With men's soccer's duo, a backline bond

In modern society, a certain stereotype tends to follow male athletes. As "jocks," they're supposed to remain unflinchingly tough and reserved, expected to mute their affection and feelings.

But London Woodberry and Alex Lee don't necessarily fit that mold. No, the Terrapins men's soccer team's two starting center backs have been through too much together for such frivolity to stand in the way of a close relationship.

There was that October 2009 trip to the nation's capital that started as a few friends grabbing a meal and ended with Lee nearly losing his life. There were the two years of sharing a cramped dormitory in Kent Hall. And there was Lee's chat with coach Sasho Cirovski this summer during which he voiced his desire to line up alongside his best friend.

So as Woodberry and Lee prepare for what could be their last game together, Sunday's second-round matchup against West Virginia in the NCAA Tournament, the former roommates understand how much they mean to one another.

And unlike many jocks, they aren't afraid to say it.

"We've never really had a problem saying, ‘I love you,'" Woodberry said yesterday. "We don't say it all the time, but whenever we get into an argument or a fight or something, and we're not on good terms, we're like ‘I love you, bro. You're my boy.' So it's like that."

A ROUGH START

It's been like that since the summer of 2009.

Woodberry, a former under-18 U.S. Men's National Team member from McKinney, Texas, arrived in College Park a month before classes started to begin training with the Terps. Soon enough after introducing himself to his new teammates, Woodberry was at the Lee family's Rockville home, trading jokes as they watched TV.

"We hit it off really well," Lee said. "I drove him to the airport the first time he went home. So yeah, we just kind of clicked, I guess."

Their burgeoning friendship was tested just two months later.

After a Saturday practice, Lee headed into Dupont Circle with Woodberry and then-teammate Billy Cortes to catch up with Portland Timbers defender and former Terp Rodney Wallace. After seeing Wallace's apartment and sharing some dinner, the three ventured home to College Park at about 9 p.m.

But with the Metro station in sight, Lee made a near-fatal mistake: He didn't look both ways before crossing the street.

An oncoming vehicle sent him flying 6 feet into the air. He landed headfirst on the Connecticut Avenue pavement.

Woodberry describes the ensuing scene as something out of a "horror film": Lee lying motionless, his eyes staring blankly at the sky above him, blood gushing from the back of his head.

"I thought he was dead," he said. "It was the worst night of my life. By far."

With the shock of the moment paralyzing Woodberry, Cortes called 911. Minutes later, his body finally catching up to his mind, Woodberry dialed Cirovski.

"London was delirious," Cirovski said. "He saw one of his best friends in a tragic situation, and he was delirious. He must've shed a couple of pounds of water that night."

When Lee arrived at George Washington University Hospital, doctors found a blood clot on the right side of his head. He was transported to surgery, where he underwent a two-hour operation on his skull.

Woodberry and Cortes, meanwhile, returned to their teammates in College Park. Instead of enjoying their Saturday night, they stood together and prayed for Woodberry.

"Obviously, it was an unbelievably scary night for everyone involved," said former Terps goalkeeper Zac MacMath, who joined his team in solitude that fall evening. "It really brought the team together as a family."

FIGHTING THROUGH

The morning after undergoing a successful operation, Lee awoke to a crowd of visitors.

Nearly 50 friends and family members streamed into his room that day. Woodberry was among them.

When he finally made his way to Lee's hospital bed, Woodberry had one question.

"I was like, ‘Remember what you said to me before you got hit by a car last night?' He's like, ‘No.' So I told him: You said, ‘I love you.'"