Published: May 27, 2008 06:28 pm            

MORRIS: Kids should be encouraged to participate

It’s a day I won’t soon forget. It’s been three years, but at times it seems like it just happened.

On March 30, 2005, my daughter, while practicing with her club volleyball team, was back peddling for a ball when she felt a sharp pain in her knee. A few weeks later, the pain was diagnosed as a tear in her anterior cruciate ligament.

She underwent surgery in May of that year and didn’t return to the volleyball court until late October, and that was on a limited basis. The bad in this story was that it was her senior year, and 95 percent of it was spent on the bench.

She was devastated. We were devastated. She loved to play and was excited about her final year of high school after a solid junior campaign. But her left knee just didn’t last.

She began playing club ball in sixth grade and continued to play until her injury.

Was it too much? Knees can only take so much pounding.

This past Sunday I wrote a story about the growth of club volleyball and how kids are playing volleyball almost year-round. Once the club season ends, the high school season begins.

Is it too much?

It’s not just volleyball, it’s all sports. The majority of kids are picking a sport — volleyball, soccer, basketball and swimming — at an early age and specializing in that sport. I don’t know about you, but that’s not the way it was in my youth.

We went with the season. If it was cold, we were playing football or basketball. If it was hot, it was time to dig out the glove and bat.

There are no seasons anymore. If you are good at a sport, you are expected to play that sport in order to play for your school team or possibly at the college level. It’s like an unwritten rule, and the kids know it.

Is it a bad thing?

I don’t think it’s a bad thing, but I do think kids should be encouraged to play more than one sport — if they choose. They should not be discouraged.

I think playing more than one sport helps build other muscles, which may prevent certain injuries — like ACL tears. I think it also helps kids stay fresh.

Also, playing one sport all the time can lead to burnout.

I think coaches should encourage kids to play other sports, or get them involved in an off-season training program that can also help strengthen leg and arm muscles. Most already do that.

Playing team sports can provide great lessons in life. From learning how to lose and win as a team, building friendships and learning that life is not always fair. But no matter what curve ball is thrown at you, you have to get up, dust off the hurt, and get on with life. That’s one of the lessons my daughter had to learn at a young age.

The important thing is for kids to enjoy what they are doing, whether that means playing 12 months of volleyball or mixing in a little basketball and tennis.

Contact Chris Morris at chris.morris@newsandtribune.com.

        

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