Sports Sciences Commons^™

Kinetic And Kinematic Effect Of Flag-Carrying On Referee Agility And Sprinting Performance, William Reed

Master's Theses

Within competitive soccer, assistant referees are expected to keep up with the top speed of players on the field, despite being hindered mechanically by a flag held down at their side. This ability to keep up with speed-of-play can determine effectiveness of calls on the field, yet while being tested, referees are not required to replicate the game-like state of flag-carrying. The purpose of this study was to examine kinetic and kinematic effects of flag-carrying within sprinting and change-of-direction performance in assistant referees to better inform training programs and testing protocols. 18 male referees (mean age 32.11 ± 9.08 years) …

Risk Of Position-Based Concussions Among Collegiate Men And Women Soccer Players, Devin Hauenstein

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Limiting the incidence of concussions has become a foremost concern among collegiate athletes and coaches. This study aimed to determine if the soccer position played, and minutes played during a game predict the incident of concussion among college soccer players. If concussion risk can be predicted, it may lead to mitigating actions to minimize risks. Data from 208 male and female soccer players from the North Coast Concussion Program (NCCP) were assessed to predict the incidence of concussion based on total minutes played and position(s) played. A logistic regression analysis and predictive modeling technique were used to determine whether the …

The Passing Board, John Fitzgerald

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

For my Honors Research Project I am taking a more personal route and looking to solve a childhood question/issue by designing a board that is small and easy to transport while also giving the best bounce pass possible. My proposed project would be a board that a soccer player can play a bounce pass onto and receive the ball from. The base of this design sounds simple enough, however, I would like to implement a way that the board can be adjusted to alter the angle of return of the soccer ball after the bounce. I also want to design …

Comparison Of Injuries To The Anterior Cruciate Ligament In Male Soccer And Football Athletes And The Effect Of Varying Rehabilitation On Recovery Time, Matthew Moraw

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Injuries are commonplace when a sport involves high levels of physical contact and quick movements. Athletes often strain or tear muscles and sprain ligaments when they are putting above normal levels of stress on the connection points through their explosive motions and high force collisions. Two sports where this is particularly common are soccer and football. Due to the high levels of running and cutting in both sports, lower body injuries, particularly to the knee are some of the most common injuries that occur. The purpose of this study was to take a retrospective look at ACL tears in college …

Comparison Of External Load Patterns Over A Season In Collegiate Soccer Players, Colton Dowd

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Soccer (football) is the most played sport in the world. In turn, soccer also accounts for a considerable number of injuries at all levels. Injuries in soccer are not only detrimental to team performance, but they can also place financial burden on organizations, in addition to causing harm to players health down the line. As such, it is important that these injuries are limited and managed to avoid the various consequences that accompany serious injury. PURPOSE: This study attempted to quantify the external loads of NCAA DI soccer athletes over the course of a Fall season. These external load values …

Athlete Monitoring Program In Division I Collegiate Female Soccer, Ai Ishida

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The objectives of this dissertation include 1) to review athlete monitoring strategies and the physical performance demands of female soccer match-play and to provide practical application of athlete monitoring programs, 2) to examine individual and group relationship between training load (TL) and subjective recovery and stress state and neuromuscular performance, and 3) to investigate acute effects of match-play on neuromuscular and subjective recovery and stress state in National Collegiate Association Athlete (NCAA) division I collegiate female soccer. TL was assessed using 10Hz Global Navigation Satellite System units. Subjective recovery and stress state was measured using the Short Recovery and Stress …

Changes In Countermovement Jump And Sprint During A Congested Match Schedule In Female Youth Soccer Players, Joanne Spalding

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Youth soccer players are required to play multiple matches within a short period of time. Participation in congested match schedules like youth soccer tournaments can result in fatigue and a decline in physical performance. The purpose of this study was to examine changes in countermovement jump height variables and sprint time to determine if physical performance was altered. Fourteen youth female soccer players performed countermovement jump testing pre, post-match, and post-tournament, and sprint testing pre and post-tournament. Jump height differed significantly (p

Effects Of High-Intensity Position-Specific Drills On Physical And Technical-Skill Performance In Young Soccer Players, Cao Cuong Le

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Soccer is the most widely played sport in the world, and physical preparation for soccer players has been extensively researched over the years. As the average intensity of a soccer match is close to 80-90% of maximal heart rate (HRmax), it is necessary to train at or above this intensity. Thus, high-intensity interval running and small-sided games are often used to improve aerobic capacity and repeated sprint ability (RSA). However, neither of these approaches consider positional variations in the frequency and type of specific technical skills required in real match situations. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate …

Training Load Management And Injury Prevention In Collegiate Men's Soccer, Lorenzo Salvatore Tomasiello Jr.

