During Sarah Barcello’s four years at Marist College, the senior has already completed some incredible accomplishments on the basketball court. From the time she stepped foot on the Poughkeepsie campus in 2018 - ranked nationwide as the 36th best shooting guard in her class - she spent her college career gathering multiple all academic team recognitions, an All-MAAC third team appearance during her junior year, and led her team in scoring during their March Madness first round appearance versus Louisville. However, as her time at Marist comes to a close she’s now leaving her mark in a new way: creating an injury support space for athletes on campus named A4A.
“A4A can help present and future athletes at Marist because it provides a place of support and comfort to those who have battled injury, who are currently battling injury, or who may have teammates who are injured” Barcello said. A4A - short for Athletes for Athletes - launched on March 29th with its first meeting described on the Marist Center for Student Athlete Enhancement as a “packed house”.
"Thank you to everyone who has supported A4A!♥️ I had a blast creating this group and talking with athletes about mental and physical health." Sarah Barcello posts her Instagram with photos from A4A's spring meetings
In the meeting, which included members of the football and men's basketball programs (as well as plenty of Barcello’s teammates) the group decided on the A4A name themselves, which has stuck ever since. Barcello couldn’t have been prouder. “ I thought there was a great turnout at the first meeting” she said, “I received a lot of positive feedback from those who attended, as well as administration, students, and even friends from back home. It sounded like people were excited to have a group like this because it it very much needed”.
“For some student-athletes, the psychological response to injury can trigger or unmask serious mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, disordered eating, and substance use or abuse”
And needed it was. According to an NCAA article written by Director of Athletic Medicine at Princeton University, Margot Putukian, she stated, “For some student-athletes, the psychological response to injury can trigger or unmask serious mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, disordered eating, and substance use or abuse”. At Marist College, where a designated sports psychologist is not offered, these issues can often stay hidden.
“As a student-athlete, a lot of us place our identity in our sport. When that is taken away due to injury, it can be very challenging mentally.” Barcello mentioned. “You begin to question your purpose and who you are as a person.” In this new space created for athletes to discuss these issues with those who can also identify and validate these feelings, the group provides a place of comfort and vulnerable dialogue - something the Marist community has not had yet.
“The biggest challenge with an injury at the collegiate level is that you feel the pressure to get back as quickly as possible,” Barcello mentioned. With the stakes higher at the Division One level at Marist College, this can cause even more worry.
Marist athletic trainer Megan Murphy echoes this sentiment: “A big [worry] that I see, and I hear them communicate with me every day is performance anxiety. And if they're injured, they're worried that they're going to lose their starting spot, they're going to lose playing time. That really does affect them more than you would think it does”. Putukian also stated, “Depression in some student-athletes may also be related to performance failure. When student-athletes sustain significant injuries, such as knee injuries associated with time loss from sport, they can suffer both physically as well as emotionally with a decrease in their quality of life”.
“My hopes for the support space in the future is that it continues to grow, and people continue to meet after I graduate”
Despite the club’s introduction less than a month ago, it has already had 3 meetings so far, each gathered with athletes willing to share not only their stories but approach the difficult conversations with an open mind. For Barcello, she is seeing her vision come to life. “Personally, I have been through a lot of injuries and realize how challenging it is both physically and mentally” Barcellos started, “I feel like I lacked the support on the mental side of it so I thought that creating this support space would be a place to give back and help those who may feel similarly”.
However, Barcello does not have long before her Marist journey ends and another one begins. The senior announced her commitment to continue her athletic career at San Diego State University on March 27th via Instagram where she will join the Aztec women’s basketball squad. Yet, although Barcello will not be on campus, this does not mean that the club will come to an end. In fact, she has high hopes for it. “My hopes for the support space in the future is that it continues to grow, and people continue to meet after I graduate”
She emphasizes that the goal of the space is much more than the group that started it, but for athletes of all generations. Barcellos reiterates that physical injuries are only a setback to the totality of an athlete’s experience, and they do not shape a person’s character. “We (student-athletes) place so much importance on performance and oftentimes put to the side the fact that we are more than athletes” she stated “ Knowing that we are so much more than who we are on the court or field is extremely important for our mental health.”
For more information regarding A4A meeting and meeting schedules, information is posted on the Marist Center for Student-Athlete Enhancement Instagram (@MaristCSAE).
Sources -
Putukian , M. (n.d.). Mind, body and sport: How being injured affects mental health. NCAA.org. Retrieved April 26, 2022, from https://www.ncaa.org/sports/2014/11/5/mind-body-and-sport-how-being-injured-affects-mental-health.aspx
Comments