Back from injury just in time, Rhyan Mogel could be Clackamas' secret weapon at 6A girls basketball state tournament

By Dave Ball | Photos by Dave Ball

Rhyan Mogel was weeks from starting her junior year at Clackamas High School.

The reigning player of the year in the Mt. Hood Conference, Mogel had put in another successful club season with Northwest Select and was rounding out her summer basketball stretch with a day camp at the University of Portland. She beat her defender off the dribble, but before she could take a step, she crumpled to the floor. 

“I planted funny and it just gave out,” Mogel said. 

It was her knee.

Mogel tore her Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) — an all too common injury among athletes and one with a lengthy recovery time.

She knew all about the long road ahead.

Her father Kole, a college wrestler, had endured a couple knee surgeries during his competitive days. Her younger sisters, Reyce and Dylan, also suffered the injury, both while in middle school. 

“There might be some genetics in there, but when you play a lot of high-level sports, it catches up to you,” Kole said.

“We were the trial and error phase,” Reyce said with a chuckle. “We learned what worked best, so by the time Rhyan went down, we were kind of the experts.”

Rhyan had been working with a personal trainer for more than a year and was involved in weight training classes at school. She recovered quickly from surgery and moved to the early phases of rehab. 

“Right after surgery there wasn’t much swelling and no pain,” Rhyan said. “I had a good baseline of strength and that helped me get back quicker than anticipated.”

Six days after surgery she was on her family’s Peloton bike working to get her range of motion back with some light riding.

“With Rhyan, if you ask her to do something, she will do it exactly the way you want it or she’ll find a way to do it even better,” Dylan said. “During her rehab, if you asked her to do five reps, she would do six.”

Missing out on her junior high school season was almost a foregone conclusion. The goal was to be back at full strength for the club season heading into her senior year — a prime time for prospects to get in front of college coaches.

“Rhyan is super disciplined. She is mentally tough and has goals with basketball that have allowed her to stay the course,” Kole said. 

Mogel has been an active teammate this winter, doing her rehab exercises on the side and taking part in some of the team’s non-contact drills.

“She hasn’t missed a practice,” Clackamas coach Korey Landolt said. “She would be jogging big laps around the gym, high-fiving the kids and coaching them up. She kept that connection.”

As her knee continued to get stronger, Mogel was able to insert herself back into more practice drills.

“Once I could start cutting and doing some skill work, it felt like I was close to getting back,” she said. 

Mogel made her official return last week, playing a few minutes of action in the Cavaliers’ 59-27 first-round playoff win over St. Mary’s Academy. 

“There was always this little glimmer, just knowing that the six-month mark would be coming right at the end of our season,” Landolt said. “You go through all these emotions. There is so much character-building and growth in coming back from an injury. The girls have watched the whole process and are super excited to see her make that step.” 

Mogel received more action, almost 10 minutes, during Saturday’s 65-31 second-round win over Grants Pass.

Not that there hasn’t been a nervous moment or two along the way.

“In our last game, (an opponent) drove on her and took her out. I popped out of my chair and gasped, but she popped right up and was fine,” Landolt said. “She has been a part of our goals this entire time, and we are excited for her to contribute. She’s going to give us a lift — that is just the competitor that she is.”

Clackamas freshman Jazzy Davidson was named this season’s most outstanding player in the Mt. Hood Conference, giving the Cavaliers two active players of the year heading to this week’s 6A tournament at the Chiles Center.

“Those awards really recognize how smart of players that they are,” Landolt said. “They understand certain aspects of the game that elevate their play.”

Clackamas (23-2) opens at 3:15 p.m. Thursday against Lakeridge.

“We’ve talked a lot this season about not taking anything for granted. It’s special to be one of eight teams left with a chance to compete for another week,” Landolt said. 

“It’s a big stage, and we are a young team with some freshmen getting big minutes — they have surprised me all season. They love the game and they know how to rise to the occasion.”