Upperclassman Dana Bandurick is on the pre-med track at Swarthmore.
“I’m a neuroscience major with a Spanish minor. I like studying a lot of different things,” she explained. Bandurick is shadowing an orthopedic surgeon this summer.
In the spirit of studying different things Council Rock North’s Bandurick, primarily an inside player on the Garnet basketball team, is working on her guard game.
“Before the summer even starts, I like to write down my main goals,” Bandurick explained. “I have a lot of specific goals on getting physically stronger and certain things I need to work on. I’ve been working a lot on increasing my vertical over the last two years. I’ve definitely worked on extending my range. I’ve always grown up playing as a post and I am trying to get more comfortable shooting outside.”
“I feel with the skill set she has that she could definitely play guard,” added Swarthmore head coach Dawn Grant. “Because of her size, sometimes coaches tell her to get inside the block and play with her back to the basket. She was very excited about what our vision is for her next year.”
If anyone could rest on their laurels this summer, it would be the 6-foot Bandurick. She won the Centennial Conference Rookie of the Year in 2020. Bandurick is one of three returning players on the 2021-2022 All-Centennial first team. On June 15, City of Basketball Love named Bandurick to its all-area Division III first team.
“Physically, Dana is one of the most athletic players I have ever coached. Her vertical is ridiculous,” Grant praised. “She is explosive. Her athleticism helps to elevate us as a program on the floor. She brings versatility.
“She really wants to continue to grow as a player,” Grant continued. “She can score. She can defend. She brings the same amount of skill sets on the offensive end as she does the defensive end. I’m very excited about her senior year.”
“My freshman year I was more, not necessarily timid, but last year I felt I was more aggressive,” Bandurick added. “I’ve been trying to make a better effort to be a threat on the inside and on the outside. I think I did a better job last season on the boards.”
Bandurick averaged a double-double last year, ranking first in the Centennial in points per game (16.9), third in rebounds (10.5) and steals (2.5) per game, fifth in blocks per game and seventh in assists per game. She scored 26 in a late November conference win over Haverford and grabbed 18 rebounds in a 52-46 January Centennial road “W” over McDaniel.
She tallied 17 points and snagged eight rebounds in Swarthmore’s 65-60 defeat of No. 22 Mary Washington, marking the Garnet program’s first ever win against a ranked team. “That was incredibly exciting for us, especially when we had so many games with good teams but we just couldn’t come out on top,” Bandurick shared. “It was really inspirational to see how we were capable of doing so much more and how our program is still growing. I got to see a lot of my teammates have amazing games. I love seeing that.”
More important than the individual accolades, Bandurick helped lead Swarthmore (14-11) to its first winning record since 2013-14, although Bandurick’s 13-13 freshman season nearly qualified. In the four seasons prior to Bandurick’s arrival, Swarthmore won just 15 games.
“There was talent on the team before I got there, but I think we really started to believe in ourselves, had a vision for where we wanted to go, how we were going to get there,” Bandurick reflected, “and what were the steps we needed to take to get there.”
“You can have a strong commitment to the sport and also have a strong commitment in the classroom,” Grant added. “I have players that understand that balance.”
Bandurick turned plenty of heads in her Council Rock North career – she averaged over 17 points per game as a senior – but if it weren’t for bad luck, she would have had no luck at all. Tearing an ACL is a physically and emotionally brutal injury. Bandurick did it twice – as a sophomore and as a junior.
“Both of my ACL tears made me step up,” Bandurick recalled. “With the first one, I was extremely devastated because I couldn’t play and basketball has always been such a huge part of my life. One big takeaway for me was the passion I have for basketball. I also realized how to stay focused on taking it day to day and working even when it’s uncomfortable, since it is the most important work in getting you to where you want to be.
“My second ACL tear, in some ways was even more disappointing because I had worked so hard in the first one,” she added. “But I realized that I can’t take anything for granted. The first one showed with my work ethic. I had to be more self-disciplined to get to where I wanted to go. The second one, I carried that work ethic but one of my takeaways was that I couldn’t overwork myself. I learned how to work smarter.”
She recovered in time to lead CR North to states as a senior – for the third straight time. The Indians, advanced to the PIAA elite eight in Bandurick’s senior year.
Even at CR North, Bandurick was interested in medicine. “After I met my surgeon I thought, ‘I want to be you!’” Bandurick smiled. Next winter, Swarthmore hoops will be plenty happy if Dana Bandurick is Dana Bandurick.
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