Vocal Cords returns as captain after ACL tear

A harmless pass proved to be disastrous for redshirt junior defender Lina Cords of the Boston University women's soccer team in early May 2009.

In a game for the Washington Freedom &- Cords' club team from her home state of Maryland &- against the Boston Renegades, a teammate innocently passed the ball back to her on defense. But an opposing attacker intercepted the pass, forcing Cords to jump into her defensive stance.

What transpired next, in Cords' words, was "pretty gross."

"My foot got caught in the turf, so my knee kept going forward and my foot was planted in the ground," Cords said. "It just hyperextended and tore."

Cords suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee and was forced to undergo surgery in June. The timetable for a player's return from ACL surgery is usually six to nine months, presumably crushing any hopes Cords had of suiting up for the Terriers for the 2009 season.

Cords was medically cleared to play in November toward the end of that year's campaign, but she didn't see any action in either the America East tournament or the NCAA tournament.

In preparation for the spring season, Cords ran with her teammates during the winter and took advantage of the opportunity to build back her fitness level.

"Lina's been outstanding," said BU coach Nancy Feldman."She got herself ready to play last spring, played some in the spring but wasn't physically at 100 percent. Medically she was at 100 percent, but physically, she wasn't at 100 percent. Her speed wasn't quite back yet."

This past summer, Cords spent considerable time rehabbing her surgically repaired left knee and getting herself back into the tip-top soccer shape that earned her spots on the 2007 AE All-Rookie Team as a freshman and 2008 All-AE First-Team.

While most players train on their own at home during summer break, Cords stayed put at BU and worked with the Terriers' training staff.

"She worked very hard this summer, stuck around BU and trained with our strength and conditioning coaches," Feldman said. "She's in top form and that's Wes Welker-like. It takes a level of discipline, determination and desire to get yourself back from an injury like that to be at a higher level.

"She's at a higher level than when she got hurt."

"Most of the rehab was just like knee drills, just trying to get my range of motion back," Cords said. "Once I got back to BU, I could kind of start running and then it's just all about building back the muscle.

"I had a lot of support from BU with their trainers and our strength and conditioning coach here, just to make sure that my left leg came back and was as healthy as it could be."

Though it was grueling for her to watch BU's games from the bench last season &- a campaign in which the Terriers finished with an overall record of 14-6-2, their third straight AE title and fifth consecutive NCAA tournament appearance &- Cords did reap some benefits from her injury experience.

"It was definitely hard," Cords said. "It made me want to play so badly, just be able to get out there and in some way contribute. It definitely gave me a good perspective just because I was able to see the game and even though I couldn't play, I would still watch and try to help my teammates as much as I could through talking.

"After my whole injury, I have an even bigger appreciation for the game and having the ability to play it. In some ways, I did learn a lot from my injury."

Players voted for this season's captains last spring and based on their votes, Feldman made the following announcement a few weeks before her players left for the summer: senior defender Corie Halasz, senior midfielder Shauna Kelleher and Cords would be the Terriers' tri-captains for the 2010 season.

"When I got named, I was just really happy and proud and thankful to my teammates," Cords said. "I worked really hard because I wanted to be able to contribute a lot this year. I'm glad my teammates respected me enough to vote for me for captain."

For Feldman, her players' decision to vote for Cords to serve as one of the squad's tri-captains was an excellent one. Cords possesses many of the qualities a captain should have, Feldman said.

"She's a natural leader," Feldman said. "She's a model on how she goes about her own business in preparation and how she competes. She's mature. You can't give that junior captainship to someone who doesn't have the maturity to handle it, and Lina has the maturity to handle it &- both on and off the field."

Cords' teammates agree.

"She's the most positive captain ever," said junior goalkeeper Alice Binns. "She's always working, and she's everywhere on the field. She's great to have as a captain."

Cords anchors a defense burdened with the task of replacing two standout defenders in graduates Casey Brown and Mara Osher, players who were both selected in this year's Women's Professional Soccer league draft.

Along with Cords, the BU backline features Halasz, sophomore Jessica Morrow and an outside right back rotation of senior Lily Albin, freshman Erin Mullen and junior Katherine Donnelly. Through eight contests, the group has allowed 10 goals, despite not having much experience playing together as a defensive unit.

"We've definitely done really well, even though we all haven't played with each other for a long period of time," Cords said. "We've done a good job in keeping the backline strong and staying connected."

Feldman has high praise for Cords' leadership abilities on the pitch, which Cords attributes to her "big voice because as a back you kind of have to [communicate]."

"She's taken a lot of leadership in the back," Feldman said. "She's taken it personally. She wants to be sure that our backline is as good and as stingy as backlines in the past. We didn't let up a lot of goals the last few years and it's personal to her that that way carries on."

Cords has lofty expectations for the Terriers this season &- herself included.

"For the conference, I hope we get another four-peat and repeat as America East champs," Cords said. "Hopefully for myself, I just play as well as I can and continue to be a leader."