Basketball Game Preview: Saint Viator Lions vs. Nazareth Academy Roadrunners

Saint Viator is 2-8 against Nazareth Academy since January of 2017 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Tuesday. The Saint Viator Lions will head out to challenge the Nazareth Academy Roadrunners at 7:00 p.m.

Saint Viator is headed into Tuesday's contest looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their third straight game on Tuesday. They were three points away from ending the streak, but they lost a 60-57 heartbreaker at the hands of Lake Forest Academy. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest defeat the Lions have suffered since January 4, 2024.

Bella Gounaris

Points (Career)

02/04/25 @ Lake Forest Academy	21
12/07/24 vs Prairie Ridge	19
01/18/25 vs Northside	18
12/05/24 @ St. Francis	17
01/07/25 @ Maine West	16

Saint Viator's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Bella Gounaris, who went 8 of 17 on her way to 21 points, and Ava Garcia, who went 7 for 17 en route to 18 points. The dominant performance gave Gounaris a new career-high in points. Maggie Ratzki was another key player, putting up eight points and four steals.

Meanwhile, Nazareth Academy had already won 18 in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 20.7 points) and they went ahead and made it 19 on Monday. They put the hurt on the Kays with a sharp 51-30 win. The Roadrunners have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 16 matchups by 21 points or more this season.

Nazareth Academy pushed their record up to 27-2 with the victory, which was their seventh straight at home. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 62.3 points over those games. As for Saint Viator, their defeat dropped their record down to 17-11.

Saint Viator was dealt a bruising 52-18 loss at the hands of Nazareth Academy in their previous matchup back in December of 2024. Can Saint Viator avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.