The St. Anne's-Belfield Saints waltzed into their match on Wednesday with ten straight wins but they left with 11. They came out on top against Steward by a score of 72-61. Given St. Anne's-Belfield's advantage in MaxPreps' Virginia basketball rankings (they are ranked first, while the Spartans are ranked 53rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
St. Anne's-Belfield's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Connor Lyons led the charge by scoring 17 points along with five rebounds and two steals. It was the first time this season that Lyons grabbed two or more steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Gabriel D?alessandro, who scored 13 points along with six rebounds and four steals.
Steward's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Donovan Richardson, who scored 17 points along with four steals. Another player making a difference was Xavier Nelson, who scored 14 points along with seven rebounds.
St. Anne's-Belfield pushed their record up to 17-3 with that victory, which was their fourth straight on the road. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 79.0 points per game. As for Steward, their defeat dropped their record down to 11-7.
St. Anne's-Belfield will look to defend their home court on Friday against the Tigers at 6:00 p.m. As for Steward, they will head out on the road to face off against the Dolphins at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Cape Henry Collegiate is coming into the game on a six-game losing streak.
