VCA junior Addison Morales suffered a traumatic brain injury during a 2-vehicle wreck on U.S. 380 at Farm Road 1655 Dec. 2. SUBMITTED
In her third season on the court, Victory Christian Academy’s Addison Morales established herself as one of the top hitters in TAPPS 2A District 2 during the 2025 season, ultimately earning the league’s Offensive Player of the Year honor and a spot on the TAPPS 2A all-state team.
But just 25 days after the Lady Patriots’ season ended with a 3-0 loss to eventual state champion Lubbock All-Saints Episcopal in the regional finals, Addison faced the fight of her life — a battle that she is still working to overcome.
While driving to school Dec. 2, Addison was critically injured in a 2-vehicle wreck at the intersection of U.S. 380 and Farm Road 1655 near Weatherford College Wise County.
Addison’s mother — VCA volleyball coach Stacey Morales — had stopped on her way to work to get her daughter breakfast. She sat in standstill traffic caused by the wreck, unknowing what had happened before realizing one of the vehicles involved matched the one Addison drove.
“It was 7:01 a.m., and [Addison] was headed to tutorials,” Stacey said. “She had pulled off of 1655 onto 380, and got hit by a pickup truck. There was a broken-down 18-wheeler on 1655 that limited her view as she was pulling out. She got in line and was following what everyone else in front of her was doing, and just happened to be the unlucky one. I immediately looked at Life360, and I knew it was her.”
Stacey then contacted her husband Rick — owner of Rick’s Auto Repair and Towing in Bridgeport — to inform him of what had happened. She waited until Rick arrived before approaching the scene.
“It was my worst nightmare,” Stacey said. “Owning a wrecker service, we’ve seen wrecks like this for 34-plus years. We knew it was bad from what we saw when we pulled up. We didn’t even get to the ambulance because we wanted medical personnel to be able to do what they needed to do. They told us they were going to take her via CareFlite, which we took as a good sign — if it was worse, then they wouldn’t have done that.”
Addison was flown by Air Evac Lifeteam 68 to John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth. Arriving at the hospital, Stacey and Rick were told by doctors that Addison — who spent 11 of 12 days unconscious in the ICU — had suffered a traumatic brain injury, along with a fracture at the base of her skull, five broken ribs on her left side and sprained neck ligaments.
“There were a lot of unknowns, and we really didn’t know what to expect when we got to the hospital. We didn’t know if she was alive when we got there,” Stacey said. “It was just by God’s grace that she was alive. We had doctors and emergency medical people tell us that she should not be here. It’s only through God and prayers that she’s still with us.”
Addison’s brain injury required doctors to perform a craniotomy, removing part of the skull on her right side to allow the brain to swell due to the severity of the injury.
“The doctor knew [Addison] was a volleyball player, so they actually held off on doing the procedure for as long as they could,” Stacey said. “We actually had given them the OK to do whatever they needed to on the first day. They wanted to try to treat it with medicine instead of having to remove a piece of her skull, that way she might be able to go back to volleyball. It just came down to a point where they had to do it.”
She also faced a setback four days after the wreck which required a bedside operation for a collapsed left lung caused by one of her broken ribs.
“The doctors told us Addison had a very, very long road ahead of her,” Stacey said. “They didn’t know how how much she’d recover or what progress she’d be able to make. We were told that the progress she’d make over about a year would be as much as she would go.”
Watching over their daughter in the hospital room following the surgeries, Addison’s parents were relieved when she regained consciousness on Dec. 13. Three days later, she stood up and was able to take her first steps since the wreck.
The signs of improvement allowed Addison to move to the Progressive Care Unit (PCU), where she spent the next 11 days while undergoing speech, occupational and physical therapy.
“It was an absolute miracle that she woke up,” Stacey said. “She didn’t know where she was, but she recognized us, as well as friends and people that came to see her. You could tell that things weren’t still very clear in her mind. But she was able to squeeze peoples’ hands, make eye contact, give thumbs up and thumbs down and do some sign language like ‘I love you’… She took two little, tiny steps, and that was huge. We just cried tears of joy and praised God, giving Him all of the glory.”
The Moraleses made the decision to tell Addison about the events that had transpired. Instead of being confused about what occurred, Addison’s first thoughts were for the wellbeing of the occupants of the other vehicle.
“We did go ahead and let her know what happened, but didn’t give a lot of details,” Stacey said. “She asked about the other people, and we told her they were OK. We also told her it was going to be a long road for her, but she could recover and go back to live a normal life like she was.”
On Dec. 26, Addison boarded a private flight to Houston to continue her recovery at The Institute for Rehabilitation and Research (TIRR) at Memorial Hermann in Houston, a facility that treats patients with a range of disabilities such as brain injuries, spinal cord injuries and multiple traumas.
“The day after we got to Houston, [Addison] was able to write down what she wanted to say,” Stacey said. “Then on [Dec. 28], she said her first words. Rick and I just can’t get over the fact that she’s progressing like she is right now. We didn’t know if she survived the wreck, and now she’s working hard to get better every day. During her therapy [Monday], she was able to answer in complete sentences, walk a mile on the treadmill and climb six flights of stairs to her room. I believe it’s coming back, and it’s a lot faster than anyone could’ve imagined. But it’s still going to take some time.”
Similar to her effort on the court, Stacey believes Addison’s hard-nose work ethic — mixed in with prayers and support from family and friends — is fueling her daughter’s recovery progress.
“Addison’s had to work hard to get where she was on the volleyball court — she’s never been the tallest or the most athletic, but she always worked harder than everyone else. I think her fight and determination is what’s paying off for her right now.”
Stacey said the outpouring of love from VCA, Victory Church and the Wise County community has helped her family through the last month.
“It’s more than you can image,” she said. “There’s people from all over the United States and in other countries that have wished her well and told her they’re praying for her. We’re definitely seeing the results of those prayers right now.”
If her trajectory continues its current trend, Addison is projected to be released from TIRR Memorial Hermann on Jan. 30. She will then return to North Texas and undergo a procedure to reinsert the right side of her skull removed following the wreck, as well as additional therapy appointments.
“According to the doctors, she could be released completely about a year after the accident,” Stacey said. “They even said she could return to school part-time this year after they replace the piece of skull, and there’s no reason at all why she couldn’t be able to finish out her senior year next year. We haven’t given up hope that she could possibly play volleyball again — that’s something that’s really motivating her right now.”
Addison’s stats were impressive in her junior campaign, leading Wise County in aces with 125 on 530 total serves. She also was the VCA’s digs leader (548) and totaled 265 kills, 37 assists and 6.5 blocks, helping the Lady Patriots claim their first unbeaten league title and playoff win since joining TAPPS two years ago.
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