It's not uncommon for athletes to have hundreds – maybe even thousands – of dollars invested in playing the sport they love.

After all, there's equipment to buy and costs associated with playing for high school and travel ball teams.

And the costs really add up if there are medical bills associated with injuries.

Albion junior Megan LaCavera is almost an expert when it comes to the costs associated with surgery and rehabilitation of a knee injury.

The softball first baseman was hoping to receive a scholarship to play at the Division II level until her senior year at Armada High School. The warning signs occurred when her left knee buckled during an AAU basketball contest in the fall and tryouts for her high school team in the winter, but no damage was found and rest was needed.

It wasn't until a MRI after a game against Croswell-Lexington that it was found LaCavera had torn both the anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus. There was also a slight tear of the medial collateral ligament, as well.

LaCavera missed the final season of her prep softball career after surgery was performed to repair the ACL and meniscus, and claims she took it easy after it didn't feel right when she joined the Briton squad for its non-traditional practices during the fall semester of her first year.

January rolled around and it was time for the Britons to begin preparations for the 2013 season in the Dow Recreation & Wellness Center. LaCavera felt a pop during a drill in the first week of practice and the doctor told her surgery would be required to repair the meniscus.

She sought the opinion of another surgeon after the knee continued to not feel right after the fall practices her sophomore year. LaCavera was told there was a complete tear of the meniscus and the ACL was loose. The surgeon repaired the ACL and cut out the meniscus in December of 2013, meaning LaCavera would miss softball for a third season.

"I'm their million dollar baby, that's for sure," LaCavera says with a laugh when asked about the medical costs. "The medical bills have to be pretty equivalent (to the amount spent on tuition)."

Driven to accomplish the dream

LaCavera has played softball as long as she can remember. Her dad, Vince, was her coach in t-ball, she joined a travel ball team when she was 10 years old and college softball games were always on TV.

It may have taken three years – with multiple surgeries, countless hours of rehabilitation, and, yes, those medical bills – but nothing was going to keep LaCavera from achieving her dream of stepping on a softball field at the collegiate level.

She achieved that dream in March, playing in all of Albion's 10 spring break games in central Florida.

"I did softball all year long and the drive to be able to be able to say I accomplished the dream I wanted was the inner drive I had to keep pushing and to finally see the dirt and to play," LaCavera said. "The hours of practice and the pain of rehabilitation – the blood, sweat and tears – definitely was worth it.

"I told myself I had to get through day five," she added when talking about the anxiety of making it through the winter practices leading up to the 2015 season. "I was hesitant. Coach (Christina Finch) remembered the drill we were doing when the knee popped and we went easy. There was a sigh of relief when we realized the knee didn't pop after the shuffling drill. It finally held.

"The pain is different now – it's just rehab pain," she continued. "I'm still a little nervous, but it's been seven weeks since practice began so a little bit of trust is in that leg. I'm thankful to have made it to this point."

LaCavera's mom, Lynn, and sister made the trip to Florida to provide support, and the excitement to play her first innings of collegiate softball were understandable. After four games without a hit, LaCavera came through with five over the final six games and she drove in six runs.

In the team's first game in the northern climate, LaCavera slugged a grand slam to carry the Britons to a 8-6 victory over Lourdes (Ohio) University.

The Britons played six games decided by a run in Florida. The most difficult part of the experience, LaCavera said, was her desire to remember the correct play and keep perspective, especially when emotions were running high in tightly contested games.

"I needed to remember the little things that came so natural to me were still there and I would go through situations in my head," LaCavera said. "(In the past) it felt so natural when the ball came I would know where to go. There were a few times when I batted with runners on and I needed to remember that it's just a game and I didn't need to over swing."

LaCavera admits to wanting to achieve all-Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association status – or more – but with her career limited to just two seasons, she wants to appreciate every opportunity she gets to play.

Incorporating education into rehabilitation

The initial knee surgery forced LaCavera to explore her options for college, and Albion's superior science facilities and family atmosphere got her attention. Now an exercise science major, LaCavera says her medical history has made certain portions of the anatomy and exercise prescription classes easier.

"I have a soft spot in my heart – a little sympathy – for people with knee problems," LaCavera said. "The hours I've put in (rehabilitating my knee) has pushed me toward a career in physical therapy. I really think it's why I've grown a bond with the kinesiology department.

"When we went over the knee in anatomy or knee exercises – it was a breeze," she added. "To be able to incorporate the education into my rehabilitation is fun."

LaCavera has become interested in psychology and she has been looking at ways to combine that with exercise science.

Though her path to physical therapy or graduate school is uncertain at the moment, the goal for the present is to make the most of every opportunity to compete.

"I've learned a different perspective of the game in that I don't take it for granted," LaCavera said. "I've told athletes who have had to sit out just one or two games to take it in when they get back on the field. It does go quick. I watched two years go by.

"At the end of the day, it's just a game, but it's important to have a little fight, a little drive."