Athletes suffer from injuries

At South Hadley High, many of our athletes have taken time off due to injuries. Athletes have sat out from practices and games, from a couple days to a couple of months.

Sophomore Haley Asselin overused her knee in one of her basketball practices and found out she had patella femoral syndrome on her right knee. However, it had no effect after she returned to playing. Asselin has had past injures with her knee and has had to wear a brace. Haley said she was attending a camp weeks before she found out about the condition, and when she went up for a layup, she twisted and fell awkwardly. She ended up dislocating her kneecap at the basketball camp. Haley said “I was pretty mad I had to sit out, I was annoyed.” She is still continuing to play basketball this season with no other injuries with her knee.

A few weeks before Bishop was injured, senior Peter Luchini slightly tore his MCL during a game this season. Luchini did not have to go to the hospital, but said he went to Ally Maynard the school trainer. He was hit by a helmet to his knee, forcing him to sit out for three to four weeks while wearing a brace to help the healing process, as well as doing some light running. Once Luchini returned to playing, he had to be careful, knowing his limits as to what to do. Luchini said  “I was annoyed about having to sit out of most games.”

Senior, Merry Kocot broke her finger in a field hockey game against West Springfield. A player from the other team hit a drive, causing the ball to fly in the air to land on Kocot’s hand. When Kocot exited the field, she was told to go to the hospital. She ended up missing two regular season games and wore a splint on her finger. When Kocot returned to the playing field, it was harder for her to handle a stick and get back to her style of playing. Kocot said “I was pretty mad I had to sit out and annoyed because it was my senior year.”

Sophomore Libby Mercier was in a cheerleading practice doing a forward roll jump hurdle round off. Mercier said she remembered seeing her shoulder pop out when practicing. After it happened Mercier was hurt and ended up going to New England Orthopedic Surgeon (NEOS) and learned that she subluxated her right shoulder. Mercier was hard to replace, especially around the time of competitions and States. Mercier had to sit out for two months and attended physical therapy. She stated: “I was sad when I got hurt because I made the competition team and couldn’t compete, but I did in States. I couldn’t do any stunting or tumbling because my shoulder was sore.” Libby had to wear a sling and wear kinesthetic tape to protect her shoulder.

Nick Bishop, a junior, had an accident in a football practice and broke his fibula. After the hit, he went to the hospital and was put in a cast and a wheelchair. Bishop was told he had to sit out for six to eight weeks and has to attend physical therapy. “I was pretty mad I couldn’t play,” said Bishop, when he found out he had to sit out the rest of the football season and basketball season.