By: Manya Makoski

I hadn’t been there in over a year.  I was nervous, yet so excited.  Even though I left Arizona State two years ago, it would be my first Alumni game. 

The plan was to visit my best friend Ada in California for a few days with my boyfriend Andy.  We would then drive the six hours to Tempe, Ariz. on Friday (which happened to be my 24th birthday).  The next day we would play the game.  It sounds simple enough, right?

Everything is always complex and complicated for me.  The week before I left for Arizona, I started getting this pain where my foot and ankle meet.  It wasn’t an intense pain, but it was really dull and nagging.  However, sometimes the pain got very sharp.  I didn’t remember hurting it during training or one of my workouts, so I figured it was just a bruise or soreness.  This was the leg that I had broken two years ago, and ever since then it has always been pretty sore after I play or work out.  However, the pain was on the other side of my leg.  The ache persisted throughout the week.  I rested and I iced.  I finally gave in and went to my chiropractor because the pain did not subside.  I needed to get better so I could play in my alumni game.

From the x-rays you can see that the end of the bone is a little jagged.  The doctor said it was rubbing up against my tendon.  He wasn’t sure of the diagnosis, so I made another appointment in two weeks with my real doctor.  I bought some anti-inflammatory cream in the meantime.

So the question was: do I play?  The pain was bearable and there was no question I wasn’t about to miss out on my alumni game.

Driving up to the field brought back so many awesome memories.  I missed playing for the Sun Devils because it was an unbelievable experience.  Walking along the back of the stadium and into the team room, I saw teammates that I hadn’t seen in a long time.  It was so exciting to hear what the players I have not kept in touch with have been doing with their lives.  And it was even more exciting to see those friends that I kept in touch with.

We put on our old Sun Devil numbers, did our pregame handshakes, and played our typical positions.  I didn’t even notice the pain in my foot because I was so energetic and thrilled to be playing in the Sun Devil Stadium for one more time.  The alumni played like we had been practicing together for years, stringing passes together through combination play.  Unfortunately and fortunately, the game ended in a tie 0-0.  Both sides fought hard like true Sun Devils.

For most of the game, I was up against Kylla Sjoman (aka “Canada”, well because she is from Canada), one of my best friends still on the team.  I was just so amazed by how much she has improved from when I was a senior and she was a freshman on the team.  She has taken such a great leadership role and I know her teammates look up to her.

I know that she has filled my shoes so perfectly.  I am so very proud to have been such a role model for her, that now she has done the same for her freshman.

And this is what being a Sun Devil is all about.  I will always be a part of the Sun Devil family, and I will always take care of a fellow Sun Devil because I know she will do the same for me.  I know Kylla still looks up to me as I go about my journey to become a professional soccer player.