Like losing a member of any close family, the Park girls' hockey team was shocked and saddened to hear senior captain and Division-I bound defenseman Anna Keys would miss the entire season because of injury.
Keys suffered a severe knee injury in September during a Wolfpack soccer game. The three-sport athlete, who also plays golf, underwent surgery to replace her ACL and repair her MCL.
Fellow captain Emma Waller remembered hearing the news.
"The team didn't know how to take it," Waller said. "She is a strong player, and I know that a lot of us were pretty nervous, because, as a team, we are like a family and having Anna not on the ice with us was a struggle."
Coach Steve Morse echoed Waller's memory. He believes the team has responded well together. After all, there's nothing they can do about it except go out and play the game.
"At first, some of the reactions around the room were 'What are we going to do?' " Morse said. "And the answer is 'We're going to go play and we're not going to feel sorry for ourselves.' The girls have gone about it with a good attitude."
Keys' rehab is progressing well. She had surgery about eight weeks ago and just recently ditched her crutches. She's trying to re-learn how to walk and strengthen her muscles once again.
"It was definitely a tough first couple weeks knowing that I couldn't play my senior year," said Keys, who hopes she can be ready to play golf for the Wolfpack in the spring. "But I started to realize that everything happens for a reason and it gives me a chance to see the game in a different way and learn even more."
