Author: Emily Bunnell ![]() Concussions have been my most frequent injury in my athletic career. Concussions are an injury that affects everyone uniquely, and the recovery can be unpredictable. Thankfully, I have grown up in an era of greater understanding and awareness for concussions. Head injuries are no joke. As much as I have advocated “I’m fine” after a knock to the head, I am grateful for my athletic trainers and coaches for knowing better than to let me continue to compete. That’s not to say I haven’t always told the truth or found loopholes in the system, but as I have matured I have come to understand that the game is not as important as having a functioning head on my shoulders. My first experience with head trauma came at age seven when I was in gymnastics. Young Bunnell decided it’d be a good idea to try a new skill on the balance beam, a skill I had yet to master on the floor. Naturally, I landed straight on my head and needed a couple stitches. This was in 2005 and my concussion testing in the emergency room involved attempting to complete an iSpy book. I completed it, so it was determined I didn’t have a concussion. I assume iSpy books have since been removed from concussion protocol. Around that same time, I was also playing club soccer. My club soccer team Bangu Tsunami (which eventually became part of Minnesota Thunder Academy) decided to provide headgear for all youth players in their programs. This decision taken by a club – protecting youth soccer players from head injuries – was so far ahead of its time. I wore mine all the time and still do. This was a formative moment in my soccer career that allowed me to be fearless in the air with my head. And it was at the very beginning of a shift in youth sports to protect young athletes against head injuries. Although it wasn’t perfect, and protocols were not very sophisticated, the information and awareness surrounding athletes and head injuries was beginning to make its way forward. Physical Play, Intense Impacts Since then, I have had many head bumps, minor concussions, and even a broken nose or two while playing. With my style of play, even while wearing headgear, knocks to the head are bound to happen. However, from my experience and familiarity with head trauma from a young age, it took me a little too long to take the health of my brain seriously. I had always bounced back pretty quickly and each head injury had been far enough apart from one another that I wasn't experiencing any long term issues. I made it through most of my college career with the same trajectory – bump here and there – when I finally experienced my first real, substantial head injury. Two minutes into a game at Utah Tech while playing for Seattle U, my teammate and I collided heads while going up for a defensive clearance. I actually remember quite a bit from that moment. I knew I got hit and fell down, and then my teammate yelled “there’s blood!” My first thought was “Jeez, I must’ve got her good” until I regained some focus in my eyes. My next thought was “Oh shit, it’s my blood. I broke my nose. Will I need a nose job?” I have no idea why that was the first thing to go through my head – it’s a little funny looking back. But then my athletic trainer got to me, I stood up, and started walking the wrong direction. Once she got me off the field, all I wanted was some cotton stuck up my nose and to get back on the field. Thankfully, instead, my athletic trainer got me to lay down and started to clean everything up andI realized I couldn’t see. It wasn’t my nose, it was my eye. Realizing I could not see out of my right eye, I accepted that maybe I wasn’t going back in the game. I was forced to take this concussion seriously. It helped that my orbital bone was fractured and I wouldn’t be able to play while the bone healed for the next 8-12 weeks. I would follow normal concussion protocol as provided by my athletic trainer but hold off full contact play until I was cleared by the ENT specialist. I was also in physical therapy to regain movement in my eye and focus in my vision. I was doing all the right things to get back on the field right after winter break. One month and six days after the initial head injury, I woke up on a Monday morning to someone yelling my name at me. As I lay on the floor of my apartment, a strange feeling of euphoria rushed over me. I was confused, but I was just so happy to be here, wherever that was. When I started to come to, I was helped onto a gurney. I learned the man was an EMT, and I was told I had a seizure while I was waking up. My roommate heard me fall out of bed and she came to check if I was okay. She found me having a grand mal seizure. Gabe is a literal angel, her response to my medical emergency was incredible. So I found myself back in the hospital, more imaging, more testing, more doctors. In December 2021, I was diagnosed with epilepsy. I was confused, who gets diagnosed with epilepsy at age 22? The CT scan showed an abnormal area of gray matter on the left side of my brain, but I had all my recent head trauma on my right side. Although the head trauma did not cause the epilepsy, it may have triggered a form of epilepsy I was born with. It was a lot of information to learn all at once, especially still being concussed, broken, and in my “seizure hangover” stage. I didn’t know what all this meant for me. What would playing with epilepsy be like? Could I still head the ball? What if I had another? It was a really hard and confusing time for me. I experimented with a couple different medications and dosages for several weeks before finding one that worked for me. Four months later, I was able to begin playing again. I would play my sixth, and final, season at Seattle U without a second thought. I was still wearing my headgear, but the events of the past year hadn’t fully sunk in. It took me almost two years to feel like my normal self again. Turning Point, Protocols In late September 2022, Miami Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa had returned shortly after one concussion before getting concussed again. I watched