By Marin Murray.
What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. That’s the motto varsity volleyball player Maddie McMillon has lived by as she has overcome two severe knee injuries in order to get back on the court and play her senior season.
McMillon shared her testimony at Fields of Faith last Wednesday, October 18, where she recounted the lessons she has learned through her experiences with two ACL tears within a two year span.
“The most significant thing would be just how I’ve been able to impact other people’s lives
through my story and just get to share what God has done in my life,” Maddie said.
Through the experiences with her knee injuries Maddie, who is a student leader for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapter, knows that by having shared her story it is a testament to God’s faithfulness and provision in her life.
“It was definitely hard,” Maddie said. “But it also has been really rewarding, especially with getting to go to the playoffs this year. It’s just been really fun to get to play with my friends for one more season.”
The Lady Eagles finished third in district play and are slated to begin their postseason run next week. Maddie has played a crucial part in the team’s success, even though she has to continually overcome certain physical hurdles.
“The most challenging part has been overcoming all of the obstacles that I have to go through with two knee braces,” Maddie said. “I feel like I have to work 10 times harder than everyone else just to perform at the same level.”
Maddie tore her first ACL during a basketball game her sophomore year. Although she admits she fell into a mindset of fear and isolation, she didn’t let these feelings get in the way of her rehabilitation and recovery journey.
“The greatest challenge the first time was just the fear of not knowing, because I had never been injured in a big way before,” Maddie said. “I didn’t really know how to navigate the whole process.”
It only took her eight months to recover, just in time for the beginning of her junior volleyball season. However, a month to the exact day she was cleared to play sports again following her first injury, Maddie tore her other ACL during a pre-season volleyball tournament.
“The second time was just staying mentally tough, especially after just having finished recovering and getting cleared a month before,” Maddie said. “I thought I was on top of the world, and then I just wasn’t.”
But instead of falling into the same mindset she did the first time, Maddie leaned into the support of her family and friends in order to persevere through the second recovery process. Although it took longer than she initially expected, she was able to rejoin the team for her senior season and is excited for the team’s upcoming playoff run.
“The people on my team have just been so encouraging and uplifting,” Maddie said. “I’ve learned how to stay a part of this close-knit community and really grab hold of the people around me.”
