Sophia Towne joined her Nazareth teammates in biting their state championship medals while posing for pictures – just like she called.

As they prepared Saturday for the final game, Towne assured Nazareth coach Eddie Stritzel that they were not losing.

“She said all day ‘Coach, we’re not losing, we’re bringing this home,’” Stritzel said. “You want to believe her but Loyola is such a good team.”

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Nazareth's Sophia Towne hugs teammate Stella Sakalas during the Class 4A State girls basketball championship game on Saturday, March 7, 2026 at CEFCU Arena in Normal. (Scott Anderson)

What Nazareth did was unbelievable.

In a matchup of the top two teams in the state – and a rematch of the 2024 final won by Loyola – Nazareth never trailed in blowing out the Ramblers 55-23 in the Class 4A state championship game at Illinois State’s CEFCU Arena.

Nazareth (35-3) won its second state title, joining the 2023 Class 3A championship, and did so with the largest margin of victory in a Class 4A final since the state went to a four-class system in 2008.

“We’ve been waiting all year for this, since last year too,” Towne said. “We have always thought in the back of our mind to be peaking in March. We all knew we were going to win this game. We wanted it more than them. Once the time came, we took it to them.”

Towne, a junior point guard who was the catalyst with 17 points and five assists, showed no hesitation taking shots.

She knocked down 3-pointers for Nazareth’s first two baskets, the second from way behind the 3-point line. The third of her four threes, from NBA range, was part of a 16-0 run spanning the second quarter and first minute of the third that opened up a 31-13 lead.

Lyla Shelton scored eight points and hit two threes for Nazareth, which was 8-for-21 from distance.

“We’ve been shooting a lot in practice to prepare us for this moment,” Towne said. “When that time comes, you want to win.”

Meanwhile, Loyola (34-3) missed its first 15 3-point attempts and was held 15 points below its previous season low.

Emily Naraky led Loyola with 13 points.

“We know their post kids are really good and we knew that they could shoot too,” Towne said. “We focused on our closeouts and keeping close to them.”

Freshman Mia Gage, the youngest of Nazareth’s five starters, hardly played like a freshman.

She scored 10 of her 11 points in the first half and had five steals in reading and reacting to passes on the wings. Frequently those steals turned into her own offense going the other way.

“I wanted this for my seniors so bad, just as bad as they wanted it,” Gage said. “And I think that it showed. I think our defense is just wonderful and we can adjust to any offense, transitioning it to our defense. It doesn’t matter what the other team is running. It’s our defense that matters.”

Gage, a 5-foot-11 forward, scored six of her 11 during Nazareth’s 16-0 run.

And Stritzel thinks she’s just scratching the surface to her potential.

“Our guards put so much pressure on the ball and it allowed our wings to be really aggressive,” Stritzel said. “I think Mia is going to be one of our all-time greats.”

One of those all-time greats, Nazareth senior and BYU recruit Stella Sakalas, picked up her second and third fouls in a two-possession span midway through the second quarter and the Roadrunners leading 22-13. And then Sakalas got her fourth foul in the third quarter.

She scored seven points, five in the fourth quarter, a day after putting up 30. Nazareth hardly missed a beat with its best player playing just 16 minutes.

“Stella is such an amazing player and she has done so much this season for us,” Towne said. “She got a couple tough fouls but we didn’t let that slow us down.”

Samantha Austin, another Nazareth junior, scored seven points and had 10 rebounds.

Her older sister, Olivia, starred on Nazareth’s first state champion. The two sisters were teammates on the Nazareth team that lost to Loyola in the 2024 final.

But Austin was not motivated by revenge.

“We focus on us every game. We run our race. It’s kind of our motto,” Austin said. “Loyola, it was cool to have that matchup again but we made sure that we stayed focused on us and what we run.

“Having more of a role on this team, it feels more personal. The achievement overall is so important to me.”

Stritzel savored his “3A team” winning its first Class 4A title in Nazareth’s fifth championship game appearance since 2018.

“It’s been a long run these last two years,” he said. “Two years ago, we lost the state championship to Loyola. Last year we lost to the state champ Kenwood in sectionals. This year we really set a goal and it’s amazing. So proud of these girls.”