Luis Martinez fractured his left ankle in the closing minutes of the Ceres High varsity boys soccer team's 1-1 draw with East Union on Tuesday, Oct. 9 at Ceres River Bluff Regional Park.
The sophomore forward suffered the injury 10 minutes after tying the score with an impressive 30-yard goal. Martinez tried to collect a pass in the box from David Estrada. Lancers goalie Jacob McCormack landed on Luis' ankle while smothering the ball.
"I heard it pop," said Martinez, who was carried off the field by several teammates. "I couldn't move my foot."
"It's a big blow to our team to lose him," Bulldogs coach Ryan Cerny said. "He's one of the top players in the league."
Martinez leaned against his crutches at practice on Monday.
He had surgery on Tuesday at Kaiser Permanente - Modesto Medical Center at 3800 Dale Road. Doctors inserted two screws into his ankle during the 30-minute procedure.
He'll be relegated to the sidelines for a year. The screws will be removed in sixth months.
"I'm not going to like it at all, but I have to deal with it," Martinez said.
"I hope it's not an injury that will nag him for the rest of his career," Cerny said.
Martinez tallied a team-leading eight goals in 10 games for the fourth-place Bulldogs (4-4-2). The top three teams advance to the postseason. Ceres' remaining games are against Oakdale (first), Sonora (fifth), Manteca (second) and Central Valley (third).
The sophomore forward suffered the injury 10 minutes after tying the score with an impressive 30-yard goal. Martinez tried to collect a pass in the box from David Estrada. Lancers goalie Jacob McCormack landed on Luis' ankle while smothering the ball.
"I heard it pop," said Martinez, who was carried off the field by several teammates. "I couldn't move my foot."
"It's a big blow to our team to lose him," Bulldogs coach Ryan Cerny said. "He's one of the top players in the league."
Martinez leaned against his crutches at practice on Monday.
He had surgery on Tuesday at Kaiser Permanente - Modesto Medical Center at 3800 Dale Road. Doctors inserted two screws into his ankle during the 30-minute procedure.
He'll be relegated to the sidelines for a year. The screws will be removed in sixth months.
"I'm not going to like it at all, but I have to deal with it," Martinez said.
"I hope it's not an injury that will nag him for the rest of his career," Cerny said.
Martinez tallied a team-leading eight goals in 10 games for the fourth-place Bulldogs (4-4-2). The top three teams advance to the postseason. Ceres' remaining games are against Oakdale (first), Sonora (fifth), Manteca (second) and Central Valley (third).
