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It's Happening: After Suffering Serious Neck Injury, Ashton Miller Physically Recovers; Still Considering Whether She'll Return to the Game

By Julie Perine on November 01, 2015 via Connect-Bridgeport.com

About 12 years ago, my four-year-old spent lots of time on the neighbors’ trampoline. He liked to jump, but he also liked pretty little Ashton Miller who often came to visit her cousin Hannah McCall who lives on our street.
 
Time bounces on quickly.
 
This year, I found myself following Ashton’s moves on the high school soccer field. Very unfortunately, Ashton’s sophomore soccer career came to an abrupt stop when she was seriously injured at one of the team’s early-season matches. It was Aug. 25 during the Lady Indians’ away contest with the Liberty High School Lady Mountaineers when she collided with the LHS goalie.
 
“We were up 7-3 at the time and a ball was sent through. Ashton was sprinting toward the goal. She got to the ball first and pushed passed the keeper,” said BHS Girls Soccer Coach John Reese. “The two collided and Ashton fell over top of her, flipped in the air and landed on her head.”
 
The jar of being hit was bad enough, but flipping over and landing on her head added to the blow, Reese said. But even after that severe impact, Ashton got up and walked.
“She was wobbling a little bit and (Assistant Coach) Melissa (Miller) called her over, got her on the sidelines and sat her down,” said Reese, adding that he was busy yelling at the officials for not calling a foul on the play.
 
Ashton’s mom, Melissa McCall Miller, said Ashton – who lost consciousness and was unable to move her neck - was taken by ambulance to United Hospital Center, where she was diagnosed with a concussion and a spinal injury. Due to the severity of that injury, she was immediately transported by ambulance to Ruby Memorial Hospital, where she was admitted to PICU and remained there for four days.
 
“They diagnosed her with C1 and C2 subulaxation,” McCall Miller said. “They immediately put her in traction and informed us that if that did not work they would have to do surgery as soon as possible.”
 
Giving total thanks to God, McCall Miller said that after 12 hours, Ashton’s C1 and C2 vertebrae were realigned.
 
“However, they had to put her in a neck brace at once to keep things stabilized and we were told that she would have to continue to wear a neck brace for at least six weeks,” she said.
 
Ashton attended school, caught up on her studies and cheered on her fellow Lady Indians while sporting the neck brace. Still, she always seemed to have a smile on her face. After five weeks in the brace with several restrictions, she began physical therapy for another five weeks. On Oct. 15, she was released from medical care with no restrictions.
 
“We were so very thankful considering that we were told that her recovery could take up to a year – and that there was concern of her C1 and C2 vertebrae dislocating again,” her mom said. “..Our immediate concern was that she would not recover 100 percent considering that she was having difficulty with the use of her right arm and movement in her neck.”
 
There is no guarantee that Ashton won’t have complications down the road, but her parents are very grateful, considering that the injury could have caused even more serious complications.
 
Less than two months after suffering an injury that nearly left her paralyzed, Ashton approached Reese and asked if she could dress for post-season play. Though he had certainly missed her, he didn’t think that was such a good idea. He knew she was scared and wanted her to regain her strength before returning to the team.
 
“Losing a forward like Ashton hurt us. She’s so fast,” Reese said. “Plus, she’s just such a great kid. She’s always positive and always smiling. She’s a perfect teammate. She works hard. You want people around who makes everyone smile.”
 
As a freshman, Ashton was the JV soccer team’s second leading scorer and Reese then began experimenting where he could best utilize her talents on the varsity team. For the 2015 soccer season, she was starting JV and also seeing varsity playing time.
 
“She was attacking Liberty and looking to score when she got hurt,” Reese said.
 
Ashton said the night she was injured is a blur. The only thing she remembers is being in the ambulance on her way to Morgantown and arriving at the emergency room in great pain. She said knowing her family and best friend were with her – and that her teammates had been by her side at UHC – was calming in a time of chaos. When she first heard her diagnosis, she said she was an emotional wreck.
 
“The first 10 minutes, I was angry and upset,” she said. “I wondered why this had to happen to me – and in only the second game of my sophomore season.”
 
But she said then she turned her mind to the bigger picture.
 
“I then just remembered how good my God is,” she said. “I knew that His plan for me is greater than what I could ever imagine and that he was going to heal me and use me in a way that I didn’t know at the time. I had this peace over me that was calming – and made me not worry.”
 
She admits it has been tough to sit out this soccer season.
 
“There was a couple of games I couldn’t go to because I just couldn’t take not being able to play,” she said. “I then just thought about how my team was there for me and I needed to be there with them.”
 
Suffering many injuries during the season, the Lady Indians wound up with a 15-5 record and were defeated in the second round of sectional play. Once eliminated from post-season action, the girls continued to support the boys’ team who made it to regional finals. Ashton was right there, too. In fact, she served as my “assistant reporter” and sent me score updates.
 
She is undecided about her participation next season.
 
“I want to play soccer, more than anything,” she said. “But it just scares me – and I know that there is life outside of high school and I want to be able to have a healthy one.”
 
If she’s strong enough, she may play her senior year, she said.
 
“I don’t want to let my coach down though. So I’m still deciding.”
 
Ashton said her trust in God, her Young Life leaders and her friends, teammates and family members is what helped her recover.
 
“Really, just the community support – and having faith in His plan for me helped me recover emotionally,” she said. “If it wasn’t for my physical therapist, though, I probably wouldn’t have recovered faster than they said I would. I’m very thankful for everyone who stuck through my side through this.”  
 
Editor's Note: Pictured from top is the 2014 BHS Girls Soccer Team (Ashton Miller is front, third from left); Miller with friends and teammates Lacy Bryant and Kaitlin Smith at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh watching the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team play Costa Rica and Miller in the 2015 BHS Homecoming Parade representing the sophomore class as princess. 
 
Julie Perine can be reached at 304-848-7200, julie@connect-bridgeport.com or follow @JuliePerine on Twitter!
 
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