Since coming to Penn State, Debbie O'Brien has visited the bars quite frequently -- that is, until she had a bad experience one night.

It wasn't at the Rathskeller or the Surf Club. It was at the uneven bars. At the Purina Cat Classic at Missouri last season, she tore the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee on her dismount.

"I was totally devastated," O'Brien said. "I was in total shock."

For the "worst pain she has ever felt," O'Brien required surgery which replaced the opening in her ligament with a piece of her patella (knee) tendon.

At first, O'Brien didn't know if she could return to gymnastics because she heard that some people never return from such a severe injury.

"I didn't want to think about gymnastics because I couldn't even walk," O'Brien said.

Although she spent two months on crutches, O'Brien started her rehabilitation the first day after her surgery. Day in, day out, starting at 6:30 a.m., she rode a stationary bike for a half hour, conditioned her knee for strength, iced it, kept a progression chart, and rode the stationary bike again at night for a half hour.

She also received electronic stimulation on her knee. Technicians placed little pads directly on her knee, and the electric current flowing through them caused her whole leg muscles to contract involuntarily in a way which she described as a "little shock" which was "pretty neat."

Nevertheless, O'Brien is back. Not only is she back in competition, but she is competing in the all-around and serving as the team captain.

"I think it's a real credit to her that she's back, a credit to her hard work and dedication," Coach Judi Avener said. "I think your average athlete wouldn't have made it this far."

Although O'Brien credits her return to many people such as her teammates, coaches, family, and boyfriend (who happens to be Drew Van Winkle, captain of the Penn State swim team), the center of her life contributed the most to her recovery -- God. When she doubted the worth of her rehabilitation and questioned her comeback, she turned to Him and made a commitment.

"Personally, God was everything," O'Brien said. "That was the deciding factor. God is the most important part of my life."

God also forms an important part of her family's life. She comes from a "huge Baptist background" which includes many missionaries in the family and a grandfather who is a Baptist minister.

Although O'Brien always wanted to be an ice skater when she was little and took lessons, her mom did not take it seriously and the lessons were expensive. So she turned to gymnastics. O'Brien first began taking gymnastics classes (for the vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor exercise) at the YMCA at age 9.

"I started getting into wanting to tumble," O'Brien said. "I started jumping on beds and broke a couple. My mom put me into some classes right away."

From the YMCA O'Brien went to a private club. The YMCA was small, O'Brien was getting better and better, and because she wanted to be serious about gymnastics, she decided to go all out.

Her family could not afford to pay the tuition for her gymnastics club, so O'Brien's mother worked as a receptionist in the gym. Later on, O'Brien taught classes to earn her tuition.

Her classes have paid off. She won fourth place in the all-around at the 1987 NCAA Northeast Regional Championships, runner-up in the all-around at the 1987 Atlantic 10 Conference Championships, Pennsylvania state all-around champion in 1982 and runner-up in 1983. She also led her high school team to the state championship in 1985.

But a fifth place finish stands out the most in O'Brien's mind. In 1984, at 16, she competed in a regional meet where the top six finishers went to the Nationals in Los Angeles. At a meet where she considered herself a "no-name," she took fifth place and earned a trip to her first national competition and her first plane ride.

"It was so neat, I was dying," she said.

Her performance at the Nationals went right along with the big city and the big competition.

"I think I got fifteenth out of 70 girls. That was a biggie," O'Brien said.

Although she has never considered herself a powerhouse gymnast and says that she is not a naturally talented athlete, when competition time rolls around, O'Brien is ready.

"I love gymnastics. I love competition. I thrive on competition," she said with a big smile.

O'Brien's not a cutthroat, she's not out for blood or personal glory. She's out to beat herself. She has expectations and has a difficult time accepting anything less than her best.

"I have a hard time with saying, 'Oh, that was stupid,' " O'Brien said.

In the same way that she hates letting herself down, O'Brien hates letting her teammates and coaches down. A team player, she has always helped her teammates.

"She's always there for people," senior gymnast Kathy Parody said. "She's always there to stand by and watch over you."

The watcher just might be the watched this season as many eyes follow her throughout the conclusion of her outstanding career at Penn State.

"She sparkles when she performs and she sparkles as a person," Avener said. "I can't wait to see her sparkle out there."