AUBURN — If the thought ever entered her mind, it was just passing through.

As Kirsten Prue watched the end of the soccer season conclude without her, the Edward Little senior didn’t even let the idea of missing basketball season linger. The concussion that had sidelined her was just temporary she concluded.

“I tried not to think about that,” said Prue. “I thought ‘I’ll get better. I’ll get better.’ ”

Her coach didn’t want to dwell on that possibility either. Prue has been a staple in Craig Jipson’s backcourt since her freshman year. The last thing he wanted was to see her lost because of a soccer injury her senior season.

“I go to church every week so I know I couldn’t be that unlucky,” said Jipson with a laugh. “My deal with God is that he wouldn’t do that to me her senior year.”

As the Red Eddies prepare for next week’s season opener against Cony, Prue is steadily working her way back and expects to be EL’s driving force once again. After trying to shrug off the effects of the concussion for two months, she says she’s nearly back to 85 percent conditioning-wise after being inactive for so long.

“In years past, I was able to workout all the way through soccer,” said Prue. “Soccer was a hard workout. I wasn’t able to do it in the last month. So I lost all the conditioning. I always go to the gym in between seasons. I wasn’t able to do that. I went to the gym for about a week before the season.”

Prue is an all-star keeper, but when she dove in a game against Mt. Ararat, she suffered a concussion and was subsequently plagued by headaches. There was a chance she might return by season’s end, but she didn’t.

“I dove wrong and whiplashed my head,” said Prue. “That was hard. That was my last soccer game that I’ll ever play, but I wanted to make sure I was ready for basketball and that I didn’t hurt myself more.”

She was cleared to play in time for the playoffs but a headache that resulted from diving for a ball in practice just before the tourney game kept her out of action. It was a difficult situation for Prue, who’d never had a concussion before.

“It was scary,” she said. “In school, I couldn’t concentrate. I felt like I was underwater. Everything around me was weird. People could tell I wasn’t myself. I went to take a test, and I had studied for three hours. I took the test and I got a 75 on it. The lowest I’d gotten on a test in that class was a 93.”

The idea of Prue suffering through the effect of a concussion was a scary proposition for EL basketball fans. Prue led the team in scoring (14.6), free-throw shooting (73 percent) and assists (4.4) and was second in 3’s with 39. Her 16 points helped lead EL to the KVAC title win over Skowhegan last year. As the EL point guard, most everything goes through her. With the unpredictability of concussions, her injury was certainly cause for worry. 

Jipson kept in contact with Val Ackley, the girls’ soccer coach, and the school trainer, Casey Davis.

“Val and I talked a lot,” said Jipson. “She kept me appraised. I knew a lot of it was precautionary. I appreciated Val and her attitude of not wanting to take any chances even though it was the playoffs. Her health came first.”

Prue was cleared to play well before basketball season started. She’s had no lingering effects, other than the need to build back her conditioning. She’s excited about the season ahead. Though EL lost four key regulars from last year, there’s enough returning and some promising young talent that could make the Red Eddies a team to watch this season. There’s enough potential balance in the lineup to allow Prue to do what she does best.

“I think we’re going to do really great,” she said. “Other kids have more confidence now. Our post, I feel really confident getting them the ball. I’m able to pass more. It’s kind of like my freshman year when I had Brittney (French), Kelsey (Nicolas) and Allie (Forgues). I could shoot or I could pass.”

As a sophomore, Prue had to shoulder more of the scoring load but last year, with Kayla Cummings in the post and Frankie Lally on the perimeter, the offense was more balanced. This year, Jipson envisions as many as six kids capable of scoring in double figures on a given night. With Prue’s ability to pass, that only enhances one of her greatest assets.

“She’s the greatest passer that I’ve ever coached,” said Jipson. “She just has a vision that puts her ahead of other players. She see things before they happen. We joke all the time that if you’re not looking, Kirsten is going to end up breaking your nose with a pass because she’s going to hit you one way or the other.”

Prue will take those skills to Bowdoin next year. She had considered and visited Worcester Polytechnic Institute, but she felt more at home at Bowdoin and is excited that process is complete.

“I’d always wanted to go to Bowdoin,” said Prue. “Bowdoin obviously has a great basketball program and a great history. I love the team, and I love the coaches. I love everything about it.”