Nazareth’s Olivia Austin opts for basketball long term. She had choices. ‘There’s not many athletes like her.’

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The ball rolled off the rim and began its descent to the floor.

It never got there.

Nazareth junior forward Olivia Austin swooped in from the left wing and snatched the ball out of midair before she landed on two feet and surveyed the court with a look of confidence, like a jaguar surveying her domain.

It was just one of many impressive plays Austin made in the Montini Christmas Tournament championship game on Dec. 30. She later corralled another offensive rebound and scored on a putback with 15 seconds left, which gave the Roadrunners the lead for good in a 62-58 victory against Whitney Young.

To the uninitiated, Austin’s displays of athleticism on the basketball court are something to observe. But her teammates, although just as appreciative, have seen it all before.

Junior point guard Mary Bridget Wilson is in her third year playing varsity ball with the 6-foot Austin, who is a third-year starter for Nazareth (24-1).

“She’s just so strong and athletic,” Wilson said. “We send her lobs, and she’s jumping up there and getting it. Every rebound is hers, and she brings it up strong and she goes right back up with it.”

Austin is a beast on the boards, using her strength and leaping ability to get the better of even taller opponents. But don’t mark her down as merely a traditional post player. She’s much more than that.

“She’s 6 feet tall, but she’s probably one of the fastest girls on our team,” Wilson said. “She’s down the court before anyone else. So she’s a post, she’s strong, but she can also play a guard, running how fast she does.”

Sometimes it seems as though Austin is everywhere. It’s not an illusion, and it isn’t limited to the basketball court.

Austin stars in three sports for Nazareth. She is the starting middle blocker for the girls volleyball team, which won the Class 3A state championship in 2021 and took second last season, and she is a potent striker for the girls soccer team.

The three-sport athlete is an endangered breed, especially at larger schools. They are slightly more common at smaller schools such as Nazareth, but Austin is still an outlier.

“Usually when you get a kid that plays three sports, they’re good at one and they’re OK at the other two,” Nazareth girls basketball coach Eddie Stritzel said. “She excels at all three.”

Genes play a role. Her father, Eddie, played basketball and football at St. Ignatius. Her mother, Lisa, was a softball player in high school in Michigan.

But neither of them played sports after high school. Austin is capable of doing it in at least two. She attributes that to starting competitive sports in first grade and the support she’s gotten from family, coaches and teammates.

“I’ve had so much encouragement from my whole entire family,” she said. “My teammates make me love the sport, and once I start playing, it’s hard to stop.”

Austin already has earned seven varsity letters, including three in basketball, which was the first sport she played at Nazareth. It’s also her best.

“That’s because I spend the most time on it,” she said. “I didn’t play volleyball freshman year because it was in the spring (due to the coronavirus pandemic).

“I quit club volleyball when I was in fifth grade, so I didn’t really have any experience with high school volleyball. Then I decided to play for fun, and it’s been great.”

Despite her relative lack of experience, Austin made an immediate impact for the girls volleyball team as a sophomore.

The Roadrunners were stacked with five future Division I players that season, but Austin played a supporting role as a right-side hitter. She contributed 69 kills and 28 blocks, including a kill and three block assists in a 25-20, 18-25, 25-21 victory against Belvidere North in the 3A championship match, when Nazareth won its first state title in a girls sport.

After Big Ten recruits Katie Hurta and Gillian Grimes graduated, the Roadrunners struggled in the 2022 regular season but caught fire in the postseason and returned to the state finals.

Austin played a more vital role, this time at a new position.

“This year we transitioned her to the middle, and she was huge,” Nazareth girls volleyball coach Melissa Masterson said. “The impact she was able to have was pretty impressive for a kid that probably doesn’t have as much volleyball experience in terms of club and travel as some of the other top athletes in the state.

“At the same time, if you know Liv and the athlete that she is and the work ethic she has and the way she’s able to process things and apply them on the court, it’s not surprising.”

For example, Austin could attack in several different ways, and not only in the middle.

“We had her running slides, which is like a layup for her,” Masterson said. “They helped us beat (Saint) Viator (in the supersectional) to get to state.”

Austin finished the volleyball season with 217 kills and 69 blocks. She had six kills in a 25-19, 25-13 loss to Taylorville in a state semifinal and four more kills in the championship match, where Nazareth lost 25-23, 25-23 to Wheaton St. Francis.

Not bad for someone who doesn’t play volleyball year-round. She plays soccer during the spring, which is the heart of club volleyball season.

Austin didn’t waste any time making her mark on the soccer field. She scored 12 goals as a freshman, ranking second on the team. She followed that with a team-high 13 goals as a sophomore, helping the Roadrunners win a Class 2A regional title.

Although she has decided to give up club soccer, Austin is planning to play the sport for the Roadrunners again. She is on track to graduate with 11 varsity letters.

