Week Four Preview: Time for injury prevention and management
As the League One Volleyball season heads into its fourth week, no team is unbeaten. There are four more matches on tap – one in Madison and three in Atlanta – and as the wear and tear of the campaign take effect, players throughout LOVB are grateful to have Katherine Henry, LOVB’s Head of Pro Health and Wellness on their side.
Injuries, for example, are not if but when in volleyball.
"I'd love if," Katherine said with a laugh, "but that's not real life."
But, as she added, "overall in health and wellness, I think we've done pretty well."
Our visit with her follows a quick preview of the upcoming contests. After three weeks, here's how the teams stand:
- LOVB Omaha (3-1)
- LOVB Atlanta (2-1)
- LOVB Houston (2-2)
- LOVB Salt Lake (2-2)
- LOVB Austin (2-2)
- LOVB Madison (1-4)
Madison's Sarah Franklin, fresh off her Wisconsin season, leads the league in kills with 68. Salt Lake veteran Roni Jones-Perry is next with 56, one ahead of Madison's Claire Chaussee.
Austin’s Chiaka Ogbogu, who led the Olympics in blocks last summer in Paris, leads LOVB with 19. Omaha's Candelaria Herrera and Atlanta's Tia Jimerson are tied for second with 12 each.
Houston's Micha Hancock leads with nine aces, but Madison's Taylor Sandbothe closed the gap last week and has eight, two more than Omaha's Jordan Larson.
Madison libero Simin Wang leads with 73 kills, one more than Salt Lake's Manami Kojima. Madison setter Lauren Carlini, the only one of the top five in digs who is not a libero, is third with 70. Lauren also leads in assists with 218, 40 more than Salt Lake's Jordyn Poulter.
LOVB Houston at LOVB Madison
This week's head-to-head match features LOVB Houston at LOVB Madison with a 7 p.m. Central start that can be seen on LOVB Live.
LOVB Houston, playing Madison for the first time, is coming off a four-set loss last Wednesday at Salt Lake. Houston setter Micha Hancock and opposite Jordan Thompson have been Olympic teammates with Madison setter Lauren Carlini and opposite Annie Drews. Jess Mruzik, who just last month won the NCAA title with Penn State, leads Houston with 54 kills.
Madison, relying heavily on the 1-2 punch of outsides Sarah Franklin and Claire Chaussee, is coming off a tough week three in which it lost in four to Omaha and then in five to Atlanta.
LOVB Salt Lake at LOVB Atlanta
This is a rematch of League One Volleyball’s First Serve when Salt Lake won in four at Atlanta on January 8. Roni Jones-Perry lit it up with 23 kills and Heidy Casanova added 22 as their team came away with a 25-22, 27-25 21-25, 25-21 win in the Gateway Center Arena.
They're back in Gateway for a 7:30 p.m. Eastern Friday start that can be seen on ESPN+.
LOVB Salt Lake has not played since defeating Houston last Wednesday while Atlanta is coming off an exhilarating five-set victory at Madison on Saturday. McKenzie Adams had 17 kills and libero Piyanut Pannoy was named player of the match – and later defensive player of the week – after making 21 digs and three assists.
Saturday's doubleheader
All eyes again will be on the Gateway Center on Saturday. LOVB Austin plays LOVB Salt Lake at 4:30 p.m. Eastern on LOVB Live, followed by LOVB Omaha vs. LOVB Atlanta, also on LOVB Live.
Keeping LOVB healthy
When Katherine Henry came on board, there was a lot to do to be ready to keep LOVB athletes healthy.
"We were starting from scratch," Katherine recalled. "We had to make sure we rose to the occasion and to meet the mission and vision of the team and make it happen in less than 12 months in six cities."
Finding staff and building protocols were at the top of the list.
"And we had to fill partnerships along with facilities," Katherine said. "All related to their care, physical health, mental health, all of it."
Katherine, whose athletic training background includes more than eight years with USA Rugby, hired not just athletic trainers for each team, but also a strength-and-conditioning coach for each team, and medical partnerships to ensure physician and massage-therapy access in each city.
"It's been really fun seeing it come to fruition," Katherine said.
The fitness and training levels of the players heading into this season varied quite a bit. Some were coming off NCAA seasons and others played in Athletes Unlimited last fall. Some hadn't competed since last spring and others played into the summer with their respective national teams.
"It's definitely a mix and that's a conversation we had across the board, not just from me. Tom Hogan (LOVB Vice President of Sport) had that vision even before I came on board, to change how things are done and know that overloading and over-training cause more injuries and wears them down and we're trying to show that you don't necessarily have to do that and still be very, very successful and put a great product on the floor."
Injuries, of course, happen.
"Obviously we'd like to prevent anything and everything, but that's not real life. And I guess I'd be out of a job if we prevented everything," Katherine said with a laugh.
"We’re starting to see some wear and tear, but it's interesting because our athletes' training volume is not nearly as high as when they've been playing overseas. It'll be interesting to see as the season goes on how that changes for players. So far, we've got bumps and bruises and wear and tear, but everyone is getting what they need and we're keeping as many as possible out on the court."
