Lady Sharks Catch Break, Defensive Setter’s Injury Not As Serious As Originally Feared

As Kiaraliz Perez felt her right knee buckle and a sharp pain shot down her ankle, she feared the worst.

“The only thing that went through my mind was, ‘I won’t be able to play again,’” the Lady Sharks star defensive setter recalls thinking after suffering the injury during a team practice in late September.

Perez soon had a fever, a swollen knee and was unable to walk for four days.

The symptoms were consistent with a torn anterior cruciate ligament, an injury that would require season-ending surgery and months of rehab.

But a week later, her prognosis vastly improved.

A magnetic resonance imaging scan determined that Perez sustained a mild posterior cruciate ligament injury—not a tear.

The injury will not require surgery. Perez believes she can return to action before the regular season ends.

“It’s a relief,” said Lady Sharks Head Volleyball Coach Kiko “Origenes” Benoit, who a week earlier called the injury “a big loss.”

While she recovers, Perez is using crutches to walk. She is undergoing physical therapy, lifting weights to strengthen the knee and icing it down to reduce inflammation.

“I’m good,” Perez said. “Much calmer knowing that I won’t need an operation and that I don’t have a serious injury.”

The 21-year-old has been the team’s defensive spark plug this season, commanding the back row while leading the squad with 300 digs, including an impressive 6.52 per set. 

For her efforts, she has been named the Florida College System Athletic Association’s Division I volleyball defensive player of the week twice this season. 

During her absence, five-foot-ten inch Italian outside hitter Beatrice Carulli has filled in for Perez. She struggled in her first match, notching only five digs. 

“It’s hard for me because it’s new,” Carulli said after the Lady Sharks 3-0 victory versus Eastern Florida State College on Oct. 6.

But Carulli has proven to be a quick learner. She had 18 digs versus Hillsborough Community College on Oct. 8 and 16 versus Daytona State College on Oct. 13, both MDC victories.

With four games remaining in the regular season, the Lady Sharks are 17-4 and ranked No. 4 in the nation. Poised for a deep playoff run, they look forward to Perez’s return.

“She transmits confidence,” said sophomore outside hitter Romina Cornelio. “When you see her you don’t worry about covering the whole court because you know she is there.”

Click here to subscribe to our bi-weekly newsletter, The Hammerhead. For news tips, contact us at mdc.thereporter@gmail.com