“I love staying busy,” she said. “So playing three sports is a good way to do it.”

Austin also loves the camaraderie she has found at Nazareth.

“What’s really made everything happen are my teammates,” she said. “Every single program I’ve been in is a great atmosphere, an amazing culture.

“Naz has done a great job with bringing in girls who are just good people, and then that translates onto the court.”

The basketball court is where Austin finds her greatest joy. She is part of a terrific junior class that also includes Wilson, guard Amalia Dray and forward Danielle Scully.

They’ve all been on varsity since they were freshmen and played crucial roles when the Roadrunners finished second in 3A last season.

“This season is super special because I feel like no matter how old you are, everyone is treated as equal,” Austin said. “We all respect each other the same amount, and different people lead at different times. It’s showing that we can work together to accomplish big things.”

That ethos has rubbed off on younger teammates, such as freshman forward Stella Sakalas, Nazareth’s first player off the bench.

“I like the way she’s always strong in the post and she’s always talking,” Sakalas said. “She’ll tell me what I can do better, and she is a great teammate. She’s always doing everything Eddie asks of us, so she’s a great role model and a great player.”

Austin is averaging 7.3 points, a team-high 7.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.0 steals and 2.1 deflections while making 60% of her two-point shots for the Roadrunners, who are ranked No. 1 in the Class 3A poll by The Associated Press and haven’t lost to a team from Illinois. But Austin’s numbers don’t reveal what makes her special.

“I just think her uniqueness is how athletic she is,” Stritzel said. “When you look at her, you see this big, strong kid, but you don’t realize how nimble she is and how good she moves.

“She’s just a pure athlete, and I think coaches on the other teams, they don’t see that because they’ll put a bigger, slow defender on her. And she’s just a matchup nightmare.”

Austin attributes her well-rounded game to her decision to continue playing three sports. It actually makes it easier on her body and also keeps her mentally sharp.

“The variety is really nice and refreshing,” she said. “It’s keeping me interested in all three sports. I already would be if I just had to play one, but the memories heading into different seasons each time of the year and using different muscle groups has really helped me. I feel like most of the other sports I do have helped me with basketball and vice versa.”

For instance, soccer has the least in common with Austin’s other two sports but still gives her skills that translate.

“Soccer helps me with eye work,” she said. “The field is bigger, obviously. It makes the basketball court seem really small.

“In soccer, there are few goals, and in basketball and volleyball there are a ton (of points). In soccer, if you get a chance at goal, you have to take it, you have to make sure.”

But as good as Austin’s individual skills are, she knows she can’t succeed by herself.

“I feel like all of the sports together have helped make me a better teammate because obviously all three are team sports,” she said. “You rely on each other no matter what. One person can’t carry the team.

“That’s really helped me learn how to collaborate with others. And volleyball is really a sport where you need every single person to be focused and on their game. It’s helped me become a better leader.”

All of which has led Austin and the Roadrunners to the brink of history. They believe this is the year they will finally win their first basketball state title, which would make Austin a state champion in two team sports.

“Not many athletes do that,” Masterson said. “It wouldn’t surprise me with her, though. Obviously, she’s got good teammates in both, but she’s a big part of that.”

Austin recently made a big decision about her future. She will play basketball in college.

“At some point, I had to pick which sport to predominantly focus on, and I love basketball,” she said. “I know I can have opportunities in basketball, and I know I can work for it.”

Austin, who has a 4.83 GPA, has been looking at Ivy League colleges. Stritzel, whose daughter Annie has played at Harvard, thinks it would be a good fit.

“We’re hoping that the Ivy League will start to reach out to her,” Stritzel said. “Obviously, with my connection to Harvard, we’re hoping that’s all going to work out for her.

“She’s not going to be the biggest kid in college, so she’s got to clean up her ballhandling a little bit, and I think with her work ethic she will get better at that. If she goes to an Ivy, she can play a 3, maybe a 4.”

Masterson believes Austin could be just as successful in volleyball.

“Whether she plays club or not, she could play high-level Division I volleyball,” said Masterson, who played at Illinois. “I did have a conversation with her this past season and said, ‘I know basketball is your No. 1, but if it didn’t work out, I just want to let you know you have a future.’

“Depending on where she lands for basketball, there might be a lot of volleyball coaches that would be like, ‘Hey, do you want to play both?’ She reminds me of Katie Schumacher from Mother McAuley, who did both for a while at Penn State.”

The best part for Masterson and Stritzel is they will get to coach Austin for another year.

“There’s not many athletes like her,” Masterson said. “She’s pretty impressive to watch.”

Austin’s place in Nazareth history already is secure. But she’s shooting for more, starting with another trip to CEFCU (formerly Redbird) Arena in Normal in March.

“It’s amazing,” she said. “Every experience has been unique and really awesome. I don’t know how to really describe it, but I love it. Every time I go down there, it makes me want to come back more.”

Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.