Tearing an anterior cruciate ligament is an athlete's worst nightmare. The recovery process is long and, at times, very painful. Unfortunately, too many Utah County soccer players are finding out how tough the road to recovery is.

What has made this year strange is the athletes suffering such severe knee injuries are all key contributors on their various high school teams.

Timpview's Jessica Harmon, Springville's Jamie and Heather Hatfield, Timpanogos' Julie Hegerhorst and Kirtley Sorensen and Mountain View's Charlotte Lartay are all sitting out this season due to torn ACLs.

It was rumored that Mountain View all-state forward Erin Salmon tore her ACL several weeks ago, but now it looks as if the injury is only a strained muscle. Salmon could be back in the lineup in a couple of weeks.

"It's almost like it's the twilight zone, how it is happening to the best players," said Mountain View girls' soccer coach Mike LaHargoue. "It's depressing. I feel bad."

Springville coach Mikelle Roth called the situation "weird."

"Usually injuries are a factor, but never usually to the star players from every team," she said.

Roth's best player, Jamie Hatfield, suffered her injury in a club tournament at the end of March. During the first game of the tournament, Hatfield scored a goal two minutes into the game. Two minutes later, Hatfield went to make a cut but instead fell to the ground in pain after hearing her knee pop.

"It hurt so bad," Hatfield said. "I wasn't getting up for the life of me. It was horrible."

On the final day of the tournament, Harmon — a teammate of Hatfield on the Celtic Storm club team — suffered her ACL injury on the same corner of the field as Hatfield.

"It's really strange," Celtic Storm coach Robyn Bretzing said. "It's some fluky thing. It's one of those things you can't explain. It's really weird."

Although Harmon said she knew something was wrong with her knee when she first injured it, she continued to play on it until she went to the doctor.

The hard part of the injury for Harmon, Hatfield and all athletes who suffer the injury comes during the rehabilitation process.

"At the beginning, it was so painful," Hatfield said. "The first week I just cried. Now it is not as bad. Now I am trying to get my muscle back. It's been weird not being able to do what I wanted to do."

Hatfield and Harmon are close to returning to the soccer field. Both entertained the thought of returning to the soccer field toward the end of the high school season but decided against it. They are preparing for their club tournament Thanksgiving weekend.

Hatfield still can't sprint, cut or twist on the knee.