The Perseverance of Payton

USF On a trip to Costa Rica in 2011, Payton Cook and her Region 1 ODP soccer team went on a zip-lining experience out in the middle of the jungle. After eating a carb-filled lunch, Payton, a Type-1 diabetic, went to check her insulin, only to realize the harness from the zip line had ripped out the site where her pump connected to her body.

Usually, Payton carried back-up needles, but she had left them at the resort that morning. With her sugar levels rising into the 400’s and the resort being over two hours away, Payton knew she was in a dire situation.

“All my teammates were in tears,” USF’s sophomore defender says. “I was in tears, the coaches were in tears, like this was going to be a…