In May 2022, sophomore Lucy Perez, an ambitious three-sport athlete, suffered a traumatic knee injury. During the last play of her rugby match against Bishop O’Dowd, Lucy made a drastic cut to the goal. She collided with her opponent, falling abruptly to the ground and tearing her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). 

She tore her ACL when she was a freshman, and the recovery process has been painfully long, with a seven-month wait for surgery due to her growth plates not being closed. With a grueling and ongoing recovery, when she will return to sports is unknown. 

Before her injury, her life revolved around sports. Lucy is part of an athletically driven family, with a twin sister and an older brother who have participated in many athletic activities growing up. Sports had always been her outlet to release her emotions and pent-up energy.

 “When I couldn’t do sports [because of the injury], suddenly everything just came to a screeching halt for me, and it hit me hard,” Lucy said.

Although Lucy has been passionate about rugby, she has not always had the opportunity to participate because there was not a girl’s team within an hour’s drive. However, Lucy was motivated to join a team and attempted to register for the Marin Highlanders’ boy’s team. 

“There was a boys [rugby] team that I was planning to play on, but after talking with the coaches, they declined me from playing with the boys because it would’ve been too risky injury-wise,” Lucy said. 

However, she didn’t get discouraged by this rejection. In January 2022, Lucy and her twin sister Lily Perez took the initiative and assembled a women’s rugby team within the Marin Highlanders Club with the help of their mom, Celeste Perez. The organization has significantly impacted teen girls in Marin with the program taking applicants from middle school through high school. This has provided an athletic environment where all body types and all athletic abilities are valued. Perez did not just help build a team; she built a community comprised of seventeen accomplished players and supportive families. 

With Lucy and her twin sister being the captains, the team felt the loss of an essential leader on their team when Lucy got injured. Lily, a sophomore at Redwood High School and co-captain of the women’s rugby team explains how she had to step up.

 “I definitely [took on a lot of responsibility] since we started it together, and when she got injured, she couldn’t come to practice all the time because of doctor appointments and other things. It definitely impacted the team,” Lily said.

Additionally, Lily explains that the team grew more cautious, and fear crept in about getting a similar injury. 

“[Our team] definitely took more time to warm up before games and practices to make sure we were prepared so something like that wouldn’t happen again,” said Lily.

Being athletically driven, Lucy participated in three sports, cheer, track and rugby, which all put a strain on her knees. Doing sports year-round targeting the same muscle groups can overwhelm athletes’ bodies, particularly ligaments. 

Americ Alvarado, the Lead Certified Athletic Trainer for Redwood High School,  explains that returning to sports can be hard mentally because you’re second-guessing if your body can support itself.

 “Mentally you [have to] trust your body again, start over with walking, running, and playing your sports,” Alvarado said.

Lucy fought long and hard for a women’s rugby team in Marin and is committed to pushing through this injury while helping lead the team, optimistic that she will recover fully. 

“All I can do is go up from here,” Lucy said.