Kayleigh’s Comeback
Her Journey After a Major Injury
Kayleigh Herr, a native of Cary, North Carolina, began her soccer career at 3 years old. After Kayleigh began playing soccer more seriously, at 12 years old she decided she wanted to play for the US Women’s National Team when she was older. Over the next few years, she was invited to several of the US Women’s Youth National Team camps to see what it was like to play at a national level. Kayleigh signed her National Letter of Intent at 17, her commitment to attend the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and play in the best women’s soccer program in the country.
First Game as a Tar Heel
Kayleigh quickly had an opportunity to showcase her talents after one of her fellow centerbacks, Maycee Bell had torn her Anterior Cruciate ligament (ACL). Kayleigh discovered just a day before their next game that the starting spot was hers. She vividly remembers the nerves going into her first collegiate game.
“It was probably the most terrified but excited I’ve ever been to go onto the field.”
Her Injury
As Kayleigh settled into the starting lineup for the next 5 games, it was that fifth game that changed everything. Kayleigh went into a tackle on a 50/50 ball which led to a collision between her and another player. She felt her knee crack and she knew immediately the magnitude of her injury. She remembers laying on the field, screaming, not in pain, but rather because she was so upset that she had gotten injured, knowing the effect her injury would have on the rest of her season.
Kayleigh later got an MRI which confirmed the bad news. Kayleigh had torn her ACL as well as her Lateral Collateral ligament (LCL). Kayleigh was devastated, with this being her first major injury in her career. She didn’t know what her life was like without soccer.
Similar to Kayleigh, ACL tears among other lower extremity injuries are one of the more common injuries seen in women’s soccer. In the 2022 season, the Tar Heels saw a good amount of injuries, often causing starting lineups to be shifted around. This issue of injuries in women’s soccer is very widespread, not just in collegiate soccer but also in professional women’s soccer leagues all over the world.
Women’s Injuries Across Sports
For many, including Kayleigh, the rehab after an ACL tear is a grueling process that can impact an athlete’s future career by putting them at risk for another injury. With women having a higher risk than men of tearing their ACL, a lot more prevention efforts and research must go towards figuring out how to limit these injuries. Women’s soccer is not the only sport affected by these injuries, it is any sport that requires cutting maneuvers, like basketball or lacrosse.
A New Outlook
Throughout Kayleigh’s recovery, she tried to keep herself busy often watching her teammates get better during practices. While watching from the sideline was a little different, Kayleigh tried her best to impact her teammates while not physically being on the field with them.
After 10 long months of rehab, Kayleigh was finally cleared to return to playing. Kayleigh had recovered just in time to begin working out with her teammates to prepare for their upcoming 2023 season. As Kayleigh returned to playing, her perspective changed, and her appreciation for the game grew. Kayleigh was healthy for the 2023 season and was able to make her official return to the field in a game in late August. Kayleigh also hit another milestone later in the season, her first collegiate goal.
Digital Project
Sources:
- https://www.wdhospital.org/wdh/services-and-specialties/orthopedic-care/blog/why-female-soccer-players-are-at-risk-of-acl-injuries
- https://magazine.alumni.ubc.ca/2023/athletics-health/epidemic-acl-tears-female-soccer-players-goes-beyond-biology
- https://www.ncsasports.org/articles-1/soccer-in-college#:~:text=About%2045%2C000%20players%20play%20NCAA,in%20college%20and%20between%20genders.
- https://www.truveta.com/blog/research/soccer-injuries-2023/