WSC Volleyball -- Senior Night 9/28!!!

It is only September but it is the last home game for Westfield State Volleyball tomorrow against MCLA. For the five seniors to the left, this may be the last game they ever get to play in the Woodward Center (unless we go undefeated and hold the MASCAC tournament). Please come support your favorite volleyball girls in their second conference game of the season!

It is also Breast Cancer Awareness so the theme is DIG PINK! When you attend try to wear something pink to support breast cancer. We are trying to raise at least $500 dollars for the cause.

GO OWLS!!!

Team Bonding

Volleyball is the type of sport that is physically draining but also emotionally draining. Keeping up with psychological health is very important for team chemistry. Every player on the court needs to be attuned with one another in order to play together, communicate and win the point. Relating to one another, expressing goals and creating a healthy social atmosphere on and off the court can mean everything for a team's success.

In the picture above it shows the Westfield State Volleyball team before a game doing a traditional goal setting exercise to get pumped up as well as focused. Having rituals helps with game flow and anxiety. Giving everyone an opportunity to speak shows equity and team support.

There are a lot of team bonding activities that can be done before, during or after practice too. Challenges that are less physical and more mental can really help with team communication. One example is an activity called "The Magic Boot". The point of this game is to get every member of the team from one sideline to the other. The obstacle is that only person that can cross the middle is the person wearing the magic boots. This person can only cross over once and then the boots must be worn by somebody else. This activity can be quite physical at times but takes a lot of thought and cooperation.

Another team bonding activity is what I like to call the caterpillar. All the members of the team have to have the sides of their feet touching at all times. If this "bond" is broken the team must start over. The object of the game is to move from one sideline to the next by sidestepping as a team without coming apart. It is much harder than it sounds.

Outside of practice, teams may want to have pasta parties or get together for a fun, relaxing night. This will decrease stress and anxiety levels as well as create a nice team bond off the court. Also, completing a physical task such as hiking as a team will make team members feel successful while getting a great work out. Below is a picture of the Westfield State Volleyball team after making it to the top of a mountain on a 3 mile uphill journey.



Without training the mental, social and emotional aspect of health and sport, a team may not be playing to the best of their ability. Volleyball requires great mental and emotional function and without a good team chemistry, a team can fall apart.

Volleyball Injuries

There are two types or categories of injuries an athlete can get from playing volleyball: overuse or acute.

An overuse injury, also known as a cumulative injury is caused by consistent strain and exertion to a joint or muscle. The constant stress put on the muscle or joint without time for healing starts out as a small pain or discomfort and after time results in a serious injury if not treated properly. Common overuse injuries occur in the shoulder or rotator cuff, elbow, wrist, achilles tendon, osteoarthritis of the knee and pain in the lower and upper back.

An acute injury is also called a traumatic injury meaning a sudden, dramatic incident has occurred to a part of the body. Common acute injuries in volleyball are torn rotator cuff, shoulder dislocation, wrist and ankle sprains, broken fingers, achilles tendon rupture and hamstring pulls/tears.

A major traumatic injury that is very common for volleyball players are knee injuries such as a torn ligaments. The ACL and PCL are the easiest and most common to injure. The reason knee injuries are so prevalent is due to the quickness of the sport and the constant change of direction. There is a lot of stop and go that the knee needs to adjust to and sometimes the body keeps going when the knee does not.

To avoid these injuries it is necessary to get a good warm up and stay hydrated. Wearing shoes specified for the sport of volleyball is beneficial due to its design for change of direction. Keeping the court clean and dry will also help prevent injuries. Many injuries happen when opposing players are at the net and accidently land on eachother's feet. Playing by the rules and keeping a fair distance from the net will help prevent many foot. ankle and knee injuries. Heating prior to play and icing after will aid in the recovery of overuse injuries.

Some of the ideas in this article were supported by:
http://sportsmedicine.about.com/od/volleyballinjuries/a/vb_injuries.htm

FIRST WSC MASCAC VOLLEYBALL GAME SATURDAY 9/19!!!

Come support your favorite volleyball girls as they face Salem State College in the first conference game of the season! The team plays at a higher level when fans are there to cheer! There are only 2 home games left so don't miss your chance to see us bump, set, spike, win! Do your part to be a "super-fan" this year!!!

Start of Game: 1pm - Saturday 9/19 at the Woodward Center

Static vs Dynamic Stretching

Many sports teams are switching from static stretches to what is known as dynamic flex. Dynamic stretching is different than static stretching in the fact that a steady position is not held for a period of time. Instead, athletes are to use movement patterns and active muscle movements to prepare for activity. Kicking actions for the hamstrings as seen in the picture is one great stretch as well as arm circles while skipping, forward lunges with a full body twist, backward open skips and side lunges while in motion to add only a few.

The reason for this change is that this type of muscle preparation is useful for warming up the muscles for explosive and powerful movements. This is why many volleyball teams, especially at the collegiate level have made this switch. It still reduces the tightness of muscles so that tears and other injuries are prevented. Static stretching has actually been clinically proven to be worse for power athletes due to its cause of decrease in range of motion.

To see more detailed descriptions of different types of dynamic stretches check out this page:

http://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com/dynamic-stretches.html