High school basketball player suffers season-ending injury during team photos

Athletes often put themselves in vulnerable positions where injuries can easily occur, but one would think a player is safe during team photos. As Sheffield (Iowa) West Fork High senior Lindsey Peterson reminded us a few weeks ago, nothing is certain.

The two-sport star suffered a horrific injury that ended her basketball season when she slipped and fell during a team photo shoot. According to The Sheffield Press, Peterson lost her balance and hit her face off the corner of a bench she was standing on. Her injuries required 100 stitches and three plates in her face to help multiple fractures heal.

“It was the worst thing I’ve seen,” West Fork basketball coach Rodney Huber said. “It went straight through her gum, affected a few of her teeth and she had a big gash on the right side of her face.”

Peterson will likely have to undergo plastic surgery to repair nerve damage. Huber said she held a towel to her face to cover most of the injuries, but added that he saw a lot of blood.

To make matters worse, the accident also took place on Peterson’s 18th birthday. She is an all-state volleyball player who holds school records for kills and digs. We have shown you plenty of incredibly bizarre injuries here at LBS over the years, but this is up there with the worst of them. Here’s hoping Peterson has a full recovery. You’d hate to see something like that derail a promising athletic career.

H/T Deadspin via Prep Rally