that hit, and the aftermath of his symptoms on national television. That was a turning point for me. Not my own personal pain or seizure or warnings from medical staff. It was watching a football player on TV. That could legitimately be me if I took another hit, or cut corners on a head injury recovery. I began to fully understand that there needs to be a balance. I can’t be reckless in the air, my headgear clearly can’t protect me from everything. But I also can’t play scared – which can be equally as dangerous. I needed to learn to see and pick the right moments to go in for aerial challenges. Either I go 100% fully believing I will win the ball or maybe that is not a moment to put myself at risk. It was trial and error learning from my concussions, and still is, but it was a learning curve that I know will benefit me in the long run on and off the field. Thankfully, things finally seemed under control. My medication seemed to be working and I had been seizure free since that incident. As I prepared for my transition to professional soccer, I felt I was ready. But moving abroad for my first professional playing opportunity also presented a unique set of challenges. As many players had warned me, concussion protocol for women’s professional soccer abroad is not always held to the same standard as it is in America. Of course, this is varied among teams, medical staff, etc. for each team, but generally this is what I was prepared for. What I was not prepared for was being told I did not have epilepsy by a medical professional during my initial physical, despite bringing all my medical paperwork, prescriptions, and doctors notes. I had to fight tooth and nail for the medical professional to write me the prescription I needed, but I did finally get my medication. The club staff and my roommates were aware of my diagnosis. Because I believed it was important for people around me to know that, however unlikely, that I could possibly have a seizure. Thank goodness I let them know. March 17th, while out to dinner with a friend, I said “I kinda feel weird.” Next thing I remember is waking up in the ambulance. I had had my second seizure, this time in a foreign country. I was nervous, a lot of doubts flooded in my head while I sat in the gurney at the hospital. What will the recovery look like this time? Will I have similar mood swings? I was scared I wasn’t going to be “me” for awhile again. Due to the nature of my seizure, and the fact it was not in correlation with a concussion, I felt like myself again before leaving the hospital. My friend, Jaime, who was at dinner with me, was amazing. She caught me before I could injure myself, got help from other people in the restaurant, and called 112 (the 911 of Portugal). I had not experienced any recent head trauma, which was reassuring. But for whatever reason, I had an episode and needed time to recover once again. The aftermath of my seizure was much smoother this time around. I took 72 hours to return back to training. I saw a neurologist, who upped my medication dosage. I had some symptoms with the change in dosage, but I was able to adapt within a couple weeks. I feel very fortunate that I did not have the same process and effects as the first seizure. But, I still don’t know the cause of this one. It could have been lack of sleep, having traveled to Madeira a few days prior for a game, or it could have been stress. I recently had needed to take some time away from playing to rest due to a nagging patellar tendon and, as any athlete knows, when you are injured you are under increased stress. Eventually I may be able to pinpoint the cause, but for now it really doesn’t matter. I have taken steps to really prioritize my recovery. Along with my medication, I try to get 8-9 hours of sleep a night. My nutrition has become a huge part of my daily routine – tracking my macros for optimal performance and recovery. I started working on reducing stress with journaling (which I have done off and on for the majority of my life) as well as using mental imagery. And the big two, since my seizure I have completely cut out alcohol consumption (which was not hard) and reduced my daily caffeine intake to ~90mg or less a day, roughly equivalent to a cup of coffee daily (this one was way more difficult). My job depends on my body. Taking better care of myself, especially as I enter my mid-20s, has already had a positive impact on my performance and my overall health. For anyone out there who comes across a friend or teammate who has epilepsy, here are a few helpful tips in the case someone has a seizure:
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Author: Emily Bunnell All I have ever wanted to do since I was four years old was play soccer. When adults would ask me “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I responded, like many other young kids, “I want to play professional soccer!” Well, play soccer and drive an ice cream truck around my small town. Since August 1, 2023 I can officially say one of my dreams came true; I am a professional soccer player! My name is Emily Bunnell, I am 25 years old playing professional soccer in Portugal. I signed a one-year contract with Clube de Albergaria in first division Portugal. Born and raised in Cottage Grove, Minnesota, I grew up playing for Bangu Tsunami which would eventually turn into Minnesota Thunder Academy. I also attended and played for East Ridge High School. I committed to play DI soccer at Baylor University in my sophomore year, before I even had my driver’s license, and ended up playing there for two seasons. The next season I played at University of Minnesota, and then three more seasons at Seattle University (yes, I played six collegiate seasons but that story is for another day). In July 2023, I flew to Portugal for a two-week trial with Clube de Albergaria. After my trial period, I was asked to sign for the 2023-24 season. I was elated, I could finally call myself a professional soccer player! This season, like any other, has had its fair share of highs and lows, but I am so grateful to have had my rookie