Energy Defender Returns To Field Less Than A Year After Heart Attack

Tuesday, July 31st 2018, 8:26 pm

By: Brian Mueller

"You never think that's going to happen to you. For it to happen, I think you have to take it with a grain of salt."

That's Oklahoma City Energy defender Drew Beckie's perspective on having a heart attack last year, at the age of 27.

It all started when Drew had some seemingly routine back pain pop up while he was visiting a friend in Sweden.

"I told my buddy, ‘Hey, I need to roll out my back a little and stretch,’ and he was going to run to the store, and within the 30 minutes he was gone, it had moved up my back and my arms had gone numb and my jaw, and I felt something wasn't right," Beckie said. "Luckily he came back in time and took me to the hospital."

After days of tests and intermittent pain, doctors told Drew it was a heart attack caused by a virus called Myocarditis. It kills more than 350,000 people a year.

"My mother has a good, realistic view of what's going on in the world. And when she got the news, she said that sucks, but it's part of life, you'll get on with it," Beckie said.

Drew got through the worst of it, but his soccer career was still in jeopardy. Doctors told him he couldn't do any exercises for 6-8 months and couldn't elevate his heart rate.

But just seven months removed from lying in a hospital bed with his life was on the line, Beckie's comeback was complete when he signed with the Energy in June.

"I'm on borrowed time now, I don't take it for granted anymore," Beckie said. "You can only interact with some people one time, and you have to make sure it's a good time that time."

The Energy are back in action August 4 at Colorado Springs.