Amazing recovery for women’s BB player

This archived article was written by: Jennifer Jarrett

On Friday, October 24 the women’s basketball team was in a regular practice session scrimmaging against each other. As Marcy Nielson stood at high post ready to pass the ball, she was bumped from behind, the ambulance came, and practice ended early.
“My foot was planted because I was ready to pass. When I got bumped from behind my body turned one way as my foot stayed planted. My knee popped out and was hanging off to the side,” Nielson said while recounting her horrific experience.
Needless to say, the rest of the team was shocked and scared at what had happened. Nielson continued, “All I really remember about it happening was how disgusting it looked and everybody running out of the gym. My teammates told me later they were running out either covering their ears from my screaming or covering their mouth from the look of my knee.”
“Coach [Dave Paur] came over and kept telling me over and over, ‘Be still, be still. Don’t move, it’s going to be okay.’ Then he told someone to call the ambulance and told someone else to get me some pills and blankets. Then he continued to tell me some more to calm down. Nielson laid on the court waiting for the ambulance to come, in a lot of pain. She said, “It seemed like it took the ambulance forever to get to the BDAC. When they finally came, everything hurt so bad. As they took off my shoe, it hurt, as they put me on the stretcher, it hurt. Every little thing put me in a load of pain.”
Nielson’s teammates were the only ones there to comfort her in her time of need. However, they were there for her, especially her roommate. Nielson explained, “My roommate, Viya Whitear, rode in the ambulance with me to the hospital so that I wouldn’t be alone. I am from Payson, so my family wasn’t able to come to the hospital or be there with me. My teammates were so awesome through the whole ordeal. They were there for me, asking me if I needed anything or if they could help me. There were really willing to help me out in any way they could and really cheered me up.”
“At the hospital the doctors gave me morphine and had me relax my quad, because it was so tensed up. Once it was relaxed, they were able to pop it back in place.”
Her injuries were severe enough that she wasn’t expected to be playing much basketball this season. “I ripped my MCL and one other ligament in my knee. The doctor told me that it would take 2 – 4 weeks before I would be able to play again and my physical therapist told me 4 – 6 weeks.”
But Nielson would not be deterred very easily. She continued, “I was back out practicing with the team the very next week. At first I was really timid and nervous, afraid that it might happen again, but now I am back practicing one-hundred percent.”