season here with Clube de Albergaria in Portugal. My teammates here are awesome, and I have a community of friends playing professional sports all over the world to help me navigate it all. Before arriving in Portugal, I had an idea of what life was like for a female professional soccer player, but as usual, there was no way I could be prepared for all I would experience. You may wonder, “What life is like for a young soccer player playing professionally overseas?” There is some routine, but always a surprise or two in my daily life. Liga BPI season runs from September through May consisting of 22 match days along with several Cup games throughout the season. The most consistent parts of my week are my training and gym sessions. Today, Wednesday March 27, I had a pretty structured day. So a day in the life of a professional female soccer player can look like this: 8:30am- Wake up and begin my day with coffee and water before leaving for the gym 9:00am- Begin weight session, today I did a bike workout and upper body focused lift 11:00am- Leave the gym and head home for breakfast. I decided to stop on the way home at the local farmers market to restock on fruits and vegetables for the week. 2:00pm- Ate lunch and met up with a teammate to go volunteer at a local elementary school. The club has done a campaign around gender equality in sport. We have been going to various schools with information on gender equality in sport and then get to play with them for the afternoon. 4:30pm- Returned home from the school. I had a meeting with the club’s treasurer to take care of some tax documents, probably the most normal (and boring) part of my day. 5:00pm- Took some time for myself at the local cafe. I had my normal coffee order, an abatanado, which is similar to an americano. Here I work on my Portuguese, read, journal, and started writing this blog post! 7:30pm- Meet at the club center, called the Sede, to take the vans to training. Typically I will get to the Sede early to bike and do other activation exercises. Today, I will be with the athletic trainer during training due to a nagging case of tendonitis. We do not play this upcoming weekend, so it is a good week to get in some extra recovery! Training is from 8pm-10pm 11:00pm- Arrive home from training. I will shower, eat, and try to be in bed as quickly as possible. I take my sleep recovery very seriously, so most nights I will be asleep by midnight. And that is a day in the life of a professional female soccer player! Not everyday looks the same, like with any job. Some days I am able to make a day trip to the beach while other days I am so tired I need a nap before training. And trust me, being a female soccer player is not always glamorous. There have been hardships in my first year, but I get to play the game I love. My teammates have been a light in this journey, they make the hard day easier and the good days filled with memories I’ll cherish forever.
Author: Matt Privratsky
After a long break to let the dust settle on the fall soccer season, let’s jump back into the DI women’s soccer beats in Minnesota. The University of Minnesota Gopher Soccer team finished the 2023 season 7-6-4 overall and 3-5-2 in Big Ten play – good for 10th place. They finished inside the top 100 in terms of RPI (83, vs 102 and 127 the years before) for the first time in the Erin Chastain era. And, per usual, they had some impressive performances (road draws against Georgia and Indiana) that gave glimpses of hope to cling to. As spring practices kick off in 2024, let’s take a closer look at things to take away from last fall and what to track as teams kickoff the new year.
What they did well in 2023 The Gopher Soccer staff will tell you that they’ve been leveling up the complexity of their style of play each year in the Erin Chastain era. Opposing coaches (often unprompted) regularly told me the same thing during my prep calls for home Gopher broadcasts. And the numbers do seem to back up those claims. Passing, possession, and expected goals (xG, roughly represents the quality of chances being created) all had a noticeable jump in 2023 compared to the teams’ first two years. By the eye test, I’d say last fall was a mixture of progress and, in part due to rightfully increased expectations, some disappointment. If you go back and listen to the sheer excitement and optimism from training camp interviews about the attacking potential of this group, it was palpable. Now, they were still very stout defensively even with a bit more backline rotation than you might typically see. Elizabeth Overberg, Abi Frandsen, and impact grad transfer Jordy Rothwell were stallwards at three spots while Freshman Taylor Heimerl saw some time, Jelena Zbijlic had good stints, and Fiona Skwierofski eventually landed at left back. Overall, what seems clear from Head Coach Erin Chastain is that she is building for the long term. She is not willing to overly leverage her stout defense into a park the bus strategy. Nor is she willing to take a struggle for scoring as a signal that the team should just play direct and chuck more chances at the goal blindly. She envisions a team that can be stout defensively (like we’ve already seen) *and* create and convert scoring chances at a high level. For Chastain, who has diligently waited for the opportunity to lead her hometown Alma mater Gopher Soccer program, that ambition makes sense. This is the gig she was waiting for. This is the gig she wants. It’s not shocking that she’s aiming high. Something to Reflect On: Pecking Order Long time Minnesota basketball legend Flip Saunders used to say that chemistry is about establishing a pecking order that is fair and understood and acceded to — even if not everybody totally accepts it. This (heavily paraphrased) quote came to mind as I was digesting the 2023 season because Gopher players themselves mentioned, at times, that if the team was going to score, it might require individual players to step up and make that play (rather than a carefully crafted, collective team strategy that magically unlocks a goal through sheer teamwork etc).
