Dowdy commits to UMass-Lowell
St. Raphael All-State center happy to commit before senior season
Amaya Dowdy could have waited to see if the market developed further for her women’s college basketball services. Turns out it was a risk the senior-to-be at St. Raphael Academy and MVP choice for the 2019-20 Call/ Times All-Area Girls Basketball Team wasn’t willing to take.
It’s no secret that recruiting has taken on a vastly different feel during these pandemic times.
Pre-2020, a player in Dowdy’s position would see their stock either rise or fall based on how they fared during the AAU spring/summer seasons.
Everything is tied to performance, but what happens when there isn’t a performance to market because one of the primary avenues to showcase one’s abilities is removed from the ledger through no fault of their own?
The short answer is that if a bite at the Division I apple is available, it’s best to chomp down hard.
“I really wanted to commit now. This way, I know I have a spot and it’s secure. At this point, you don’t know what’s going to happen next
based on everything that’s going on,” said Dowdy when reached Thursday, one day after she took to her personal Twitter account to announce that she was no longer an uncommitted prospect from the Class of 2021.
Upon graduating from SRA, Dowdy plans to head not too far up the road. The Woonsocket native has set her sights on suiting up for UMass Lowell. The River Hawks are coached by one of the top names in R.I. basketball history (West Warwick’s Tommy Garrick) and compete in the America East Conference.
“He was really excited and saying he was waiting for me to accept the offer. He really wanted me on his roster,” said Dowdy about the reaction she received from Garrick upon informing him that she would be a River Hawk.
“Just because you have an offer, someone could commit before you and your spot could be gone,” added Dowdy. “I definitely took that into consideration.”
Stated St. Raphael head coach Tammy Drape, “I’m very happy for her and I’m sure it’s a huge weight off her shoulders.”
The courtship between Dowdy and UMass Lowell took a turn for the serious not too long after she publicized on May 19 that she had received her first D-I offer. She sat in on a virtual tour of the campus and participated in several Zoom calls with the Lowell coaching staff and returning players.
“My parents (father Keith and mother Blayne) and Coach Drape joined me for the call with the coaches,” said Dowdy. “It’s a school that’s away but not too far away.”
“[The Zoom call with Garrick and his assistants] wasn’t just about basketball,” said Drape. “It was about what’s in store and the level of commitment that it takes to be a successful player at that level.”
The more Dowdy learned about the program that was making a significant sales pitch to her, the more she saw herself playing for Garrick, who grew up in West Warwick and starred at URI before going on to play four seasons in the NBA. Garrick is two years into his head-coaching tenure at UMass Lowell.
“Watching his highlights from his playing career, he was very impressive,” said Dowdy, who has thought about majoring in physical therapy.
Under Garrick, the River Hawks are like most teams where they rely on an interchangeable style – better known as position-less basketball. Dowdy stands at 5-foot11, hence her marching orders from her future college head coach could consist of rotating between the two forward spots.
Knowing that the possibility exists that she might have to handle the ball a little bit more and supply some offensive punch from the outside once she gets to the next level, Dowdy plans to stress both areas during the remaining time she has before heading to Lowell.
Next week, Dowdy will begin practicing with her AAU club, the Bay State Jaguars. For now, the emphasis will be on individual skill development. Nothing is etched in stone as far as tournaments, but nothing has been ruled out in terms of some form of AAU game competition before the dawn of a new school year.
“She knows what she has to work on,” said Drape.