Toby Brown, assistant director of wellness services, is the head of intramural sports at Union. On Wednesday, March 18, Brown was sitting in his usual spot for an intramural basketball game.
Brown sits high in the bleachers of the guest side of the gym to be able to watch the basketball games. He does this to make sure the games are being run smoothly. It also allows him to avoid getting unnecessarily involved. On this particular night, he was working on something while watching and suddenly heard a bloodcurdling scream.
He saw Lucas Pyron, sophomore cell and molecular biology major, clutching his knee and in visible pain. It turned out that Pyron had dislocated his knee cap, and Brown called the ambulance to come get the injured student.
The game resumed due to it being a playoff game, as there were other games lined up still to be played. Brown was able to get settled after the first scare when he heard another shriek from the court.
This time Will Duncan, senior engineering major, is in almost the same spot on the floor holding the opposite leg, but with the same injury as Pyron. Brown was able to catch an EMT before they left with Pyron to help Duncan and get another ambulance.
Duncan and Pyron will be on crutches for awhile, but neither of their injuries were life-threatening.
“We just don’t have that many injuries here, especially back-to-back like that,” Brown said. “Everyone just couldn’t believe it.”
For the remainder of the night, the rest of the games possessed an eerie air hanging around the court due to the rarity of such significant injuries at an intramural game.
Union intramural sports have been very lucky to avoid serious injuries outside the typical bumps and scrapes people normally get. Brown said that since he has been working intramural sports for the last three years, the intramural staff has been careful about allowing people to play after serious injuries.
However, flag football has caused several concussions due to the nature of the sport.
“Basketball and flag football seems to be the sports where most people get hurt,” said Drew Wells, junior chemistry major and student intramural coordinator. “That’s due to the increased amount of lateral movement and cuts, as well as how physical the games can get at times.”
Wells said that in his three years at Union the amount of serious injuries has been really low, with the recent knee injuries being the most serious.
Brown has a team of student intramural coordinators on staff that help him organize and run the games throughout the year. All of these students are first-aid and CPR certified to deal with minor injuries and keeping someone comfortable. The plan for serious injuries is to always call an ambulance if necessary.
According to Brown, the best ways to avoid injuries in intramurals is to stay in good shape and listen to your body if it is in pain. Brown said students just need to be wary at times of where they are in comparison to other people on the field of play.
“Sometimes it’s just a freak thing though,” Brown said.
The amount of serious injuries at Union is low, and Brown hopes the rarity of what happened last week doesn’t scare people away. Intramural sports are designed to build community and friendships among students in a fun but competitive environment.
“Intramurals are a great outlet to hang out with friends and have fun, and also take a break from studying,” Wells said. “But the most important thing is that it creates an environment for students to share a common experience and build relationships that can last a lifetime.”
