Adams overcomes life-threatening injury to return to the field, sign with college
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Oglethorpe County keeper Anna Adams looks for a teammate during a soccer game this season. She was sidelined for a year after being injured in a game in 2023, but returned this season. (Submitted Photo) -
Anna Adams signs her letter of intent to play soccer at Truett McConnell next year as brother John, and parents Mandy and Brandon Adams, look on at OCHS last week. Anna plays goalkeeper for the soccer team. (Torin Smith/The Oglethorpe Echo)
Doctors were unsure if Anna Adams would step on a soccer field again after she suffered a kidney laceration in March 2023.
The injury from a collision in a soccer game sent her to a hospital’s intensive care unit.
“From a parent’s point of view, we spent two weeks in the ICU, and you lay there, and you cry,” said Brandon, Adams’ father. “There were times when I felt like God or somebody told me, ‘I got this. Stop worrying so much.’”
Her prolonged recovery, which included weeks of hospitalization and multiple medical procedures, culminated with her official college signing ceremony on May 1. Oglethorpe County’s senior goalkeeper signed with Truett McConnell at the OCHS cafeteria.
“Soccer is my outlet,” Anna said. “It’s how I learn, how I vent, and how I make friendships. As soon as I got the injury, the doctor asked, ‘Are you going to play soccer again?’ and I said, ‘Yeah.’ ’’
She suffered the injury during a college showcase at the University of North Georgia, after a traumatic blow to her midsection from an oncoming opponent.
“This girl started sprinting at me, and I said to myself, ‘Oh, she’s going to stop. I have the ball, I have it secured — everything is going to be OK.’ And she just kept running and she hit me right in the side,” Anna said.
She was rushed to a nearby hospital after showing immediate symptoms of an internal injury, including vomiting. Following tests, it was discovered that her kidney had been severed from her ureter, creating a leak in her abdomen.
Due to leakage, Adams had two drains installed to relieve excess waste building up in her abdomen. These drains had to be replaced “multiple times,” her father said.
“I had (the drains) for five months, and I got infection after infection,” she said.
Despite the infections, Adams admitted that the drains were effective in the long run. Sidelined a full year due to her injury, she made her return to soccer in March.
OCHS girls soccer coach Erich Forschler paid witness to Anna’s commitment.
“Anna is a hard worker, a passionate student-athlete, and all of those qualities are a testament to her parents and her family,” he said. “Any school would be lucky to have her.”
“Stubborn” and “head-headed" were just a couple of the words used by Adams’ father to describe his daughter’s journey to her official collegiate commitment. It was Adams’ attitude that played a role in her recruitment to Truett McConnell.
“Just having her on campus and hearing her story, hearing her recovery and just how dedicated she is to getting back on the field — it goes a long way,” said Jonathan Britt, the head assistant women’s coach at Truett McConnell.
Anna Adams poses with Truett McConnell's head assistant women's soccer coach Jonathan Britt. Truett McConnell competes in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. (Torin Smith/The Oglethorpe Echo)
For Adams and her family, upon visiting the university in Cleveland, Georgia, it was a matter of when she could commit, not if.
“We went up there, and it was a beautiful campus, and it was amazing,” Anna said.