As winter sports season comes to a close and spring season is just around the corner, the risk of injury in high school sports remains.

“Teen athletes are injured at the same rate as professional athletes,” according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, or AAOS. U.S. Center for Disease Control, CDC, cites that high school athletes account for an estimated 2 million injuries and 500,000 doctor visits each year. If that statistic wasn’t enough to raise your eyebrows, ask any athlete at Air Academy where they spend most of their time before and after practice.

The answer is almost always “Bethany’s”. Whether they’re refilling a water bottle, grabbing ice, or getting their ankle taped, Bethany’s is a hot spot for student athletes throughout the school year.

Often times injuries can be a true test of an athlete’s determination and can even cause some athletes to stop playing the sport they love. While these injuries can deter from one’s ability to participate they can also result in new lessons and newfound passions.

Brandon Salamon and Max Raber were both leaders on the football team when injuries sidelined them during their senior season. Brandon received a torn labrum and partial rotator cuff tear during a hitting drill in practice during his junior year. Max on the other hand, was injured the summer before his senior season, tearing his ACL. While both were injured in different ways, the lessons they learned were similar.

“My injury opened my eyes up to bigger things other than football and it taught me to look at things with a different point of view,” said Max, regarding one of the most valuable lessons he learned from his injury.

“I learned to always have a backup plan and to always have a good character no matter what,” Brandon states about learning a similar lesson.

Often times bouncing back from an injury can be extremely difficult, not only on the field but in regard to one’s attitude.

“Not being able to play lacrosse while all my teammates could really sucked because all I wanted was to join them,”  Sam Valtin said, recounting the hardest part of being injured.

As difficult as being sidelined is on young athletes, the extra time they sometimes acquire can lead to new hobbies and redirected focus. The standard of focus in high level athletes can be helpful when redirected.

“I supported my lacrosse team from the side line and took time to work more in school,” Sam says, relating to her extra time.

“I filled my free time by spending time with my friends and helping out as much as I could with the football team,” Max says, showing he had a similar outlook to Sam.

However devastating injuries may seem at the time, there is always a metaphorical light at the end of a tunnel. Religiously participating in assigned and unassigned physical therapy is a sure fire way to return to action in a timely fashion. No matter how desperately one wants to return to running or high impact sports, listening to a doctor’s orders will help to ensure a safe and timely recovery.

As winter season draws to a close, make sure to catch the boys’ varsity basketball team on February 7^th at 7pm against Vista Ridge and girls’ varsity basketball team on February 9^th. Try your hand at spring sports with tryouts starting February 26^th. Hope to see you out there, Kadets!