 1 Bloomington South
By Kyle Neddenriep
Posted: March 15, 2009

As Franklin Central coach Mark James watched his players celebrate the program’s first regional championship Saturday night, he imagined the reaction as word of the Flashes’ stunning 49-36 win over Class 4A third-ranked Lawrence North made its way south.

“They’re smiling down at Bloomington South, I can guarantee you,” said James, in his 24th year at Franklin Central. “They beat us by three or four touchdowns last time we played.”

Top-ranked and undefeated Bloomington South — which will be the Flashes’ opponent in a semistate game Saturday — smothered Franklin Central 77-45 when the teams met in late January. But relying on past results might not be of much use now.

Not after Franklin Central (21-5) avenged a 14-point loss to Lawrence North by frustrating the Wildcats with a sagging defense and deliberate offense. Patrick Bade scored a game-high 25 points and senior teammate Casey Coons added 10 points and a steady hand at point guard against the taller Wildcats.

“It was probably one of the best team efforts I’ve ever had from a team,” James said. “I thought Bade and Coons really stepped up and played very well for us. They played smart, hard and made things happen. To beat a team like that you have to have your best effort of the year and I think we just did that.”

Lawrence North (25-3) had won 13 straight after taking out Hamilton Southeastern 50-45 in a regional semifinal earlier Saturday. But after a strong performance in last week’s 73-68 sectional championship win over North Central, the Wildcats didn’t play with the same fervor.

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