I once read in an article that girl's soccer is considered to be one of the roughest and most dangerous sports you can play. I used to disregard that with an attitude of "I've played since I was 4 years old. Look at me! I'm perfectly fine!" Let's just say... I agree with the article now.

It was the first night of league play, and my club team Sting Black was about to play Texas Spirit Red. Everything seemed normal, the lights where turning on as the sun hid itself behind the trees surrounding the park. For the most part the game was just like any other except my poor team seemed to be outmatched in the area of size and therefore the game was becoming a bit physical. The game is drawing to a close, I am going to clear a simple ball out of the defensive end...when all of a sudden it feels like I have just been hit by an 18-wheeler. Rather ungracefully, I fly through the air, spin a few times and then gravity drives me face first into the perfectly manicured field. Many people told me it resembled when a cartoon like Wile. E. Coyote falls off a cliff and skids on his head.

The first thing that goes through my mind is "Dear Lord please don't let me have broken my neck..." Slightly panicking I roll onto my back and stare up into the lights gazing down upon me. "Well I can move..." was my next thought. I turned my head to the side and a pain so fierce it made me cry out shot through my neck. And then I was off and crying. Slowly and with the help from a fellow teammate I was pulled up to my feet. Then I really began to freak out. My entire world was spinning like when you're in a fun house. I could only see what was directly in front of me which I later learned that I had tunnel vision. I don't remember exactly what happened after this point. But according to a teammate I staggered off the field in a rather zombie-like state and sat on the bench. Our team manager took one look at me and called my parents to come get me. Time for a trip to the emergency room!

Sitting in the waiting room at the medical center felt like the longest 30 minutes of my life. It hurt so much to move my head in either direction and it felt like someone was banging on the back of my head with a metal baseball bat. When it was my turn to be seen I was put in a neck brace and immediately sent to get x-rays and a ct scan to check for bleeding in my brain or for signs of swelling. It turns out I had a concussion and was having muscle spasms in my neck and upper back which was forcing my spine into a "too straight" position which was causing the pain in my neck and back. They gave me some painkillers and told me to stay out of sports for a few weeks. The next few days where absolute torture for me. I could barely move and had a killer headache to top it off. The furthest thing from my mind at this time was playing soccer again. It wasn't that I was scared to play again. But any kind of physical action sounded like death warmed over. I really wanted to play again though. Soccer is what I do. Since I was 4 I have always been a soccer girl. I can not imagine my life free of cleats and shinguards. I had to sit and watch my team play in a tournament and 2 league games and countless practices before i was allowed to suit back up and step back onto the pitch.

Those few weeks I went "soccer-less" proved to me how much I love the sport and how strong of a passion I have for the beautiful game. I decided then and there, no matter the risks, no matter the pain, no matter the pressure soccer is what I do.