As athletes, we all have to deal with injuries, whether they are big or small. Whether our injury is minor, or season-ending, we all have a story to share to others of how we overcame it, and what we learned.
Allison Benton played volleyball at Catawba College, a Division II institution in Salisbury, North Carolina. She had a great volleyball career, but faced a big obstacles through a season-ending injury. Here is her story.
It’s a long frustrating road, but getting to play again is so worth it.
Allison Benton
Can you briefly describe your injury?
“So I was a senior in high school when I tore my ACL playing in a club volleyball tournament in Orlando. I was going to hit a volleyball and I landed on a girl’s foot.”
“The athletic trainer at the tournament checked me out but because I was in pain, she could not test my ACL properly. I had to wait a couple of days to see the doctor and get an MRI to confirm I had torn my ACL.”
“Once we got my MRI results, I was able to schedule a surgery. Since I was a senior, and club volleyball was about to end, I decided to push my surgery so that I could go to prom and participate in other senior activities. I got my surgery in the beginning of May.”
How did it affect your volleyball career?
“Obviously my club career was over. That was pretty hard, because I had played for that club since I was nine, and had a lot of the same teammates since I started.”
“I had a scholarship to play at Catawba College and my coach was actually supposed to watch me play that next weekend. I called her and told her about my injury and luckily she was extremely supportive. We set it up so that I would medically redshirt my freshman year of college, which means I could still play for four years.”
“There’s no great time to have a serious injury, but I only ended up missing a little bit of club volleyball, and still got my full college years.”
How long were you out of playing for?
“Typically with an ACL injury, you’re out of full volleyball play for five to six months, but since I pushed my surgery back a month, I didn’t play for 7 months.”
“Like I said before though, I only missed about a month of club volleyball and still got four years of college. I was also able to do some basic volleyball drills towards the end of my rehab. I went to every practice and played with a volleyball just sitting down.”
Can you briefly describe your rehabilitation?
“I actually did rehab before surgery because I waited a month. They were trying to strengthen the muscles around my knee so they would be strong for surgery and help me get back faster. I physically went to rehab twice a week before surgery, but did exercises on my own everyday. I definitely think that helped a lot, because I had full range of motion before surgery.”
“The first week after surgery, I went to rehab four times. Because of my exercises before surgery, I was able to put weight on my leg pretty early. After that week, I went twice a week.
“At the beginning rehab was very basic, and I literally just lifted my leg in the air on a table. The only other exercise I remember during the beginning was trying to make my leg bend as far as I could. It was pretty boring.”
“Eventually, I got to ride a stationary bike and do strength exercises like squats and lunges. Once I got to college, I did rehab once a day, sometimes twice a day. As I progressed, I did more and more exercises, and eventually got to run and jump.”
What were the biggest struggles you faced when recovering from your injury?
“At the beginning, probably pain and frustration. It’s hard to explain the inability to bend your knee. Later on though, I just really missed playing. I had a great support system, which I feel is really important.”
What motivated you to return to the court?
“I think starting college was a great motivation. When I was done with rehab, I was coming back to something new. I had new teammates and coaches, so it was pretty exciting.
“But mainly, I just wanted to play again. I had played volleyball for 9 years, pretty much year-around. This was the longest I had ever been away from it.”
What is the biggest lesson you learned from suffering your injury?
“Patience. I had injuries throughout my volleyball career, but never for this long. I was used to pushing through the pain and “just playing,” but you really can’t do that with a torn ACL.”
What is your best advice to athletes who are recovering from an injury?
“Honestly, you will get through this. Find a way to stay connected to your sport. I sat on the floor and played with a volleyball. I went to all of the games and practices that I didn’t participate in, so I was still around my teammates.
“Take it one day at a time, and lean on the people around you. It’s a long frustrating road, but getting to play again is so worth it.”
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