Who’s on the “injured list?

This archived article was written by: Kameron King

Who’s on the “injured list?”
Kameron King
sports writer
[email protected]
Many athletes prepare and get pumped for season, but as most know, athletes get injured while preparing for their season. Athletes hate getting injured, but also love pushing themselves and realize injuries come and go.
Like in all sports, injuries can and will always play a role in a team’s season. Basketball injuries happen on a daily basis, usually occurring while playing or practicing. Some common basketball injuries are ankle sprains, jammed fingers, torn up knees, bruises and much more. Many of these accidents happen outside of the sport, but are more common while on the court.
As the NJCAA basketball season started, many teams started their seasons off great and had many healthy players. For the Utah State University Eastern Eagles, their men’s and women’s teams battled injuries throughout the season. Some were minor and some were season-ending injuries.
Many players are not suiting up for the games, not because they are not good enough to play, but because they are on the “injured list.” The Eagles men’s basketball team was the most affected by injuries as they entered post-season play with seven healthy players.
For the USU Eastern women’s basketball team, they had four players affected by injuries. Caroline Ficher tore her ACL, while trying out for the Brazilian Jr. National team. Morgan Campbell also tore her ACL just before the first games, but will return next year. Returning sophomore and leading rebounder and scorer, Whitney Fieldsted, broke her ankle and missed most of the regular season. Isabela Costa missed preseason with stress fractures, but was back for the regular season.
The USU Eastern men’s team had four injuries that left them low on players. Travon Langston broke his left hand, and was out for the season. BJ Day tore his meniscus and was out for the entire season. Vitor Machado has a type-2 joint shoulder sprain, and was out six weeks. Mike Stroud broke his patella and partially tore his ACL, putting him on the bench for the remainder of the season.
Even though no one likes injuries, they happen to everyone. All teams have cases of injuries in some way or another. Some are minor and some are season ending. Injuries to Eagle basketball players left benches nearly empty.
As many of the athletes sit out with injuries, they feel pressure and sadness feeling like they let their team down. The Eagles men and women’s injured players are relieved knowing their injuries are not too serious; which lets them realize they will heal and once again be able to play the game they love.