As I covered above, this team did seem to take a step forward when it came to passing, possession, and overall chance creation. It might be that, in order for the Gophers to take the next step in terms of converting those chances into goals as well, there has to be a slightly clearer pecking order within the roster itself. For some comparison, let’s go all the way back in 2018. The Gophers were having a solid all around season. They were winning some games you might expect them to lose. They were losing some games you’d expect them to win. But with a few games left in Big Ten Conference play, they were at risk of a repeat of 2017: when Minnesota got caught on the wrong side of the bubble and missed out on the NCAA Tournament altogether. Then, something clicked. With all credit to the many veteran leaders who carried that team (Heslin, Fiedler and many others), the real swing was that April Bockin became, quite frankly, inevitable. She would rip a steal on the press and score at will. She would work the end line in combination with her teammates and slip passes across the goal line for easy scoring opportunities for her teammates. She made the Gophers borderline impossible to play against. That kind of individual leap isn’t fair to expect from every single player. It’s not even fair to expect from any given roster. But the *lack* of that leap is what can cause a team to stall into the kind of long scoring draughts we’ve seen throughout my time covering the Gophers since 2016. So his fall, when a game slogs down, when chances aren’t coming, when chances aren’t getting converted: will someone step up, change the flow of the game, and put themselves at the top of the pecking order? That’s what I’ll be watching for. What are some resolutions for 2024 It’s a bit reductive to continue to use this as a top line goal during the transfer portal era, but in 2024 the Gophers likely need to (wait for it) hit it out of the park when it comes to the portal. They’re on their way, with impact attacker Katie Krohn coming in from Buffalo following an incredibly productive start to her college career.
Krohn fits one of two models Chastain and the Gopher staff have named in terms of their portal targets: first, players with great potential who are also young enough that they can integrate into the growth of the program long term (see: Sophia Romine), second, players who are so high level and fit so well that a one year stint is worth the investment (Cesarone, Rothwell, Nemec, etc). Early word is that Minnesota has still been talking to some impact players as spring practices kick off. At minimum, a center back and/or outside back and true central/front line striker could still be really useful. Otherwise, don’t be surprised if they bringing someone from a seemingly “settled position” simply because the potential is there and current “incumbent” players could shift elsewhere. Aside from possible outside help, there are some serious heavy hitters on the current roster who might get more of a shot to claim a core rotation spot. Does Taylor Heimerl move up the field to a front line spot? Does highly touted attacker Caroline Birdsell show so well that she almost immediately becomes a mainstay? Does a player like Kate Childers, with multiple holding midfielders now exited through the portal, continue to develop so well that she claims a solo holding midfield role and pushes more midfield minutes up the field? Random side note on holding midfield in particular: has there ever been a two year stint more drunk on competent to good holding midfielders? In just two-ish seasons, Kate Childers, Amelia Brown, Lauren Donovan, and Sophia Barjesteh all show decently well to incredibly well and all of them are within a year or so of each other. Let’s just say I’m not shocked to see outgoing transfers because that is a ton of capable talent and virtually all of them — in a U of MN context — were likely best as a 6/holding mid. People might see outgoing transfers as a “bad thing”, but I sometimes view it as a quirk of multiple players all hitting well (maybe even above their expected value) and a natural log jam occurring. It doesn’t mean Minnesota couldn’t have kept multiple and played a double 6 formation. But the other players now get a chance to play more minutes elsewhere and Kate Childers has such an absurdly high ceiling that I’m not going to complain if this means she gets to have the chance to be an even more integral part of the system. Seriously, if you’re not on the Childers bandwagon yet you might not be able to find a seat come fall 2024. Ok, sorry, back to the team as a whole. New roles for folks like Birdsell, Krohn, Heimerl and others, along with returning attackers like Boman, Romine and so many others might just settle my previously mentioned pecking order issue on their own. Maybe that group clicks. Maybe Khyah Harper has a jump in her finishing in her final season. In short, maybe that group just sort of reaches its potential overall and the Gophers just get pretty dangerous. In that instance, one small piece I’d like to see is a more settled set piece strategy. The team has necessarily rotated some of the set piece taking responsibilities (in an