It was all falling into place for Kevin Oliveira. The Swope Park Rangers midfielder had recently been named USL Player of the Week after scoring once and assisting on all three other goals in a 4-0 mauling of Rio Grande Valley FC – a result that ended up becoming the Rangers’ biggest win of the season.
Then, an innocuous fall in training ripped it all away. Oliveira was diagnosed with a torn Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) in his left knee heading into a road game in Seattle on June 26. He was told he would miss the rest of the season.