The first doctor said Pete Rowley would never play soccer again. Mere days had passed since Rowley had torn his left anterior cruciate ligament in a meaningless spring game, and now it looked as though one of the top Syracuse men’s soccer players would spend the rest of his life on the sideline.

After seeing three other doctors and hearing three other independent opinions giving him different timetables, Rowley set a goal for himself: reconstructive surgery and back to the field by October.

‘As soon as (the first doctor) said that, I couldn’t believe it,’ Rowley said. ‘I immediately wanted to see someone else because I needed to hear something else.’

Although virtually everybody bet against him, Rowley lived up to his promise.

Before the 2007 season began, Syracuse head coach Dean Foti said Rowley would miss the entire year. When the Orange (5-4-3, 2-4-0 Big East) travels to Oneonta, N.Y., today to take on Hartwick (3-4-3) at 7 p.m., Rowley will play in his third game of the year, adding a dangerous offensive threat to a unit that has scored just three goals in its last five matches.

‘Of all the guys we’ve had who’ve had ACL injuries, I don’t think I’ve seen someone come back this fast and actually be useful,’ Foti said. ‘It’s amazing how far along he is, and we’re willing to play him back into that form as we go along here.’

In his first two games, Rowley has been limited to a reserve role in the midfield – a far cry from the player who finished third on the team last season with six points. But if he could even come close to where he was before the injury, Rowley may be exactly what Syracuse needs as it enters the stretch run.

Coming off a successful sophomore season when he added two goals and two assists, Rowley entered spring practices ready to become a mainstay in the starting lineup.

But last April, in the last spring game, Rowley jumped over an opposing player – something he’d done hundreds of times before. This time, when he landed, he heard a loud pop and instantly crumpled to the ground in pain.

Right away, Rowley knew this wasn’t just a sprain.

‘It was the most horrifying sound I had ever heard,’ Rowley said. ‘It immediately sent chills through my body, and I was shocked for a little while. I still couldn’t believe what had just happened on such an innocent play.’

Somehow, Rowley managed to come back in less than six months. After the first doctor said he would never play again, the three other doctors gave differing opinions, though each suggested he have the surgery and begin rehab. So to return so quickly, Rowley spent his entire summer rehabbing in Syracuse. Insurance pays for rehab sessions three days per week. Because Rowley agreed to stay on campus, he was able to go to rehab twice a day, five days per week under the supervision of physical therapist Brad Pike and his staff.

All the work paid off, and Rowley missed only 10 games before playing 26 minutes against Rutgers on Oct. 7. The junior saw even more time and took his first shot Saturday against Cincinnati.

He still admits he doesn’t have full motion of his knee and has lost a little of his speed and quickness. In turn, he’s needed to rely more on his field instincts. He still wears a brace and is trying to put the injury out of his mind. Against the Bearcats, he was slide tackled, bending his knee backward and causing some pain, but he stayed in the game.

For the Orange, no doubt Rowley is a goal-scoring threat, but his size and strength are probably his most important attributes. At 6-foot-4, Rowley is tied with junior Karol Wasielewski for the tallest player on the team.

And he couldn’t have come back at a more important time. Against the Bearcats, two key Orange offensive players – Spencer Schomaker and Hansen Woodruff – came off the field with injuries. Perevegyencev, who scored Syracuse’s lone goal Saturday, also suffered from cramps throughout the match.

With so many key scorers out of the lineup, Rowley could add the depth Syracuse needs as it tries to reach the Big East tournament. The Orange has only five conference games left, and Syracuse needs every one.

‘It’s nice to get one back,’ Foti said. ‘At this time of the year, you’re usually talking in terms of guys not being able to play. So it’s nice to get one back.’

Published on October 16, 2007 at 12:00 pm