AU men's soccer coach Todd West knows bad injuries.
Almost three years ago he witnessed then-freshman Freddy Llerena's gruesome leg-snap after a tackle in a friendly against Major League Soccer team D.C. United.
Llerena was able to play again after the compound tibia fracture. But when freshman defender Philip Purdy lay motionless after a collision near midfield in Sunday's match at Georgetown in the D.C. College Cup, West was afraid the outcome could be worse.
"With Freddy's injury we were traumatized," he said, "but we never had the thought of losing him on the field."
Purdy was temporarily paralyzed from the neck down after falling in the 47th minute from a challenge by Hoya midfielder Daniel Grasso. Grasso's forearm appeared to strike the Purdy's upper body. A shoving match ensued around the fallen Purdy and West protested for a red card, although none was issued.
"It looked like a cheap shot to everyone else," junior midfielder Garth Juckem said. "We got it on video, and they said it looked pretty bad."
Once the scuffle was cleared, the severity of the injury was evident. Purdy was surrounded by West and trainers, and also by Georgetown public safety and eventually EMS. West's team huddled, arms on each other's shoulders, as Purdy's body didn't so much as make a twitch.
After 30 minutes, an ambulance came to take Purdy to Georgetown University Hospital, which is next to North Kehoe Field. He was released Tuesday night, although West said it's unknown when he'll return to the field.
"I think a lot of people in the stands didn't understand," West said. "It was a scary situation."
If that was a scary situation, it was a frustrating situation soccer-wise. The Eagles (0-1-1) are winless to start the season after struggling to find goals in the D.C. College Cup. They tied George Washington, 1-1, Friday and on Sunday lost to eventual cup winner Georgetown, 1-0.
But it's not as if they couldn't find scoring opportunities. The Eagles held the advantage in shots on goal in the two-match stretch, 20-5. They only permitted the Hoyas (2-0-0) a single shot, although it was enough for the game-winner.
With AU's offensive execution always hitting a dead end, Juckem created the only AU goal by himself in the 82nd minute of AU's 1-1 tie with George Washington (1-1-0) Friday. With the ball 20 yards out at the corner of the box, he hesitated, then cannoned a shot through the hands of the GW goalkeeper.
It was Juckem who took nine of AU's shots on goal over the weekend. It will take more offensiveness awareness to balance the attack.
"It's just having a nose for the ball," Juckem said. "Diving for it, just getting your pinkie toe on it, anything on the ball to just get it in."
While Juckem took on much of the burden last weekend, West is hoping this soon won't be the case.
Junior midfielder Sal Caccavale, who didn't play Sunday due a minor concussion, will return for the next match.
Senior midfielder Gordon Templeman and junior midfielder Nigel White injected much-needed intensity when they started the second half Sunday, but are also trying to regain their form after injuries.
Once everyone can finally be banded together, West hopes he can put his best team on the field. He said he doesn't think goal scoring will be a problem for that team. The groundwork is already set.
"Creating chances is the toughest," he said. "Now we have to finish."
Also factoring into AU's best rotation are the team's freshman, five of whom started the first two games. It will be one man short for the time being, with Purdy in the minds of his teammates, but not on the field with them.
"It's something to think about and keep in the back of your mind," Juckem said. "You take soccer for granted, and the next thing you know, something like that happens. It's something to drive us, motivate us"
