Lady Warhawks return key player from injury, looking for boost in the early season

There’s been at least one young Lady Warhawk to keep an eye on going back to last year, and her appearance against Tift County was her first since an ACL injury.

Kiersten Rogers was a freshman standout last year as a part of Veterans’ Elite Eight squad, and in Game 5 of this season she made her return to the floor and finished with nine points.

She’s drawn praise from head coach Tracy Fendley for her natural abilities, and her restoration to the lineup could be a difference maker for Veterans as she ramps back up.

“I think it took her until about the third or fourth quarter to get in stride, but she played well,” Fendley said of the sophomore. “She’s still working through some things and trying to get back into the swing of it.”

Though Rogers did play more than a handful of minutes against Tift County, Fendley is in no rush to push the limits.

“We just want to slowly get her back into the swing of it, we don’t want to overdo it and do too much too soon,” Fendley said. “She has been doing rehab and working out and doing the things that she’s been able to do up until she got released. So that’s helping her right now.”

Rogers provides a natural athlete, threat in transition, ball handler and much else for the Lady ‘Hawks, too. While she’s still young and has plenty to learn, adding her to the mix could raise the floor early.

“Kiersten [is] a really athletic, great basketball player who does a lot of things that you just can’t teach or coach,” Fendley said. “She’s got good instincts, she can jump out of the gym and having her back is going to be a big asset for us.”