Grace Crowther '19 Recruiting Profile

I think what makes me stand out as a student and an athlete is that I never give up.  Life has thrown a lot at me in the past few years and despite disappointment and frustration, I keep fighting back. I have been able to maintain high grades in challenging classes while balancing the demands of my sport as well as managing my health. I am a type 1 diabetic. Managing my disease is a full time job and takes constant vigilance. I have responsibilities, that many of my peers cannot understand. My ability to play  depends on me taking care of myself, my life depends on it. In addition to managing a chronic illness on and off the court, I have also battled back from injury. I've literally had to fight my own body for everything I've accomplished both academically and athletically. I work hard, I fight hard and I never give up. Following is the story of my injury and recovery. I hope you will consider being a part of my comeback!

Sitting out with an injury is hard.  I had to sit out most of my 2016 and 2017 club seasons as well as my 2016 varsity high school season due to an injury.  In the fall of 2015, at the end of my 1^st high school season I began having severe pain behind my kneecap.  I was diagnosed with an OCD Lesion one week before practice began for my club season.  I spent 4 months in a massive, locked, straight leg brace and 2 months on crutches with the hope that my body would heal on its own in order to avoid surgery.  My hopes of playing my 15s season were crushed but, I sat through hours of practices, workouts and tournaments, watching and listening and supporting my team.  I learned so much more about this game from my new perspective.  I could see the whole picture on the court.  I could see who was working their hardest and who was cutting corners. I could see the plays being made…and missed.  Being out of the game was hard, but I realized my season would not be a total loss.  The hardest part for me was watching my team struggle in a tough game and not being able to go in and help them.  I had to help from the sidelines.

          Coming back from an injury is even harder.  When the doctor gave me my release I was beyond excited.  My brain thought my body could just jump right back in, but after 4 months in a brace, my right leg was, literally, half the size of my left.  Rehab was frustrating.  Practice was frustrating.  Everything was just hard.  I was weak, I couldn’t jump and I was scared.  Week after week I grew stronger.  I learned to listen to my body, to push enough but not too much.  Just 2 weeks after my release, we played in our local qualifier.  I had no expectations of getting on the court, but I was thrilled to put on my uniform for the first time all season.  On day 2 of the tournament, my coach called my name.  My team erupted in screams and cheers as I stepped on the court; 2 serves, no touch, I rotated out.  Not the momentous return I had envisioned but I stepped off the court to hugs and high fives from my coaches and teammates.  I was back!

        Unfortunately, my return was short lived.  Before the start of my high school season 2016, the pain returned and was getting worse instead of better.  A second opinion with a new doctor revealed that my lesion was not healed and had now detached and my leg was growing weaker instead of stronger.  My first Varsity season was spent, once again, cheering on my team from the sidelines.  Over a year after my first doctor's visit, I was scheduled for surgery to remove the detached bone fragment and clean out the debris in my knee.  Surgery was a success and I was relieved to hear that there was no major damage to my knee.  After surgery, my leg was even weaker than before.  I couldn't even lift it to get in the car or push the pedal on a stationary bike.  I knew I had another long road ahead to get back on the court.

        I continued to work in intensive physical therapy to rebuild my strength and I worked with both my club and high school coaches to rebuild my skills.  It has been a long and frustrating road that has taught me so much.  I worked hard and I am excited to be back on the court.  I was released and  able to play in the last few tournaments of my 2017 16s club season with an  18s team and was able to be the starting Right Side for my 2017 Varsity High School season.  I was even named as an all league honorable mention for the season.  I was thrilled, that after 2 years off the court, my hard work has paid off and I was able to play a full club season in 2018 on one of my club's top 18s teams.  I was named Captain for my senior high school season and starting right side hitter for the team.  Together with my team, we went undefeated in our league and went to the semi-finals in our sectional playoffs!  We were all disappointed that we lost in the semis and didn't have a chance at the championship, but we made school history by getting the first ever bid to the California State Regional playoffs and I am so proud to be a part of that!