The leading scorer for the Syracuse women’s soccer team almost didn’t have a chance to play collegiate soccer at all.

After her junior year at Red Bank Regional High School in Little Silver, N.J., Erin Simon tore her left ACL playing in a college showcase tournament for club team FC Copa.

“I didn’t know what I was going to do, I was heartbroken,” Simon said. “It was my senior year.”

Simon had just set Red Bank’s record for most goals in a season with 21, and was on the precipice of becoming team captain in her final high school season. But when she collided with a player and fell awkwardly, her senior year became a forgone conclusion. It would be spent standing on the sideline watching the team finish 2-11-2 and her Division-I aspirations diminish.

But she recovered in only five months, well ahead of schedule, to return back to the soccer field.

“The people who helped me through physical therapy helped me become a faster, stronger and better player than I was before my injury,” Simon said.

Aguas had seen Simon play soccer since she was 10 years old, and was her head coach when she tore her ACL. He dealt directly with Simon through the majority of her rehabilitation, and had words of encouragement to offer her as she hastily made inroads into her rehab.

Two years ago, a phone call from FC Copa coach Roberto Aguas to SU head coach Phil Wheddon brought Simon to Syracuse. Now she’s pacing the Orange with four goals this season.

“I told [Wheddon], ‘You have to take a look at Erin,’” Aguas said. “If [Wheddon] was going to take her, he’d have to trust me and take my word about Erin and I knew he wouldn’t be disappointed.”

FC Copa teammate Alex Sangiuliano, who was already fully committed to play soccer at Syracuse, helped introduce Simon to Wheddon on a recruiting visit. When Wheddon asked Aguas if there were any other players his staff should look at, he immediately brought up Simon.

“Erin was someone we saw who had just a natural gift of speed,” Wheddon said.

Simon said Syracuse didn’t contact her until she was going through rehab, but the interest was mutual. Simon’s earliest interactions with Wheddon and the team were promising.

“Once I first spoke to [Wheddon], we had an instant connection and ultimately, he stuck through with me,” Simon said. “I really loved the school, the coaching staff and all the girls I met on the team.”

Wheddon and his staff agreed.

“When a player comes back from an injury of that type, you expect them to be tentative or a step slower,” Wheddon said. “[Simon] was neither tentative nor a step slower. She continues to exceed expectations.”

Undoubtedly, the entire journey Simon has endured has changed her outlook on the game she is now greatly succeeding at.

Said Simon: “I consider myself a better player now then I was when I got injured because I look at the game differently now. I’m more appreciative of the time I get to spend on the field.”

Published on September 24, 2013 at 11:51 pm

Contact Connor: cgrossma@syr.edu | @connorgrossman