Nansemond-Suffolk Academy’s girls’ basketball team is now the No. 1 team in the conference play within the Tidewater Conference of Independent Schools after defeating Cape Henry at home Friday evening.

The Lady Saints defeated Cape Henry 45-38. The top team in the conference was previously Cape Henry. This is the second win in the last two weeks where the Lady Saints defeated the current leader in the conference.

At the first quarter of play, the Lady Saints were up 12-8. Cape Henry swung momentum back their way in the second quarter and took a 22-20 lead into halftime. NSA regrouped coming out of the locker room, producing an 11-point third quarter while limiting Cape Henry to only five points. NSA was able to prevent Cape Henry from making the big run they needed to win the game in the fourth quarter.

“It was a big win for us,” Lady Saints coach Kim Aston said. “The kids worked extremely hard, and we shot the ball from the floor as well as we have all season. We were able to get some points in transition and make easy baskets.”

Lindsay Knierbein led NSA with 22 points and eight rebounds. Kelly Hogan had 14 points and grabbed 18 rebounds.

“I was proud of our mental toughness and perseverance,” Knierbein said. “We had some lapses, but we were able to buckle down on defense and bounce back with some important offensive gains.”

Defensively NSA had six steals as a team and outrebounded Cape Henry 48-24. Offensively the Lady Saints felt they could take advantage inside. Instead, Cape Henry focused on stopping Hogan, which led to Knierbein having a big game.

Before the season started, Aston felt her team could be among the top three in the conference, even considering the players it lost from last season.

“Our goal is to win the TCIS,” Aston said. “We knew it was possible, but I don’t think anybody else thought we would be there. I’m proud of the kids up to this point for figuring out that you can win after losing 80 percent of your scoring from last year.”

“We didn’t know how competitive we would be,” Knierbein said. “I did believe we had a lot of potential for success. I knew it would take hard work and a little bit of figuring out how to play together as a new team. We’ve come far since the beginning of the season.”

NSA will face Walsingham Academy on the road Tuesday, Feb. 7 at 5:30 p.m.

NSA 45 Cape Henry 38

NSA: Knierbein 22pts 8rebs, Hogan 14pts 18rebs, Herrod 2pts, Aston 3pts, Harrell 2pts, Brown 2pts

Cape Henry: Beale 24pts, Patrick 6pts, Schultz 2pts, Atherton 2pts, Smith 4pts