After two years of injury, Angeli is back with a vengeance

By Jackson Morgus

For two years, Jordan Angeli could only watch the Santa Clara Broncos women's soccer team she had played on for three years. Angeli took multiple medical redshirt years in order to get back on the field for her senior year following multiple ACL tears that sidelined her for the 2007 and 2008.

Finally, in her sixth year on campus at Santa Clara, Angeli is getting to play that senior season, and she has lofty expectations for it.

"I wanted to win WCC. That was one of my goals for the team," she said. "I would love to make it back to the Final Four."

This year's team is in an outstanding position to meet those expectations.

The squad that Angeli likens to the 2005 Final Four team she played on before her injury has a chance to take the WCC championship if they can get wins at home against Portland Sunday and at Gonzaga the following Saturday.

The Lakewood, Colorado native said that the team's toughness and work ethic, in addition to the talent, reminds her of the successful teams that she played for early in her Santa Clara career.

Those qualities have been pivotal in the eight games the Broncos have won by one goal this year.

Angeli, for her part, has been a large part of the team's success this season. She leads the team with six goals and three assists, having registered an impressive 41 shots in just 18 games. Her impressive stats show that the time off did not slow her down, but rather allowed her to grow as a player.

"I think for sure I progressed as a player. I watched a lot of soccer. I was in a transition period when I got hurt," Angeli said, referring to her transition to forward as a sophomore.

That isn't to say that this is an unforeseen breakout year for Angeli.

She enjoyed quite a bit of success prior to her injury. In 2006, her junior season, Angeli earned an All-WCC honorable mention and was able to represent the United States in the FIFA Under-20 World Championships.

The year before, she racked up 12 goals and five assists, including six game-winning goals as a sophomore forward.

That success was put on hold following the injury to her knee, but Angeli knew that despite the injury, she wasn't done at Santa Clara.

Thankfully for the Broncos, her high level of commitment on the field and a driving love for the game led Angeli to get back on the field, no matter how long it took.

"I didn't want my knee to get the best of me, which is just me being competitive," she said. "I knew it was going to be a really hard journey, but I can't thank enough the people who supported me."

Now that she is back on the field, she has a clear impact, both as the only remaining tie to Santa Clara's last Final Four team, and as one of the most talented players in the conference.

Angeli says that she hopes her impact can go beyond this year though.

"I am loud and I say what I feel, but I want what's best for everyone and I care so much about the players I play with," said Angeli. "I hope that when I leave I can pass on a little bit of that passion I have and leave my mark on them in a positive way."

The ending to Angeli's Santa Clara career is still to be determined, but in six years, she has certainly had a profound impact on and off the field.

Angeli and Santa Clara face No. 2 Portland on Sunday, Nov. 1 at 2 p.m. at Buck Shaw Stadium.

Contact Jackson Morgus at jmorgus@scu.edu or (408) 551-1918.