When fans attend a Husson College field hockey game in Bangor, Husson forward Sara McIntire will be easy to spot – she’ll probably have the widest grin on her face.

A little more than a year ago, the “jaws of life” had to be used to extract McIntire from her mother’s car after they were involved in a head-on collision in Winterport. Her mother, Shirley Rogers, is getting better but still faces six more months of rehabilitation, according to McIntire.

“I crushed my foot and sliced my wrist. I still don’t have any feeling in three fingers [on her left hand]. I have to work like hell to hold onto my stick,” said McIntire, who missed all of last season and had to attend classes in a wheelchair for two months.

“I couldn’t use my hand on the crutches,” explained the former Belfast High School standout, who was miserable about missing the season.

“The first thing I thought of was I’d better be able to play field hockey. When people would come see me in the hospital, I started crying because they [the doctors] wouldn’t let me play,” said McIntire, who is one of the team’s co-captains. “I made [my teammates] take my uniform down because I didn’t want anyone wearing my number [6]. I was determined I was going to play.”

It was a long and trying year for McIntire.

“I lived on an all-guys floor in the dorm and it was terrible. I had to depend on other people to do things like wash my hair and do my clothes. I wasn’t used to depending on other people. I hated it. And not being able to play field hockey my senior year was just devastating,” said McIntire.

She won’t be 100 percent. In addition to the nerve damage to her three fingers, she said, “My foot is still sore. But I’m running on it.

However, she’s ecstatic about playing again. McIntire received a medical redshirt for the 2004 season and is now a fifth-year senior.

“I’m as happy as I can be. I’m like a little schoolgirl. I’m pumped,” said McIntire who wears gloves on both hands to help her grip the stick.

Janel Fearon, a senior defender and co-captain, said the charismatic McIntire’s return has given the team a big lift.

“When she would come to practices or games last year, she would light up the team,” said Fearon. “When she wasn’t with us, you could definitely tell something was missing.”

“She changes the whole attitude of the team,” said third-year Husson coach Sharon Tracy. “She’s a great leader on and off the field. The way she has welcomed the freshman [has been exceptional].”

Tracy said McIntire also brings a great sense of humor to the team not to mention her skill.

“She had 22 points two years ago and we really missed that last year,” said Tracy.

McIntire, who was a second-team All-North Atlantic Conference selection in 2003, is looking forward to helping the Eagles rebound from a 4-12 season.

“Hopefully, I’ll poke in a few goals and get a few assists and I’ll help lead them up the field. I want to lead them to another championship,” said McIntire.