Soccer, Basketball
Favorite athlete: Mia Hamm
Favorite teams: All Philadelphia teams
Favorite memory competing in sports: I have so many great memories, including the bus rides, numerous overtime wins and the trip to Hershey (the state title game) with the 2016-17 soccer team.
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: I broke my nose and I had to wear a mask, and people started to call me names like Hannibal Lecter.
Music on mobile device: Today’s top hits on Spotify
Future plans: Attend Saint Joseph’s University to study biology and continue playing soccer.
Words to live by: “Excuses or results, you can’t have both.”
One goal before turning 30: Travel to Italy
One thing people don’t know about me: I played on the boys’ soccer team in middle school, so that I could play softball in the spring.
By Mary Jane Souder
Mackenzie Ehresman can tell you the exact date and something pretty close to the time she went down with a knee injury in the fall of her junior year, an injury that sidelined the two-sport standout a year.
“It was Sept 9, we were playing soccer, we were playing Pennridge,” the Central Bucks South senior said. “It was a 3:30 game, and we played quarters that day just because it was so hot.
“It was the third quarter or even later. I was running back to my goal where my goalie was, and there was a girl on my left shoulder. My leg was planted because I was going for the ball, and she kind of pulled my shoulder back, and my knee just went out. I was in tremendous pain right away. I knew something was wrong. I just didn’t know exactly what it was at that moment.”
The diagnosis four days later confirmed that Ehresman had torn the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee. The junior captain, who had surgery on Oct. 6, was out of action the remainder of a dream soccer season that saw the Titans advance to the PIAA 4A state title game.
“It was definitely hard to watch, but I was so proud of my team for everything they accomplished,” Ehresman said. “It was just amazing what they did.
“I was so confident in the team. I knew they would do great things.”
A four-year starter and two-year captain, Ehresman would have been key to the Titans’ magical postseason run. Her response to that devastating turn of events tells you all you need to know about the defensive standout, who displays not a trace of bitterness, anger or even frustration.
Instead, Ehresman manages to put a positive spin on it.
“It gave me a different perspective not being able to play, but it was awesome just cheering for my team,” she said. “For them to go so far, it was awesome.”
Without setting foot on the field, Ehresman found a way to contribute.
“She displayed such maturity in guiding the team even when unable to play,” South coach Betsy Bullock said.
Ehresman is one of those special athletes who just might be valued as much for who she is as for what she does. Or perhaps it’s the perfect combination of both that sets the South senior apart.
Beth Mattern calls her senior forward a difference maker on this year’s successful basketball squad.
“She’s so diverse,” the Titans’ coach said. “She can play post defense, she can play guard. She’s just a really versatile player, and I think that’s what makes her that X factor for us.
“Sometimes I refer to her as our heart and our soul because she’s so involved and so competitive, and the competitive nature she brings just really helps drive the team.”
That’s high praise for an athlete who lists basketball as her ‘other sport.’ Ehresman is committed to continue her soccer career at Saint Joseph’s University.
“I can’t wait to see her future unfold,” Bullock said. “She is an absolute pleasure to coach.
“She is disciplined, respectful, hardworking and responsible. She was a very positive team captain, leading by example and encouraging others.”
Ehresman received the soccer team’s ‘Player’s Player’ Award, an award voted on by her teammates that is given to the “ultimate team player.”
Listening to Mattern talk about her senior captain, it’s safe to say she’d be in the running for a similar award for the basketball squad.
“She is someone everyone loves,” the Titans’ coach said. “For as competitive as she is on the basketball court, she is the sweetest soul off the court.
“She’s very mild-tempered and really an awesome person who everyone wants to be around.”
*****
Ehresman, affectionately known as Mac to her teammates, has been playing soccer for almost as long as she can remember. She began playing basketball in fifth grade and also added softball around the same time, a third sport she played through middle school.
Soccer, however, has always been number one.
“My dad used to play the sport when he was younger, so it’s always been a sport in our family,” she said. “I just love to play soccer. It’s always been one of my favorites.”
Ehresman went through the ranks of the Warrington Soccer Club. She was an impact player the moment she set foot on the high school field in the defensive backfield and was a fixture in the starting lineup until the ACL injury.
That, however, did not stand in the way of Ehresman realizing her dream of playing collegiate soccer, and she committed to St. Joe’s last January, choosing the Big 5 school from a final list that included La Salle, Drexel and Pitt.
“I knew it would be hard because junior year is a big year in terms of recruiting, but I always knew I wanted to play a sport in college,” she said. “I knew I had to fight back, so I stayed involved. I went to practices just to stay involved. I always put in extra time just to make sure I would hopefully play in college.”
This past September, Ehresman returned to the lineup for the Titans.
“I definitely appreciate it more because I know what it’s like to be on the sidelines,” she said. “I appreciate having the ability to be out there and give it all you have because you never know what’s going to happen.”
After playing center or outside back her first three years, Ehresman played defensive center mid.
“She showed such mental toughness and maturity coming back from the injury,” Bullock said. “In one of her first games back on the field this year against undefeated Pennridge (a 1-0 South win), her presence made all the difference in our victory.
“The reason her presence on the field was so important had to do with both the mental and physical aspects of the game. She was tenacious, unyielding and always gave 100 percent. This type of play was inspiring to the players on the field. She was also a very positive team captain, leading by example and encouraging others.”
*****
After being sidelined for a year and with her ticket punched to play soccer at the Division I level, it would have been understandable if Ehresman had wallked away from basketball this year.
“Leaving basketball never crossed my mind because I love the game and all the people involved in it,” she said.
Ehresman immediately stepped back into the starting spot she occupied as a sophomore.
“Last year, we were just missing her presence on the floor,” Mattern said. “She’s a physical player, very athletic and fast. She understands what’s going on on the court, and she’s a real competitor.
“She’s made the transition from soccer season to basketball season and is very comfortable on the basketball court.”
The Titans are off to a 13-1 start, and Ehresman – a captain - is doing the little things that make a big difference.
“I just try to go out there and play my best, try to put everything I have out there,” she said. “Definitely just to motivate my team and hopefully keep pushing them to be better.”
Ehresman is a self-described perfectionist and sometimes, by her own admission, is too hard on herself.
“Yes, she’s hard on herself,” Mattern said. “She hasn’t even made a mistake yet, and she’s already mad at herself, but she responds and can pull herself out of it.”
Ehresman takes that same desire for perfection into the classroom where she is an honors student. A member of the National Honor Society, she is active in school life and was on the Color Wars committee for South’s Mini-Thon, she was a captain at Black versus Blue Night and – when she can – is involved with Athletes Helping Athletes and Titans Connect.
“Off the court, she is reserved but loves people,” Mattern said. “She treats everyone with respect and when she is in her comfort zone, she is very outgoing and has the best laugh.
“Last year I never let myself feel sorry for the team because she got hurt so early in the soccer season. She had surgery, things were progressing when basketball season started.
“This season when she came back – her first day back at basketball, I couldn’t believe how upset I was for the team from last season with her being stolen from us. I can’t even put into words what it’s meant to have her back. Between the person and the player, she just means so much to us and our program.”
As she is coming down the home stretch of her high school athletic career, Ehresman expressed gratitude to many, including parents Eric and Jenn Ehresman.
“I appreciate all the support I received from my coaches, teammates and family throughout my high school career and especially following my injury,” she said. “I am forever grateful”
