PV boosted by Jaworski’s return in win over SF
Coy about the timetable of leading receiver Justin Jaworski’s return from an MCL injury, Perkiomen Valley did its best to keep his status under wraps.
Will he back by districts? Will he back at all?
Little did anyone know outside Graterford, Jaworski’s return would be much, much sooner.
Only three weeks after sustaining what many thought at the time was a season-derailing injury, Jaworski made his comeback to the field in the Vikings’ 28-16 victory over rival Spring-Ford in a clash of two Pioneer Athletic Conference Liberty Division titans Friday night.
His six catches for 101 yards and interception highlighted the team’s double-digit victory, as the Vikings returned both linebacker Nick Marren and the area’s leading receiving the same week after much speculation surrounded his knee the past three weeks.
“The doctor said that the amount of lifting and working out I did helped me not tear anything too bad,” Jaworski said. “As soon as I got hurt and got my MRI, they told me I didn’t completely tear my MCL. Luckily I healed quickly. It was the best case scenario. I got lucky.”
It was a return nobody expected to happen so quickly after the senior receiver landed awkwardly after colliding with two members of the Haverford School secondary near the goal line in the Vikings’ Week 4 win.
Initial speculation went to the extreme, suggesting the senior suffered a torn ACL that would end his season and jeopardize his basketball season. It took a day or two to finally reveal the extent of the injury: partial MCL tear and fractured growth plate.
Recovery time? Jaworski can answer that one.
“The doctor asked me when I wanted to be back by. I said, ‘Well, there’s three weeks until we have Spring-Ford.’ I didn’t want to miss this game.” He didn’t. Jaworski went right to physical therapy, rehabbing his knee five to six days a week as the Vikings rolled to victories over Owen J. Roberts and Boyertown in consecutive weeks, setting up another PAC-unbeaten clash between the Rams and the Vikings in Week 7.
Cleared on Wednesday morning and in full pads for Wednesday’s and Thursday’s practice, the Vikings’ kept his return close to the vest, going so far to have him appear on the field in shorts and a jersey while the rest of the team warmed up 40 minutes before kickoff on Friday night.
“We wanted to keep his return as quiet as possible,” first-year head coach Rob Heist said. “The doctor wanted him to practice full on Wednesday. I didn’t want him to practice in full pads but the doctor said that he wanted him to go in full pads and gauge where it is. He practiced full, felt fine. Practiced full on Thursday, felt fine. We tried to test it, have him run those little return routes that we like to do and he felt great.
“It was enormous having him back. Our team, knowing that both Justin and Nick Marren were coming back healthy this week, was just uplifting to our week of practice. We had a great week of practice. I think our kids felt confident. Last year, I thought we were too tight, too emotional, too wound up. This year we were trying to be calm, cool and collected and loose at practice. I think it translated well on the field.”
That’s inarguable after a 12-point victory which wasn’t as close as the final score indicated. Now, with the return of their leading playmaker, the Vikings are poised to run the PAC Liberty the next two weeks and compete for their second PAC title in three years.