When I got hurt a couple of weeks before playoffs, it felt like the entire season flashed in front of me. I went down during a game, landed hard, and immediately felt this sharp, sweeping pain through my shoulder. I knew right away something was wrong. I left the game, and the worst thought hit me: this might be it, and it’s my senior year.
What made it harder was that my grandparents had flown in from Arkansas, my aunts were there from out of state too, my brother was home from college, and within the first ten minutes of the game, I was on the sideline. It was disappointing, but honestly, it was scary too.
We went straight to the ER that night for an X-ray to rule out anything broken. Nothing showed up structurally, which was a relief, but the prognosis still didn’t look good. A follow-up the next day at TCO Urgent Care revealed I had a long road ahead of me and still the potential of my season ending. My mom ended up connecting with someone on Monday at TCO who really understood how important the situation felt. She helped us get an appointment with a TCO shoulder specialist, Dr. Christopher Honstad, the very next day.
That appointment was the first time I felt real hope. Dr. Honstad was calm, straightforward, and understood both the emotional weight and the athletic pressure I was under. He said I needed to start physical therapy as soon as possible, and within 45 minutes, I was meeting the PT who would guide my entire comeback.
Physical Therapist Cody Suchla made a huge difference. He listened, understood what I wanted, and trusted my sense of what I could tolerate. One of the first things I told him was that we were going to win state. He laughed, but every week after that he kept asking how the games went, how the team was doing, and how I was feeling. He was relatable, creative, and made the whole process something I actually looked forward to.
The therapy itself wasn’t easy. I had significant pain, and we progressed slowly, but it was steady. Rehab bike work, strength training, stretching, pushing through certain movements and holding back on others. A week before I was supposed to return, Cody had another staff member build a custom shoulder brace for me. It ended up being exactly what allowed me to get back out there.
Four weeks after the injury, I returned for our game against Zimmerman. I wasn’t 100%, but I was back. Then, we went on a run and won Orono’s first-ever football state championship! Those last few weeks of the season are memories I’ll remember forever. After everything that happened, getting to finish my senior year on the field with my teammates meant everything. A bonus was having the honor to accept the Most Valuable Teammate award following the championship win.
Looking back, I’m so grateful for the care I received and for the caring people who made sure I had a chance to finish what I started. TCO helped give me my season back.