Revitalizing a Fallen Athlete (Part 1 of 4)

First 4 Months of 2019

I was finally down to my last two semesters of college since I was graduating a semester early and closing the college chapter in three and a half years. I knew 2019 was going to be a huge year for me and I was extremely excited for it. I had talked to the coaches about switching to left back from left wing for my senior year, since several senior departures left the team with a thin back line. I felt as if it had become the best place for me in the team. Due to the need for more defenders and gaining some experience at left back my freshman year, the coaches were interested in having a look.

At the beginning of March, during our spring break, the team traveled down to Costa Rica for several games and to enjoy the country. We ziplined in the rainforest, spent an evening at hot springs, played with kids at a youth center, went to a nature reserve and waterfalls, soaked up the sun at the beach and the pool and ate lots of amazing food. I started two of the three games at left back and subbed in for the other game. Those couple games greatly helped in my development in a new position.

Once we got back to the states, spring season quickly flew by and it was time for our game. I started and played over 80 minutes in a win over Malone University. After that game, I was feeling quite comfortable and began to get extremely excited for my senior season in the fall.

By the time April rolled around, I had already stopped partying every weekend because I felt I had outgrown it. I liked the feeling of being in the weight room late at night while others were out drinking. I had also accepted a position as the sports intern at WOIO – 19 News in Cleveland and was extremely excited for that opportunity. I found myself beginning to believe I was a superior human being and that others should use me as a model for how they should live their lives. Not only was I elevating myself above others in my mind, but I was beginning to feel invincible.

I was still working so hard to better my body. I had set a goal of making my playing weight 160 pounds by the start of the season. I was at 155 with a muscle mass percentage of 56.5 and a body fat percentage of 6.5. I was always admiring myself in the mirror. I truly felt like I was at my strongest mentally, physically and that everything was lining up. Nothing was ever going to bring me down… Oh what a fool I was to believe that.