Loyola Academy tops Nazareth Academy to win Illinois Class 4A girls basketball championship (story/photo gallery)

Loyola Academy caps off perfect 38-0 season

NORMAL, ILLINOIS – Someone was going to make history on Saturday night.

Paige Engels and Aubrey Galvan made sure it was Loyola Academy.

The Ramblers became the third girls basketball team in IHSA history – and the second on Saturday – to complete a 38-0 season, earning a stirring 44-40 win against Nazareth Academy in the Class 4A title game at CEFCU Arena.

Engels scored a game-high 17 points and Galvan added 15 for the Ramblers, who joined 3A champ Lincoln in running the table to earn a spot in the record book.

Senior guard Olivia Austin, a Dartmouth recruit, and sophomore guard Stella Sakalas each had 16 points for Nazareth (32-4), which was trying for a unique repeat after winning the 3A title last season.

The game flipped in the third quarter, when Loyola outscored Nazareth 15-2 to wipe out a 25-17 halftime deficit. Galvan's long 3-pointer with 4:34 remaining in the third put the Ramblers ahead to stay at 28-25.

"I know when I have to step my game up," Galvan said. "There were some big shots in there. I think everybody had those moments as well."

Lincoln beats Chatham Glenwood to win Illinois Class 3A girls basketball championship (photo gallery)

Loyola won despite playing with a significant size disadvantage. The Ramblers have no starters taller than 5-8, while the Roadrunners have three 6-footers in their lineup.

But Loyola actually won the rebounding battle 18-17 and didn't allow Nazareth an offensive rebound in the second half.

"When we were in the locker room at halftime, we still had so much confidence," Engels said. "I feel like every time we're in these situations we stay calm. We know that we can do it. We know."

Still Nazareth never went away. Loyola's biggest lead all night was six points, 42-36, with 24 seconds remaining.

The Ramblers never wore down under the pressure of maintaining the perfect record.

"We never talked about it," coach Jeremy Schoenecker said. "They just kept continuing to (win) game by game and they're just an absolutely phenomenal team. They're resilient in everything they do."

Illinois (IHSA) girls high school basketball championships: updates, top players, how to watch (3/2/2024)

Defensively, the Ramblers were willing to concede the 3-pointer in the second half. It wound up being a good decision because the Roadrunners wound up 2-for-14 from beyond the arc.

"We got more tentative on the offensive end," Nazareth coach Ed Stritzel said. "And then the more tentative we got on the offensive end, I thought we got more tentative on the defensive end. Some of that has to do with Loyola too. They're very good."

Nazareth had a big edge in points in the paint, 26-6. But the Ramblers had just enough offense to win the program's third state title and the first since going back-to-back in 1997 and '98.

The Roadrunners were looking for their second title in the past two years and overall.

"(Going from 3A to 4A) made it easier for me because we had a goal to go after vs. defending something," Stritzel said. "We came as close as we can and we're just disappointed we didn't finish it."

Here is a look at the game from photographer Tim Vizer:

Illinois Class 4A girls basketball championship

Photos by Tim Vizer

Download the SBLive Sports app

To get live updates on your phone - as well as follow your favorite teams and top games - you can download the SBLive Sports app: Download iPhone App | Download Android App

- Mike Clark | latsch@scorebooklive.com | @SBLiveIL