Preparing for his game against Westwood was like any other Friday night for junior Preston Stone. Starting the game as normal, until in an attempt to get an interception in the first Quarter, Stone landed on left leg, falling onto the turf. Looking at his leg snapped in half, Stone couldn’t see a future for his athletic career .

Stone said he was looking forward to the game the whole day, being able to get out of school early to go to the stadium and do walkthroughs was not just a simple routine, but something Stone said he loved. However, Stone maintains a positive sense of humor about the injury. 

“We were stretching, and Calvin was stretching me out,” Stone said. “Clearly he didn’t do it well enough.”

Running backwards toward the end zone, Stone attempted to deflect the opposing team’s pass to get the interception. 

“When I was going up to jump, I planted my foot and it got stuck in the turf,” Stone said. “When I couldn’t get off the ground, I was a little confused, I looked down at my leg and I picked my leg up, and my foot is still on the ground, I knew it was broken.”

Stone looked up at cornerback Zyaryen Hall, noticing his hands on his head in disbelief. Stone said that his teammates and coaches were overwhelmed and concerned by his injury that evening.

“I got surgery the next morning after the game,” Stone said. “It was a pretty clean break, so most of it was pretty smooth considering the severity of the injury.”

Post surgery Stone says his pain was at a high, but Athletic Coordinator Scott Hermes continued to leave a lasting impression on his players, showing the same dedication off the field as he does on the field. 

“Seeing Hermes in the hospital after surgery showed me how much he cared,” Stone said. “ This was really important to me because he was a major part of my development as an athlete, especially for football.”

Stone has one main rod going down his shin bone, along with two screws at the bottom of his leg by his ankle and one more screw at the top right below his knee. Recovery from such a major surgery required Stone to commit to physical therapy in order to walk again.

“Three weeks after surgery I was able to start putting more weight on it when I walked, then slowly adjusting to try and walk normally,” Stone said. “A lot of physical therapy and going to doctors helped me get back soon, so around a month after surgery, with a big limp—I could walk without crutches.”

At first Stone could feel the rod in his leg when it was cold outside, but more recently he’s been struggling with one of the screws in his knees. It pulls on his hamstring tendon causing him muscle pain while doing low intensity exercises until he warms up. 

“I felt pain for a while with any generic movement especially while I was running,” Stone said. “Since baseball season started, I’ve felt much better and have close to no complications.”

Since surgery, Stone has to be conscious of his leg on the field. He takes precautions to protect it since he’s still experiencing some pain. 

“I wear the leg guard to protect the rod on my shin,” Stone said. “I still have a big bump on my legs from it, so without my leg guard even just touching it, it feels kind of tender.”

One main concern is reinjury. Stone said that he constantly thinks about getting slid into or even being walked at bat by getting hit on his leg.

“Sometimes on the field I get nervous of hurting it again, each time I hit I think about it,” Stone said. “ Even if it’s a small chance I get hit by a pitch, reinjury could mean everything, especially since I plan to get surgery again after baseball season ends.” 

Despite these challenges, Stone is now healed just in time for the baseball season. With being away from all sports, Stone said he is more eager to get out onto the field again. 

“Missing football has made coming back for baseball so much more rewarding,” Stone said. “I’m super excited to succeed this season”