SPORTS & REC
TURNING INJURIES INTO LEARNING EXPERIENCES
A
ny athlete who has been injured has the ultimate goal of recovering quickly and returning to the field of competition with their team. Sometimes athletes don’t get the opportunity to return to competition with their team after they get injured. That is what happened to senior women’s soccer player Sunny Gelnovatch last fall.
BY MARIO COSENTINO
“As an athlete it's one of the hardest things you go through, to be injured,” Gelnovatch said. “Unfortunately, it's the truth when you play for four years at that high of a level, training four times a day along with two games during that week, you’re gonna get injured.” Gelnovatch, a standout midfielder and All-American for Messiah, saw her season come to an end after she suffered a torn ACL during the Sweet Sixteen against Trinity University. She came back in the second half of the game but was taken out because her movement in her knee was limited. The Falcons went on to win the game and proceeded to play in the Elite Eight the next day. Gelnovatch tried to warm up and that was when her ACL tore completely. Even though this prevented her from playing in the final few games of the season, she refocused and kept a positive mindset for her team. “I had to take a step back, and I had to say ‘my role on this team is different now, so I’m gonna do that to the best of my ability,’ because it may be different than what I’m used to as a leader but it’s equally as important,” Gelnovatch said.
30
MARCH 2020
