Danielle Hubka’s celebrates after scoring a goal in the 95th minute to lift the Terps to a 2-1 victory over Miami in the ACC tournament.

Seconds after netting the game-winning goal in the Terrapins women’s soccer team’s 2-1 ACC Quarterfinal victory over Miami Sunday, Danielle Hubka began doing back flips and cartwheels across Ludwig Field

Just six days earlier, she could barely walk.

On Sept. 30, Hubka injured her right ankle in Blacksburg, Va. She was taken down in the 19th minute of her team’s 1-0 loss to Virginia Tech and never reentered the game.

For the past four weeks, Hubka was seen on the sidelines of every game, cheering for her teammates but confined to a black boot on her injured ankle.

Last week, though, she unstrapped the boot and laced up her sneakers. She jogged ten yards on Tuesday, another ten yards on Wednesday, and tried sprinting on Friday.

Sunday, she was acrobatic.

“I was a little fearful of how many minutes to play her because she’s just getting back but she wasn’t coming off the field,” coach Jonathan Morgan said. “We just let her stay out there and she put the game away.”

Hubka recorded 41 minutes of play for the Terps (12-5-2) on Sunday, totaling three shots and two on goal. The most important of those shots came in the 95th minute, when midfielder Cory Ryan stole the ball and slid it over to Hubka in front of the net. With her right foot, she rocketed the ball past Miami goalkeeper Emily Lillard, sending the Terps into the semifinal round of the tournament.

“I hit it with my right foot so I just thought to lock my ankle really tight so it didn’t hurt,” Hubka said. “It was just too exciting to even notice if there was any pain.”

Though the Terps found a solid replacement in Riley Barger and continued to start seniors Domenica Hodak, Olivia Wagner and Becky Kaplan, Hubka’s presence was missed on the field.

“Danielle’s got this need to win at all costs and will always find a way to win,” Morgan said. “To have that energy and that spark and her voice is huge for us. … She absolutely is a fighter by nature. She’s a kid from Cleveland and Cleveland has a reputation of tough kids with a bite and she certainly brings that to the table and I feel like we’ve definitely missed that.”

In the five games Hubka watched from the sideline, the Terps lost three times. Before her injury, the team had only lost twice.

She’s only recorded three goals and one assist this season and doesn’t lead the team in any statistical category.

But Sunday, Hubka proved just how valuable she can be for the Terps.

“She’s the puzzle piece that we’ve missed,” Morgan said. “That winning bite, that ‘Let’s find a win at all costs, let’s find a way.’ She brought that for us [Sunday]. Having her back on the field, that presence, was awesome.”

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