The slightest quiver could be heard in Eva Gourdeau’s voice. As she retold the story from of how she tore her ACL – feeling the immediate pain in her knee during a match, collapsing to the ground, being unable to straighten it the next morning and then getting the confirmation from the doctor – her face became stoic.

The memory still brought back strong emotions for the freshman forward.

“That moment, everything just broke down,” Gourdeau said. “It was like my biggest fear coming to life.”

Gourdeau suffered her injury on Dec. 15, 2014. In SU’s (4-10-1, 0-6 Atlantic Coast) Oct. 8 loss to Notre Dame – nearly 10 months later – she made her collegiate debut. She was the only Syracuse player to record a shot in that match and Wheddon hinted that he may use Gourdeau again against North Carolina State (4-10, 0-5) on Sunday at SU Soccer Stadium.

The rehabilitation process, as is the case with most recovering from a torn ACL, was inconsistent. Gourdeau had to push through the plateaus that came up during the process. She noted that there were times when she felt she was really progressing, but those would be followed up with times she felt that her progress was stagnant.

Gourdeau was cleared to play on Sept. 22. Earlier last week, before the Notre Dame game, head coach Phil Wheddon told her that she was going to travel with the team.

She said that she experienced some discomfort when she got onto the field for the first time. But she started getting more comfortable as the match wore on. Even though the shot she took wasn’t perfect, she was just happy being able to shoot the ball.

With the Syracuse offense struggling, Wheddon went to his freshman forward to throw a different look at opponents. Still, Wheddon was sure to point out that Gourdeau earned the right to be on the field and said no one on the team gets playing time “just because.“

“One of the things that we like about Eva is she’s a blue-collar, hard-working athlete,” Wheddon said. “That is a requirement for every athlete, but she just has a little more grit.”

Wheddon acknowledged that Gourdeau will have to be eased back into the game after being away from it for so long.

“(Gourdeau’s) progression since the preseason, that I’ve seen, it’s been really good, and she just seems a lot more confident and stronger on the ball,” forward Maya Pitts said. “I’m actually excited to see how her play is going to develop.”

Wheddon said he hopes Gourdeau holds up physically in practice after playing in two games over the weekend.

With only four games remaining in a season that Syracuse has yet to win a conference match, Gourdeau said that her primary focus is getting better every time she gets to take the field in the short time remaining.

“When I stepped on the field for Notre Dame, that was a great feeling,” Gourdeau said. “It had just been so long.”

Published on October 15, 2015 at 1:11 am

Contact Tomer: tdlanger@syr.edu | @tomer_langer