Eastport-South Manor girls soccer player Maeve Gayer beats cancer

It started with a broken nose.

Maeve Gayer, a junior goalkeeper for the Eastport-South Manor girls soccer team, went to the doctor after suffering the injury during a basketball game in the eighth grade.

In a follow-up visit, the doctor noticed something unusual on Gayer's neck.

“I went for just a basic checkup to make sure that my nose was healing," Gayer said. "The doctor was looking at my nose and looked down and saw there was a bump on my neck. My parents never noticed it; I never even noticed it.”

Months of tests, blood scans and MRIs were coming back inconclusive, leaving doctors to recommend surgery. Gayer had half of her thyroid removed on June 30, 2023, more than a year after her broken nose.

“I remember it very vividly," Gayer said. "My dad came in and sat on my bed, but it’s normal for my dad to come into my room. Then my mom came in, and they sat down together. I was like, 'Hold on, what’s happening here.'

“They told me that results had come back and that it was cancer.”

The diagnosis was papillary thyroid cancer, and Gayer underwent a second surgery on Jan. 4, to remove the rest of her thyroid.

Gayer played her entire sophomore season knowing she was going to need surgery to remove her thyroid, which would require her to be on medication for the rest of her life. But Gayer said she was able to stay positive throughout the ordeal and remained focused on soccer, school and friends.

“That’s a testament to Maeve’s healthy mindset,” said Brendan Gayer, her father. “As an adult, I would have thought about it every day. I probably would have lost sleep for six months and it was almost weird to me to witness Maeve and be like, ‘How is this not living at the forefront of her mind?’ But it was really a testimony to her resilience through it all.”

Gayer has been cancer-free since her January surgery and is focusing on enjoying life and the sport she loves.

“Maeve’s motivation is insane," teammate Gracie DiPalo said. "Once she found out she was diagnosed, her first thing was, 'When am I getting back on that field? ”

'I'm always here for you'

Gayer was reluctant to tell her teammates about her cancer diagnosis last season.

"I didn't want pity," she said. "I didn’t want the feeling of ‘Oh, she’s a person dealing with cancer.’ I didn’t want any of that."

Eventually, Gayer decided to tell Hailey Grieco, a senior on the team.

“I was kind of longing for someone to know,” Gayer said. “I just told her [because] I could trust her.”

Grieco wanted to respect Gayer's wishes but also find a way to show support. Grieco knew Gayer always wore a ribbon in her hair, so she decided to make ribbons for everyone on the team in the thyroid cancer support colors of blue, pink and teal.

Grieco passed out the ribbons to the team in the locker room while Gayer was talking to the coaches. Grieco made a brief announcement that Gayer was going through a personal issue that she may not want to discuss but that the team should all wear the ribbon in support. No one objected.

When Gayer saw her teammates wearing the ribbons, she was stunned.

“[Grieco] just grabbed me and said, ‘I’m always here for you,’ and left it at that and it was the most poetic and perfect moment ever,” Gayer said.

Gayer remembers sitting at the back of the bus and taking in what her teammates did for her. She continued to keep her diagnosis private until after the surgery.

“It felt so deeply impactful to a level I can’t exactly express, but it lifted such a great weight off my shoulders because it was exactly what I needed."

'She's a warrior'

Soccer has been Gayer's passion since she started playing at around age 3. In the seventh grade, Gayer wrote about her dream to become a Division I soccer player in an assignment for health class.

That caught the attention of her teacher, Becky Thorn, who is also the varsity girls soccer coach.

Gayer's resilience has been an inspiration for not only her teammates, but for the coaching staff as well.

“She’s just a fighter," Thorn said. "She’s a warrior. If anything, I think this has made her tougher, if that’s even possible.”

Gayer made the varsity team as a seventh grader and became the starting goalkeeper in her freshman season.

“I was nervous, but it just felt like another step," Gayer said." Another thing that was difficult but I could do it. I remember the first day I went out and made a really big save and my confidence went up from that and over time as the practices went on, my nerves decreased. But I was still trying to prove myself.”

Gayer, who is receiving Division I interest, enjoys the mental and physical challenges that come with playing goalkeeper. Even though she called it a “lonely position” at times, she enjoys how one play from a goalkeeper can change an entire outcome.

Eastport-South Manor is one of the top teams in Suffolk with a 12-2 record, including 11-1 in Suffolk League VI, as of Thursday. Gayer has six shutouts.

While the pressure of being a varsity goalkeeper is real, it pales in comparison to what Gayer has faced off the pitch.

“All of this stuff is meaningful, but it’s not life or death, which that could have been,” Gayer said. “People say it’s cliche to have appreciation for life, but it’s true. It’s that appreciation that I’m here, I made it through, I’m happy to be back to my sport to my full capability.”

With Jolie Katzen