USWNT: Catching Up with Amy LePeilbet

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(October 3, 2013)- The U.S. Women's national soccer team has spent the past year regrouping as a squad after winning their third consecutive gold medal at the Olympics in 2012. For new coach Tom Sermanni it has been an opportunity to evaluate new talent that he looks to combine with his veteran players before they make the push for the Women's World Cup in 2015. With no major tournaments this year outside the Algarve Cup played earlier in the spring it has also been a perfect time for players looking to get back to full strength. Amy LePeilbet, a key defender for the U.S. team during their runner up finish at the World Cup in 2011 and part of the recent gold medal team has done exactly that this past year. 

LePeilbet who is 31 years old, earned her first cap with the senior national team in 2004 but didn't gain consistent minutes with the team until 2010 under former coach Pia Sundhage. Sundhage elevated her to a starter with the team on the back line and LePeilbet held that spot throughout 2011 and 2012. 

Although LePeilbet didn't miss many games during this two-year spell she wasn't exactly playing healthy as she battled consistent pain in her left knee. Arthroscopic surgery of the knee at the beginning of this year showed that she would need to have another ACL repair done to her left knee, after already undergoing an initial surgery in 2006. I caught up with LePeilbet this week who is now approximately eight months removed from surgery and has been rigorously rehabbing her knee, which also forced her to miss the inaugural season of the National Women's Soccer League.

For anyone who has ever undergone any major surgery perhaps the most difficult part is staying positive and focused during the lengthy rehab process. LePeilbet however has embraced her rehab and spoke excitedly about the progress she has made.

"I kind of knew what I was in for and just had the mindset to take it one day at a time and do my best each day that I was at PT and try to gain a little bit of strength with each session. I think it is a lot easier when you take it one day at a time because you just see the positives in that day. I know I got a little better today where as if I had looked at the full scope of the entire year it would be too overwhelming and very daunting."

For LePeilbet taking the opportunity to get her body back to full strength has been worth it even though it has meant sacrificing a year of playing soccer. Although she was quick to point out that playing through the pain the past couple years was also well worth it. 

"My knee had been in pretty bad shape for the last two and a half years so I have been playing with a lot of pain and I had a huge strength deficiency all these years. So I had been battling that and when I was out there it hurt and it was tough but it was definitely worth it. I wanted to see what I was capable of and I really wanted to make those teams. I couldn't have surgery if I wanted to make the World Cup team and if I wanted to make the Olympic team then surgery was not a possibility. Right now after eight months of strength training my left leg feels a lot better than it has the past couple of years because I have really been able to focus on it and not worry about playing. I have really been able to put in the time to get strong. My knee actually feels really good, it has responded so well that I feel pretty confident with each step as I move forward throughout this process."

LePeilbet has also finally reached the point in her rehab where she is starting to combine her PT sessions with actually playing soccer. Over the next few months she expects to increase her field time by playing with some club teams in order to better prepare her for joining her NWSL team the Chicago Red Stars. 

"I am doing a lot things a little more specific to soccer that will transfer for me out on the field. I also will start playing with a club team though my doctor wants me to wear a brace before I start playing so I am waiting for that to be made. I will slowly start doing those things but you can't get there without playing, you have to play and that's the fun part anyway. I am also conditioning and continuing to work on my strength and I will be doing all that over the course of the next few months."

LePeilbet also shared a few of her thoughts on the disappointment of losing to Japan at the 2011 Women's World Cup in Germany and how it motivated the team towards another gold medal in London.

"I guess the World Cup you could simply put it as heartbreaking, it was a really tough loss. But after that happened I think we were so motivated for the Olympics. We were all so dedicated that year until we went to the Olympics. I think everyone on that team really came together as a group, we had a common goal because we all hurt and we didn't want that to happen again. So when we won at the Olympics, just the fact that we came back from that loss the year before... for me personally since it was my first Olympics it was unreal. I don't even know how to put it into words how amazing it was to win gold."

Thanks to the accomplishments of the U.S. Women's national team over the past few years women's soccer is once again on the upswing. LePeilbet is excited to see the growth of the game and the success of another women's league.

"I think it is really exciting for our sport, I obviously love the sport and so to see other people falling in love with women's soccer is incredibly exciting. And to see how well NWSL did this year and it is what we all dreamed of. We all think that America should have a professional league, we have so many great players in this country. And now everyone has a place to play, that's what is all about."

While LePeilbet is solely focused on rehabbing her knee and hasn't looked very far into her future with the national team she did share her thoughts about the prospects of once again playing for the U.S.

"I just take it one day at a time, all I can do is my best each day. Every day I go out and train and get a little stronger, a little fitter, a little cleaner on the ball, those types of things. If I get an opportunity to go in with the national team again hopefully I have prepared, I feel like I am trying to prepare for that. I don't worry too much about it because if I give it my all I can't regret if I don't make that team. The national team should be the best of the best anyway so if I am not one of the top defenders in the nation then I shouldn't be on that team anyway. But if I can get there and be one of the top then I would be pretty happy."

Playing at the top level of any sport requires a lot of hard work and determination. LePeilbet has shown this past year that she is willing to continue to put in the time and effort to succeed at that elite level in women's soccer. Hopefully she will get another chance to play on the national team, she may be even better once healthy than she was in the past.

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