Maybe it’s because she grew up visiting a nursing home her parents owned, or perhaps since she hopes to someday become a fourth-generation nurse.

But whenever one of her teammates on the Lewis-Clark State women’s basketball team needs a pick-me up, 6-foot-1 junior forward Kiara Burlage often knows just what to say.

“It’s just the little things that she does,” Warriors point guard Peyton Souvenir said. “If she sees someone lose a little bit of confidence, she’s right there to pick them back up.

“She just reminds us to have confidence in ourselves.”

That confidence was surely needed when the Warriors dropped three of their first four Frontier Conference contests. They got back on track, though, and finished second in the Frontier Conference tournament.

Burlage was putting up big numbers on both sides of the ball for the No. 21 Warriors (21-10) — and seemed poised to add onto them in the NAIA tournament this week before that was cancelled because of the coronavirus.

Burlage led L-C with 15.6 points and 7.6 rebounds per game this season, and was second on the Warriors with 22 blocks. She rarely left the court, leading her team in minutes.

“She has a bottomless tank, it seems,” teammate Jamie Nielson said. “She just doesn’t get on empty. She just goes on for days.”

And all that energy can tire out defenders.

“She’s very active on offense,” Montana Tech coach Carly Sanon said. “She’s always cutting and moving.”

Montana State-Northern coach Chris Mouat explained another reason why covering Burlage can exhaust defenders: There’s nowhere on the court you can leave her unattended, now that she’s developed a 3-point shot (the best on the team, actually, at a 42-percent clip).

Perhaps Northern’s Peyton Kehr best described what it’s like to guard Burlage: “No one really comes in her way. She’s going to get what she wants.”

Which explains why, whenever there’s a loose ball, Burlage usually seems to come away with it. She’s persistent, and that tends to rub off on anyone who comes into her orbit.

When Burlage attended Columbia Falls High School in Columbia Falls, Mont., an assistant with the school’s volleyball team instantly realized Burlage’s personality was good at drawing other people out of their shells.

“She didn’t let me just settle,” said Jolandie Brooks, who is now the head coach for the Wildcats’ volleyball team. “More than anything, I just appreciated that she pushed me to be a better version of myself and as a coach.”

Brooks isn’t the only person who Burlage has brought out the best in.

Explained L-C teammate Abbie Johnson, “She’s kind of a person you’ll gravitate to in times of stress or where you need someone.

“You sometimes need that calming factor — and she has a very good head on her shoulders and just a sense of how to navigate things.”

Like the twisted world of junior high.

Burlage’s mom, Jessi, once had a secretary from her daughter’s junior high approach her to give her a compliment any parent would love to hear.

“She just said how much she really loved my daughter, because of what she did,” Jessi Burlage said. “(Burlage) witnessed a kid getting picked on, and bullied, and stood up to the bullies, stepped outside of her friend group to stand up to them, and do what was right in that situation.”

That wouldn’t surprise any of Burlage’s teammates at L-C — all of whom have come to see her as something of a mother-hen figure.

“She lives her whole life in a very simple, positive, optimistic (way),” Warriors guard Abby Farmer said.

Josh Burlage said that’s always been the case for his daughter.

“She is who she is,” he said. “Not that she won’t do something out of character just to get a laugh, or to try to brighten your day in some way.”

Edelman may be contacted at bedelman@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2277.