Jake Thibeault walks across stage at Milton Academy graduation months after suffering spinal injury

BOSTON -- Jake Thibeault, the Milton Academy hockey player who suffered a severe spinal cord injury during a game last year, walked across the stage on Friday to accept his high school diploma.

He received a standing ovation from the audience as he fought for each one of the steps.

Thibeault was one of the top high school hockey prospects in New England before his injury. He played at Milton Academy and for a private club called the Boston Bulldogs.

During a regional hockey tournament, Thibeault went into the boards and was partially paralyzed from the waist down. He spent the following days arduously rehabbing at Journey Forward in Canton and Spaulding Rehab in Charlestown.

Doctors weren't sure if he would walk again, but Thibeault put in the work at rehab and got back into the classroom to be ready for Friday's moment. 

He also received Milton Academy's Head of School Award for demonstrating qualities such as self-sacrifice, community concern, and leadership.