Replacing Pain With Progress: After three months of recovering from an ACL tear, varsity soccer forward Sophia Beedle is on track to be cleared to play in July

Three months post-operation. Six more months of recovery. Four more months until graduation.

Senior and varsity girls soccer forward Sophia Beedle kicked a soccer ball for the first time in five months last Tuesday, Jan. 28 — the first time since she tore her ACL.

In an Elite Clubs National League (ECNL) soccer game on Sept. 28, Beedle planted her foot to push off, felt a pop and was immediately escorted off the field.

“I went off the field and I thought I was being very dramatic,” Beedle said. “But I could not put any pressure on my knee. It felt like dead weight.”

Three weeks later on Oct. 22, Beedle underwent an ACL reconstruction surgery. After the operation, her parents drove her home and she fell right to sleep. 

When she came to, waves of pain washed over her and she couldn’t lift her leg. For three days, she lingered between the couch and the restroom, since it was too painful to make it to her room.

“I had to use the restroom,” Beedle said. “And just getting up and the blood rushing to my leg was so painful. I was basically dragging it to the bathroom.”

Beedle recalled that the physical therapist warned her that the nerve blockers she had taken from the surgery would wear off, yet she didn’t realize the level of pain she would be in. 

Senior Camila Simmons, Beedle’s friend, was one of the few people, outside of her family, to visit her during the three days following her surgery. 

Simmons explained that she did her best to keep the mood light and upbeat.

“She couldn’t move,” Simmons said. “You could tell that she was ready to talk to someone besides her family and just get out of the house.”

A month later, Beedle was able to walk without crutches. Two weeks later, she was able to walk without a brace. And in the past month, she managed to bend her knee to more than half of her full range of motion.

“Our goal right now is to get my left leg to be 80-90% function as my left [knee],” Beedle said. “Once we hit that milestone, I’ll be able to start jumping and running, hopefully in April or March.”

Since it has only been four months since the surgery, Beedle won’t be able to play her final season of high school soccer as a Lancer. 

East Soccer Coach Jamie Kelly stated that Beedle will be on the sidelines of every game and practice to stay connected to the team.

“Having her on the sideline is going to be important for her and her mental state,” Kelly said. “Her in that role is going to be big for our team because when you see her, someone on the sideline who wants to be out there, it’s going to motivate the team to go and win for her.”