UPDATE: Amelia Renner saw a pediatric orthopedic specialist on Monday, who said Renner’s wrist was not broken. She was diagnosed with a bruised ulna nerve and hopes to return to Prairie’s lineup soon. For more, click here.
Injuries are a part of sports. Sometimes you’ve got to play through them.
No pain, no gain, and all that.
“I’ve always been a tough kid,” said Amelia Renner, a junior on the Prairie volleyball team. “That’s something my parents have always tried to instill in me.”
Renner has played sports her whole life.
There was the broken finger playing softball in the third grade. And then there was the sprained ankle in middle school that required her to wear a boot.
It didn’t prevent her from competing in middle school track and field – she competed in the throwing events – or even from playing in junior golf events … in a boot.
But what happened last Tuesday in a volleyball match against Kelso surprised even Renner.
“In the first set, I went up for a block,” Renner said. “The ball glanced off my hand and bent my fingers back. I definitely felt something. I thought I might have stretched a ligament or something. But it wasn’t terrible, so I kept playing.”
Renner played in the second and third sets as the Prairie beat Kelso 25-10, 25-13, 25-10.
“It wasn’t until after the match was over and the adrenaline wore off that I broke down,” Renner said. “My teammates were like ‘You played a great game. Why are you upset?’ And I said ‘I know I played good. It’s not that.’
“When I showed up to practice the next day in a cast, they were stunned.”
Renner was surprised herself. She went to the Prairie trainer after the match. There was no swelling and Renner had mobility in her hand. She was told if her arm did not improve by morning, go to the doctor and get it checked out.
It didn’t get better, so she went to the doctor on Wednesday. X-rays revealed a fracture near her left wrist. She was asked how she got hurt.
“They said ‘Did you fall?’ I said no,” Renner said. “ ‘Did you dive for the ball?’ And I said no. ‘So this happened from blocking the ball?’ And I was like ‘Yeah.’ It was weird.”
The first diagnosis said she’d be out three weeks. But a second doctor looked at the X-rays and said recovery time would take six weeks.
“That was hard to hear,” Renner said. “Just like that, it went from three weeks to six weeks. Three weeks gets me back by the middle of October. But six weeks, my return date would be Nov. 7. That’s one day before the (bi-district) tournament.”
Renner is getting a second opinion this week, in hopes that she’ll be able to return to the court as soon as possible.
“Volleyball is my life,” she said. “I play on a club team year-round. To go without playing for almost two months and miss most of the season …”
It’s tough. But Renner is doing her best to keep her spirits up. The cast on her left arm is red and gold – Prairie’s colors.
Let’s hope she gets some good news this week. Because if they let her play with a cast that goes up past her elbow, you know she would.
Tim Martinez is the assistant sports editor/prep editor for The Columbian. He can be reached at 360-735-4538, tim.martinez@columbian.com or follow his on Twitter handle @360TMart.