effort to find the right play types and service that works best). But a fully realized version of this team might be one where those roles are a little more than penciled in. And it doesn’t mean it can’t involve multiple players. By my eye, Paige Kalal showed as well as anyone on both corner kick service and even goal scoring opportunities from those short/mid length free kicks in front of goal. Does she cement her role on corners? Do Boman and Romine (and others) have some stake on the shot-taking free kick opportunities? And, do the Gophers find the long distance service weapon for those free kicks near midfield like they’ve had with Delaney Stekr, Gabbie Cesarone, and others the last few years? The kick taking duties rotated as much last fall as I can remember covering this year. It will be interesting to see if someone truly claims one or more of those set piece roles. Way-Too-Early Rotation Guesses Caveat 1: I don’t have a strong sense of which young/existing players have made the most internal improvement since the fall season or who might make the most of an opportunity this spring now that certain veterans have left space in the rotation (via graduation or transfer). So these guesses will be far too heavily weighted on what I saw last fall vs what might be possible this fall. Caveat 2: It is very likely that at least one, if not multiple, mid to high level transfers join this squad before fall. I’ll note where those additions may be most logical, but things can always shift. In goal, it seems all but certain that Cam Xu (transfer from Montana) will have the chance to own the starting spot. She has tons of college experience (INSERT STATS) and I have a feeling she could really shine. On the backline, things could get weird! Elizabeth Overberg will return as a veteran center back. Theoretically both Jelena Zbiljic and Fiona Skwierawski could claim outside back spots (both had solid to good stretches last fall). Does rising sophomore Maddie Raymond compete for one of the spots? Do they keep rising sophomore Taylor Heimerl there (where she saw some minutes) or move her to a more natural attacking role? Assuming the team continues to use a four back, a transfer centerback may once again be on the team’s wish list and possibly an outside back (if a heavy hitter happens to be available). In the midfield, I’d personally love to see the team shift back to the 4-3-3 we’ve seen at times during Chastain’s era and previously. In that scenario, you could see Kate Childers claim a more singular holding mid role with Sophia Boman as one of the attackers in front of her. I might go nuts and throw Paige Kalal next to her and shift Sophia Romine to a “tip of the spear” central role in a three front. But if that ends up being a little too kooky expect Kalal, Romine, and Boman to all see time in the attacking mid roles, with Romine maybe most likely to shift to some winger responsibilities if that front line setup calls for it. If it’s a group of four again, I’d be fine moving Romine, Kalal, and Boman into to any of the left, central, right midfield spots just to see what clicks. Up top, expect incoming transfer Katie Krohn to play a significant role. Caroline Birdsell (returning from injury) will play a significant role. If it’s a 4-3-3, I wouldn’t complain about a three front with Krohn, Birdsell, and Romine running a high press where you have your Khyah Harper plus whoever of the young guns as a change of pace bench mob that lets Harper feature a bit once the opposing team is tired out a bit (still some untapped potential with her if it the circumstances can land right). Don’t be surprised if the front line is more of a two front, though. Particularly if they decide the best way to deploy their midfield talent is to get all of those four (Childers, Boman, Kalal, Romine) out there together. Again, these are very limited guess based far too heavily on last fall’s performances. Even if the team shows certain lineups and formations this spring, it might not signal an inevitable look this fall. The truth is, there was more rotation on the backline than you’d expect last fall. There was continued tweaking to the formation and front line. And the best way into Erin’s rotation continues to be to show well consistently in training AND on the field (once you get there). What are you interested in? Are there certain players you’d like to see interviewed? Certain topics you like me to dive into in more detail? I’m always very excited to hear your suggestions! You can email me directly ([email protected]), find me on social media (@MattPrivratsky), or message Equal Time directly on any of our platforms. Your questions and recommendations will always be confidential (do not be afraid to recommend we cover your kid/someone you’re close to! It’s usually really helpful to get those reminders!). You can even let us know what *kinds* of coverage you like most (gameday coverage, posting highlights, post game interviews, full shows, written pieces, What Do The Dads Think, etc). All of that information is super helpful when I have to decide how to spend time and resources (long away trips, new equipment, etc).
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