On opening day, standing on the pitcher's mound was a hero being honored.
“I grew up in this town," said West Point sports medicine director Rachel Leahy. "I've been to the stadium a ton of times. Growing up, my brother played baseball here, so it's really cool to be able to come back here where I grew up and be honored in that way.”
Leahy got to throw the first pitch for the Hudson Valley Renegades' first game, the team honoring her for her life-saving efforts in January. On Jan. 5, while the Army men’s hockey team played Sacred Heart, Leahy responded when forward Eric Huss’ neck was inadvertently cut by the skate of an opponent.
“I just ran over, I start applying direct pressure to it and we just got right off the ice and kind of started that, got everybody together, the EMS crew and the doctor and the other team athletic trainer," Leahy said. "And we just started working to get him prepared to travel, get him to the emergency room so he could undergo surgery.”
Eric says he might not be here today if it wasn’t for Rachel’s quick actions.
“She means everything," he said. "I mean, she definitely saved my life, without a doubt in my mind. I mean, from all everything, everyone, all the doctors have told me, like, without a doubt, she saved my life."
The accident happened just four days after Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest during a game, with trainers credited with saving his life as he lay unconscious on the field. The two events put a spotlight on the quick-thinking, and sometimes life-saving efforts that athletic trainers perform.
“It’s not every day that that's what I have to react to," Leahy said. "But I'm pretty prepared that when there starts to be some commotion on the bench or somebody else, a trainer, says my name, like I'm just going to go. And then when I saw how severe the injury was that day, I didn't have to think twice about it.”
Eric is ready to get back out on the ice.
“It's got like everything, it's got hitting, skill, speed, it's just kind of flows," he said. "And for me, it's just it's like a great way to get away from everything. You step on the ice, you’re not in school, you don't think about anything. You just think about the game and it’s something beautiful about it.”
Rachel can’t wait to see that. There's a bond between the two forever linked through a different kind of miracle on the ice.
“I was, like, in tears," she said. "I've got a lot of respect for Eric. I love him, I'm really close now, so it's awesome to see him thank me like that. And, you know, it's a cool bond that we have now.”