SALEM, Ore. (KOIN) — Coming back from an injury is never easy, but Izzy Haselip has done it more than once.
“People grow in adversity and she’s had a lot of adversity in her career,” said AJ Nash, Izzy’s soccer coach at McNary High School in the Salem-Keizer district.
Izzy has played soccer her whole life.
“I’ve just always developed a love for it I guess,” Izzy said.
But pursuing her love of the game hasn’t always been easy.
“I broke my hip and shattered my pelvis in like 8th grade,” she said. “It was during an ODP practice and I fell on my knee when I was hit against two players and the rest of my tendons overextended and pulled my hip apart, my hips twisted and my pelvis just… yeah.”
It was painful to say the least, but the recovery was almost more painful for the active teenager.
“I was in a wheelchair for about 3 months and long rehab,” Izzy said. “They didn’t know if I was going to be able to play soccer or not.”
She was down, but she was determined not to be out.
“Basically out of a wheelchair, I would say within 3 weeks, she calls me up and tells me she wants to play soccer and I’m thinking there’s no way she’s coming off this injury, from being in a wheelchair, that she’s going to go out and play soccer. And sure enough she came out on the field and actually played the game and was out there, playing as if nothing happened,” Jaime Gonzalez said.
Back on the field for her senior year with the Celtics, Izzy said there’s only one thing that’s kept her motivated through all the ups and downs.
“My parents have put so much money into me playing soccer and so much time as well and that I mean, my end goal is just to make them proud,” Izzy said.