University of South Alabama volleyball middle blocker Morgan Stalcup immediately knew something was wrong when she suffered a knee injury last year at Georgia State.

With the Jaguars leading the match 2-1 and serving on match point, Stalcup's season came to an abrupt end. 

"We got a free ball over and I was running a slide," Stalcup said. "I don't know if it got set wide or if I overran it, but I cut it back and ended up landing on the pole. I heard a super loud pop, and my knee just collapsed on itself. There wasn't a doubt in my mind that I didn't tear everything in there; it was a moment that I just knew. That is the first time that I have torn anything to that extent.

"I had a lot of family there because I am from Atlanta; my grandfather came down from New York, so he was there. It was actually really convenient, because I didn't have to call anyone and tell them something went wrong — they all got to see it."

It was an unfortunate end to a season in which Stalcup was making a significant impact. 

The Roswell, Ga., native posted a then-career high 10 kills along with four total blocks in the Jaguars season opener against Ball State on Aug. 24 in Dayton, Ohio. She followed that performance with eight kills on 10 total attacks and a .700 hitting percentage, along with two total blocks, against Marshall the next day. 

On Aug. 31, playing against Georgia Tech, near her hometown in Atlanta, Stalcup recorded eight kills, a .368 hitting percentage and five total blocks, followed by a season-high six total blocks in a three-set win over Southeastern Louisiana on Sept. 7 at Jag Gym.

When the Jaguars opened Sun Belt Conference play on Sept. 21 at Little Rock, Stalcup posted just three kills and three total blocks. But she rebounded with a career-high 12 kills, along with a .647 hitting percentage, and four total blocks at Arkansas State on Sept. 23.

She finished with 15 kills and 10 total blocks in two matches against Georgia Southern and Georgia State from Sept. 28-29, followed by an eight-kill performance at ULM in which she posted a career-high .727 hitting percentage along with five total blocks. Stalcup recorded 10 kills at Louisiana on Oct. 6, and had tallied five kills and two total blocks at Georgia State on Oct. 12 before her season came to an unexpected end.

"Right after I tore it, I was a mess because it actually felt like I was stepping into my role and starting to play really well," she said. "I felt like I was a good asset for the team, and it crushed me when I found out I was done [for the season]. I felt like I could play on it. Once you tear it, minus the initial swelling, it feels fine because all of the nerves are torn. I felt perfectly fine and that I could go back out there on it, but knew I couldn't because God forbid if I tore something else or made it worse."

Although her season was shortened, Stalcup still ranked fifth in the Sun Belt in hitting percentage at .347, as well as fifth in kills (123) among the Jaguars. Her 70 total blocks in 2018 ranked second on the team.

"She has such good volleyball IQ and hand control, which means she is able to place the ball where she needs to — that's been a huge thing we have been working on with all of our hitters," head coach Alexis Meeks-Rydell said of Stalcup. "When she is doing drills with [Assistant Coach] Pati [Gandolfo] and the other middles, Pati is just mind-blown. Before she went out last year, she was in the top five in the league in hitting percentage, and that is due to how intelligent she is. Hitting percentage comes from putting the ball in the right spot, and that's really hard to teach."

Defensively, the Jaguars suffered without Stalcup's presence on the court. In 2017, South Alabama finished the season ranked second in the Sun Belt in opponent hitting percentage (.164) and fifth in blocks per set (1.23), while Stalcup ranked sixth in blocks per set (1.06). In 2018, the Jaguars ranked tied for 10th in opponent hitting percentage (.208), and eighth in blocks per set (2.07).

Stalcup had surgery on Nov. 2, 2018, and began the rehabilitation process soon after. 

"It's mentally tough, just because of the things you take for granted," she said. "I couldn't lift my leg off the table for two weeks or wiggle my toes; the little things I took for granted before this, I was shocked that I couldn't do it anymore. 

"I tore my medial and lateral meniscus too, on top of the ACL, so I was in leg lockout my first month and couldn't bend it. A lot of it, for my sport in particular, is keeping the range of motion and getting the balance and trust. My position of middle blocker requires me to go off of and land on one foot a lot, so I really worked on balance, range of motion and stability in the beginning of the process. As I have progressed, now that I am closer to the end, I do a lot of impact stuff."

Jaguar assistant athletic trainer Kasey Orr was at Georgia State when Stalcup blew out her knee, and has been with Stalcup each day as she goes through rehabilitation. 

"Morgan had a full grade-three ACL tear with medial meniscus tear," Orr said. "We were at match point and next thing you know, she is on the ground screaming and holding her knee. We got her to the bench and checked her out, but it wasn't until I got her down to the training room and did a full evaluation that we saw that it [knee] was gone."

Orr quickly put together a program for Stalcup to follow during rehab that Stalcup said was fun and creative, and avoided monotony that can often times accompany the therapy required for such an injury.

"Morgan was my second full ACL [tear], I had one the previous season," Orr said. "I knew with her size and stature that the rehabilitation was going to take longer. My whole process behind it was I didn't want her doing the same thing every day, because your body gets used to it so you have to keep challenging it. One big thing I noticed with Morgan, she is always here and so positive; she is the most positive person I have ever met. I think she has recognized that it is okay, and the everyday challenges remind her that she has come this far."

Stalcup's attitude, energy and maturity were noticed immediately by first-year head coach Meeks-Rydell when she took over the helm early in the spring of 2019.

"You would never know that Morgan was injured unless you knew the background of it all," she said. "She has never once shown a sign of struggle or what I would call 'strandedness' from the team. It's really hard to have an injury like that where your focus is constantly on rehab, and still find a way to be incorporated with the team when you're not in there battling with them every single day. You would never know that from her, and she was like that from my first day here. 

"She finds a way to insert herself without needing to be told to, because she understands her role and still wants to contribute; she is finding a way to do that without us [coaching staff] telling her to, which is what makes her so invaluable to this team. We have recognized that all through the spring and preseason practice."

Stalcup was limited during the spring, as well as during preseason fall practice, as she continued to rehab her knee. But each day that passes is one in which she is closer to returning to action and helping her Jaguar teammates accomplish their goals.

"The goal for this year is to win the Sun Belt Conference," she said. "And on a more intangible level, just build and create a South Alabama volleyball culture that everyone will remember. This team is a completely changed team. 

"I have the confidence in each of my teammates to do whatever they are asked to do and whatever is needed of them, because they are completely committed to this program and we all have the same goal in mind of winning a conference championship and furthering this program to where it has never been before."

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

Join the Rally Score Club, the volleyball specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund. All donations to the Rally Score Club go directly to support the South Alabama volleyball program. For more information on how you can join visit:  jaguarathleticfund.com/rallyscoreclub.