Plastered throughout news broadcasts, books and other media are the effects and dangers of concussions. Sports are the cause of most concussions in children, and parents and coaches are becoming more and more informed on this growing topic. One sport that is nearly concussion-free is wrestling. However, these athletes face a number of other hardships and injuries.
“Ankles, to necks, to backs and, not often, but head injuries, too,” Athletic Trainer Vince Sinovic said. “They get them all because they use so many muscles in so many positions.”
The season has already yielded one injury: Sophomore Louis Dubovi suffered a broken finger.
In the past, FHS wrestlers faced numerous knee injuries of the ligaments and bones, some leading to surgeries. Senior Lane Ward repeatedly suffered from knee injuries,having his meniscus torn. He then had surgery to remove the cartilage from one knee.
Four-year letterman and 2013 graduate Boe Bonzo had a similar fate ending in a surgery. Though they stretch thoroughly before practices and matches, injuries still arise.
Wrestling is a physically demanding sport. Stress is added over all parts of the body, even the ear. Though the athletes in no way use their ears to pin an opponent, they surely can take a beating. 2013 graduate Tyler Cousins suffered from cauliflower ear which is extreme bruising and damage to the ear cartilage causing inflammation. Most cases result in surgery to drain the fluids that pool in the ear. Sometimes, special casts are made to reform the ear to its normal shape. In order to prevent this injury, players are required to wear special headgear that provides full ear coverage.
Not only do wrestlers face injuries resulting from stress, but also from bacteria and viruses. In addition to earlier diagnosis of MRSA, two players caught ringworm this December. The team believes that the fungus was transferred to the skin after wrestling on Chartiers Valley’s wrestling mats. Contrary to popular belief, ringworm is not caused by or transferred by a worm. The term actually depicts a possible side effect; sometimes the skin can be inflamed in the shape of a ring. This infection is so popular that those who have it tend not to be concerned.
“If you treat it, it goes away over a week at most,” Freshman Austin Alberts said. The two diagnosed with ringworm are Alberts and Freshman Dean Ward. In order to assure the bacteria would not spread, both ran on the treadmills and continued their training separate from their teammates.
Other popular infections brought upon wrestlers are herpes simplex and impetigo.
When injuries and infections affect the team, the players say it holds them back. When this happens to a player, “most people sit out, they get out of shape, then they lose and the team loses,” Alberts said.
Dean Ward explained that, when the wrestlers have one of these setbacks, the team is forced to forfeit the points, therefore giving them to the opponent.
This is especially disheartening to the athletes because, when this happens, they have no choice but to sit out.
Though many injuries may plague the players this season, they are still hopeful. “[The season] looks pretty promising because we have a lot of different people in a lot of different weight classes,” Alberts said.
Their next match against Central Valley will be at 7 p.m. on Dec. 30 at FHS.