Fall sports are now in full swing; the fans roar as the ball sails into the back of the net, a blindingly fast wide receiver touches down in the endzone and a runner crosses the finish line in record time. All of these are telltale signs of success, signs that send shockwaves of enthusiasm throughout both the teams and their loyal supporters. Yet there are those who feel left out, who yearn to contribute but are held back by devastating physical restrictions. With discouraging melancholy, they watch from the benches with a common hindrance; all are housing a myriad of athletic injuries.
Currently, nearly every program at the high school is home to at least several players with injuries, ranging from concussions to torn ACL’s. In fact, many of these athletes either captain or are integral parts of their respective teams. Yet while the word ‘injury’ has primarily negative connotations in the world of sports, the high school’s athletes have validated the ability to maintain leadership qualities while being sidelined and recognize that their leave has allowed teammates new chances to step up.
Senior Chris Hopkins, tri-captain of the Boy’s Cross Country team, has been out with stress fractures in his shins for over a month and will remain unable to participate for the final stretch of the season. In light of this, he still finds ways to encourage his teammates and persist at being a strong captain.
“I still can tell people what to do, but I can’t be with them when they’re doing the workouts, doing the hard stuff. But when they’re with me I can still motivate and support them. Not as much leading by example, but being a vocal leader,” Hopkins said.
Hopkins continues to attend practices and meets, which allows him to uphold his ability to motivate his teammates even if he cannot contribute point-wise.
Junior goalie for Girl’s Varsity Soccer, Simone St. Pierre, experienced a far more abnormal injury than stress fractures. While filling in for senior keeper Gabby Rizika, who was out with a concussion, against Newton North, she stopped a breakaway and hit her knee at an awkward angle. At first she believed it was a bruise, before looking down to find that the bone in her knee was visible through her torn skin. The self-described “freak accident” has led to St. Pierre being unavailable for three weeks.
Unlike Hopkins, St. Pierre is not allowed to attend practices, due to the coach’s worry that having injured players present may yield distractions and ultimately detrimental results. However, she said she still exhibits leadership qualities during games, providing much needed support from the bench while nursing the injury in her knee.
“It’s become not so much on the field kind of leading, but leading from the bench, when your teammate is feeling rough and you say ‘good job,’” St. Pierre said. “It’s more mental leadership, keeping things positive and at games helping out in little ways like getting the balls or filling up the waters.”
Both Hopkins and St. Pierre validate that while an injury may lessen athletic activity, it does not necessarily impact strong and active leadership. However, the preservation of leadership qualities is not all that the school’s injured athletes have demonstrated; the absence of an instrumental player can force others to step up and work even harder than before.
Junior Jeffrey Santos, the primary running back for the Boy’s Varsity Football team, has undergone a rare and severe injury even for such a high contact sport. As he ran up the sideline, an opponent hit Santos, causing him to tear his ACL, MCL, PCL, meniscus, dislocate his kneecap and bruise the bottom of his knee. Even with an upcoming surgery this November, Santos has been sidelined for sixteen months, which equates to the entirety of both this year’s and next year’s seasons.
While Santos is clearly unsettled by his injury, when asked who has risen to the occasion, he said players such as senior Bruce Phok and juniors Max Bochman and Kay Takanami have all stepped up and performed even better than they had previously.
“Bruce took over the whole running back scene and Max really stepped up at safety,” Santos said.
Senior captain of Boys Varsity Soccer, Toma Beit-Arie, is out with a concussion after being elbowed while going up for a header and is agitated by his inability to contribute to the team, which is heading into the playoffs with a winning record.
“It’s frustrating especially since we’ve put so much work in as a team throughout the season, throughout the summer; it’s really frustrating not being able to be a part of it,” Beit-Arie said.
Despite evident discontent with his lingering injury, Beit-Arie said he has faith in his teammates to fulfill the ambitious goals of the program this year, until he returns after the three weeks he has been out.
“It all depends on how much work everyone else puts in and everyone on the team has worked hard this whole season, to step up when something like this happens,” Beit-Arie said.
All four upperclassmen and varsity athletes portrayed how to deal positively with an injury, not allowing it to hinder their leadership abilities and seeing the benefits of allowing teammates to step up and succeed in their absences. But ultimately, like all injured athletes, their hearts are driven on returning to their pitches, fields and courses.
“When I first got hurt, I thought, at least I have more time for homework. But now, I find that in the few hours I’ve gained, that I just don’t do anything; I procrastinate even more than normal,” St. Pierre said. “It also gets kind of lonely; all your friends are going to practice and you just go home after a while. It gets a lot less glamorous than it seems.”
St. Pierre disregards the theory that not having a sport to discipline you after school gives you more time for social and academic pursuits; instead, she makes it clear that participating in one of the high school’s many teams will force students to focus more. For this reason and many more, St. Pierre, Santos, Hopkins and Beit-Arie are all intent on healing as soon as possible, because even though they have all mastered vocal leadership from the bench, they are keen on returning to the physical aspect of ‘lead by example.’
Jake Brodsky can be contacted at [email protected]
