Picture this, eighth grader Danielle B. faces a San Antonio team not knowing what’s gonna happen next. Time stops, there’s a pop, then she falls. Danielle tears her ACL. An ACL is a ligament in the knee that when torn takes months of recovery and intensive surgery.  

“I had one surgery , but there was a complication. They were supposed to use my hamstring to replace my ACL, but they had to use my quad muscle instead.”

As of now Danielle has been recovering from her injury for six months.  

Danielle played on the top team on Austin Juniors Volleyball Club. She explains the events adding up to her injury.

“ I was going up to hit the ball and my main focus was to sprint to the outside of the court to block and i came down wrong , so i landed on my opposite foot . I landed and it made a loud pop,” Danielle said.

Danielle explains what happened after she fell.

“ Grayson, my teammate, told me I got a kill. I also remember my dad sprinting down the stairs . My coach told me to lay on the ground,” Danielle said, “They had to cut off one of my knee pads because it was too small because I forgot one at home, so I got one from the lost and found.”

Throughout Danielle’s recovery her parents, family and friends supported her.

“My friends brought flowers, posters, tiff’s treats, and stuck by my side through my recovery,” Danielle said.

Danielle ’s mother was freaked out by having to go through all of this.

Recovery for Danielle meant a lot of physical therapy and wearing a big knee brace. Still recovering she still has to go to physical therapy every week.

”I go to physical therapy and practice exercises to strengthen my ACL.”

Danielle was cleared for volleyball on January 22.