The Nansemond-Suffolk Academy girls’ basketball team was knocking on the door of a state championship last season. While the Lady Saints have two principal stars, they know that to walk through that door this year, they will need more key contributors.

As she has done in the past, forward Kelly Hogan, now a junior, showed herself a force to be reckoned with in the paint recently, giving NSA’s opponents at least three players to worry about, counting star seniors Harper Birdsong and Caroline Hogg.

Hogan’s heroics led to her being voted the Duke Automotive-Suffolk News-Herald Player of the Week this week.

“I was able to make the most of my opportunities to contribute by getting the rebounds,” she said of her play during the Hilton Head Invitational from Dec. 21-23. “When I can get those rebounds down low, and Lindsay (Knierbein) and Logan (Harrell) can make those shots outside out of the gate, it makes us a very difficult team to beat.”

Junior guards Knierbein and Harrell added to their other important contributions by catching fire as scorers in the Lady Saints’ final game of the tourney, but Hogan also proved to be a key scorer, making her presence known across multiple games in the event.

“I’ve worked really hard on my foul shots and making my layups,” Hogan said. “Last year, I struggled with making the shots with consistency, and this year, I think I’ve improved.”

Contributing six points and eight rebounds in a 33-31 loss to Niceville High School of Florida on Dec. 21, she then led her team with 15 points and eight more rebounds in a 45-38 win the next day over Mauldin High School of South Carolina.

In the third-place consolation game on Dec. 23, she helped her team defeat Charlotte Latin School of North Carolina 63-38 by contributing nine points, two assists and a team-high nine rebounds and five steals.

“I feel like she’s getting better and better with each game,” Nansemond-Suffolk coach Kim Aston said. “Offensively, she really helps put us over the edge in the post position. We’re able to really work well with two post players on the floor and take advantage of it. Most of the teams that we’re playing don’t have two post players that can match up with her and Caroline.”

Hogan’s father, Chris Hogan, got his daughter started in basketball eight years ago at the YMCA. She played there for about four years and spent her seventh-, eighth- and ninth-grade years on the NSA junior varsity team before joining the varsity team last season.

Soccer is her main sport, so she has not pursued Amateur Athletic Union basketball, but hoops has been a family activity and learning experience at home, as she and her older brother John would face off against her dad and her younger brother Brett in the driveway.

“The games were pretty even,” she said, noting that beating her younger brother, who is now taller than her, requires good footwork and strength.

Now, these traits help create success for the Lady Saints (8-2).