The function of the appendix has baffled doctors and scientists. No one needs it to live, and for most people the finger-sized body part lives in peace attached to the large intestine. When it gets infected, however, the body goes to war with itself, and sophomore tennis player Miko Caruk discovered this pain firsthand.

University of Montana men’s tennis head coach Kris Nord was walking his yellow lab March 3 up the Rattlesnake when he got a text from player Carl Kuschke, alerting him that Caruk was at the hospital. The whole team knew about Caruk, but practice still had to go on.

By midpractice, it was confirmed that Caruk, who had no idea what was going on with his body, needed an appendectomy.

“To be honest, I thought it was food poisoning,” Caruk said. “It was just pain in the bottom of my tummy.”

The pain had started on Friday and Caruk’s girlfriend finally took him to the hospital the next day on March 3. The Warsaw, Poland, native was checked into a hospital for the first time in his life at Community Medical Center in need of surgery. He tried calling his parents (who are eight hours ahead) and ended up contacting his brother Pawel to pass on the news.

After a successful surgery, Nord and some of the other members of the team visited Caruk at the hospital, where he was in good spirits. Caruk spent the next week in bed, resting and doing homework for his communications major.

A week later, Caruk began practicing with the team, and three weeks after the surgery he competed in Portland, Ore., against Portland State. The team swept Portland 7-0 and Caruk aided in the victory. He won his No. 2 singles match and teamed up with junior Andrew Warren to win their doubles match.

Since Portland, Caruk has helped Montana in reaching school history. After beating Sacramento State on April 8, the team extended its winning streak to eight matches, clinched one of four spots in the Big Sky Championship, and improved to 6-0 in conference play for the first time in school history.

Slowly Caruk has been regaining his strength and practicing more and more with the team. He said Nord would not let him practice the full two hours, and he rebuilt his stamina in stages. As soon as he was able, Caruk started using a stationary bicycle to keep up his energy, and spent time with the team even when he was not practicing.

The Atlantic Ocean separates Caruk from his family in Poland, but the men’s tennis team in Montana has become his second family. There are players from the states on the team along with other foreign players from Sweden and South Africa. He said throughout the whole process his team members were there visiting and playing the role of his family.

“He brings a lot of diversity to the team being Polish,” Nord said. “He has a different sense of humor. That’s really changed in the two years he’s been here and he’s really grown, I think, with getting to be a part of this team where he feels like he belongs.”

alexandria.valdez@umontana.edu