Feature: Maddie Martin, Women's Basketball

Courtesy: Marty Myers, Sports Writer, The Scranton Times-Tribune, mmyers@timesshamrock.com

Dunmore Grad Martin Knows Road to Recovery All Too Well

When she'll step onto a basketball court again, former Dunmore High School standout Martin doesn't know.

She's certain of one thing. That third surgery March 11 on the same torn ACL in her left knee isn't going to stop her from playing ball again.

Some call her determined. Others might say she's crazy.

Resilient is the best description for the former two-time, second-team all-state player.

"A lot of people say that, but until you're actually put in the position, I feel if you really love playing, it's kind of not really a decision," Martin said. "You have to do what you have to do to get back out there.

"I've heard a lot of people say resilient. I think people who love the game, if they were put in this position, they would do the same."

The stitches just came out last week. Now the hard part begins.

Again.

"The mental part, by far, is much, much harder," Martin said. "I don't know if everyone realizes this."

Like trying to make up a 15-point deficit, it doesn't happen in one or two possessions.

"You have to be able to be able to make short-term goals, because otherwise you get caught up in thinking about, 'Oh, it's going to be nine months before I see the court again,'" Martin explained. "Especially going down two years in a row, I think the mental is way more difficult to overcome."

Before this, her second redshirt freshman season, Martin, who is academically a junior, hadn't played a game for New Jersey Institute of Technology, the Division I program where she was recruited.

In four years at Dunmore, where her teams posted a 102-13 record, she didn't miss so much as a practice.

But in her first semester on campus, Martin suffered a noncontact tear before she could suit up.

"Just planted the wrong way, which is typical ACL," Martin said. "The second one (also preseason) was actually contact. Someone hit my leg in the wrong position. Kind of super unlucky there.

"I just know as you get injured, unfortunately, the percentage of you doing it again increases."

That's something Martin knows from two types of personal experiences, the second being her biomedical engineering studies at NJIT.

"I think that helps with the mental aspect,"Martin said. "I've done a lot of work on ACLs and why they happen and even down the line I might want to do something with injury prevention, from a biomechanics standpoint, because that's my concentration.

"I've done a project on ACLs. Maybe someday I'll get to do some work on them and just do some research. I think that kind of helps to understand why it happens and during rehab, being more focused on what you need to do."

Right now, she's trying to figure out why, just 18 games into her Highlanders' career, she's back at square one.

"That's the hard part to wrap your head around," Martin said. "You can do everything right. I had several PTs (physical therapies). I waited as long as I could. I got cleared with a clearing test at HSS (Hospital for Special Surgery) in New York City. You can do everything right and that's the frustrating part.

"I know a lot of it is anatomy, but there are other factors you just can't control."

Her sister, Paige, a Dunmore cheerleader, found that out, too, suffering an ACL injury when someone fell into her knee.

Maddie's third ACL tear also came via contact, Jan. 20 in an Atlantic Sun Conference home game with Lipscomb.

She had career-highs of 19 points against Wagner in November, and seven assists against St. Francis (Brooklyn) a week later, was leading the team in 3-point shooting (43%), and was averaging 33 minutes and 6.4 points when she was sideswiped again.

"When I went down I kind of knew, but then because of the adrenaline, or having a graft and not my native ACL, I was actually able to go back in the game," Martin said. "It kind of felt weird, but I did go back in for a little bit, which before I was never able to do that. So I was unsure."

So were doctors. Because of two prior surgeries, an MRI was inconclusive, and it took several visits with specialists to determine the path of action.

"The original plan kind of changed when my surgeon went in because he was able to keep some of the old ACL graft and sort of augment it, just kind of make it more stable and stronger," Martin said. "I guess that was a plus that he didn't have to do a full reconstruction.

"It's kind of the same rehab, but it wasn't really starting from scratch."

Not physically, anyway.

"I think it would be silly to think I wake up every day feeling motivated," Martin said. "There are obviously periods where I'm asking why am I doing this. It would be easier to just hang it up, but I know I'll regret it in the long run if I just decide to quit. Ultimately, that's not my plan and not what I want to do.

"Obviously, there are days where I hope this will be worth it. It's difficult and it's not a common thing."

Martin's made a career out of doing unlikely things. Her 1,516 points is among the leaders in Dunmore's rich basketball history. She guided her team to the state semifinals in 2016, and was a top-notch student who was elected president of the National Honor Society chapter.

Along the way, each experience has helped prepare her for what lies ahead.

"I felt like I was kind of getting back in the flow and adjusting to the speed of the game and everything like that," Martin said. "Yeah, it's frustrating, but in a way at least I'm prepared for it this time, to look on the bright side of it.

"But at the same time, you know what to expect in terms of the recovery time and all that, so that makes it harder."

Keeping her eye on what lies ahead drives her to come back to play. Again.

"That's the plan for next season," Martin said. "I'm obviously not going to rush back because that's never good to do with these types of injuries, but whenever I'm cleared to play, whatever part of the season that is next season, that's what I'm going to do.

"Depending on how the rehab process goes, I do have more years of eligibility. I haven't made any decisions about that yet. I'm just trying to take it one day at a time."