MSU Graduate Theses

Soccer is a popular sport within the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) evidenced by 23,602 athletes participating in Men’s soccer as of 2014. The sports complexity, coupled with the structure of a collegiate season, demands athletes train to improve performance and prevent injuries. Coaches are able to monitor training through the use of global positioning system (GPS) technology to properly prescribe training loads to meet the individual demands for an athlete. By utilizing an acute to chronic ratio derived from GPS data, coaches are able to determine whether an athlete is prepared for the workloads they are going to be …

A Comparison Of Quadriceps -To-Hamstrings Ratios During Isokinetic Testing, Cutting, And Drop Landings In Male Soccer Players, Shane R. O'Donnell, Jenevieve L. Roper

Honors Thesis

Collegiate soccer is not an unusual place to suffer a knee injury. The sport has many dynamic movements, such as cutting, jumping and shooting. Many professionals use quadriceps-to-hamstring (Q/H) ratios as a tool to determine when an injured player can to return to game play or use the ratio to investigate how predisposed a certain player is to sustaining a knee injury. However, many of these ratios are taken in isokinetic testing in a controlled environment and to our knowledge it is unknown if these ratios are similar to those measured during dynamic activity. Therefore, this study investigated if there …

The Application Of Maximal Mean And Critical Speed And Metabolic Powers For The Quantification Of External Load In Soccer, Cameron Nicholas Lord

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

In Association football, often referred to as “soccer”, competitive match play is typically known to represent the greatest physical demand that players experience. The demands associated with match running performance may impact training outcomes and injury risk. As a result, practitioners evaluate these demands to ensure that performance is optimised. To assist in this process, global positioning systems (GPS) are typically used to quantify displacement variables and, more recently, the interaction between running speed and acceleration. However, traditional player monitoring methods tend to apply identical and somewhat arbitrary displacement, velocity and acceleration bands to describe movement “intensity”, and thus to …

Effects Of Headgear On Concussions In Soccer Players, Bayley Pendleton

Thinking Matters Symposium Archive

Concussions have become a hot topic among athletic health care, but there is still a great deal to learn. One specific population has been studied and research produced showing the effects of wearing protective headgear. For some reason, adolescent soccer players are more apt to suffer a concussion. Taking steps to reduce recovery time and make concussions less common is something that should be addressed. The studies done showing the effects of headgear in adolescent soccer players is a topic that needs to be more widely known.

A Profile Of Game Style, Physical, Technical And Tactical Skills, And The Pathways That Underpin Expertise In Australian Youth Soccer Players, Bradley Scott Keller

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The attainment of expertise has been the focus of research in many domains including music, chess and sport. This research has progressed with many theories detailing the best way to develop expertise and nurture talent in sport. Soccer is a multifaceted sport which requires a number of physical, technical and tactical skills to be successful, making it difficult to achieve expertise. Although Australia’s performance on the international stage is improving, there is a lack of evidence to inform the most effective development pathways to support the next wave of talented youth soccer players. Therefore, the aim of the thesis was …

Technical And Physical Match Demands Of A Ncaa Division I Soccer Goalkeeper, Joanne Spalding

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to provide a better understanding of the goalkeeper position in order to prepare goalkeepers for competition. The objectives of this study were to characterize the technical and physical demands of an NCAA Division I collegiate goalkeeper over three seasons and examine trends from season to season. Count and frequency for each definition were analyzed. Results show that although the goalkeeper’s technical demands were characterized by engaging in play without action and being in the goal area, the gradually increased use of the feet over three season’s hints on the importance of skills performed with …

The Effect Of One-On-One Intervention In Athletes With Multiple Risk Factors For Injury, Kathryn Schwartzkopf-Phifer

Theses and Dissertations--Rehabilitation Sciences

Background: Lower extremity (LE) musculoskeletal injuries in soccer players are extremely common. These injuries can result in many days of lost time in competition, severely impacting players and their respective teams. Implementation of group injury prevention programs has gained popularity due to time and cost-effectiveness. Though participation in group injury prevention programs has been successful at reducing injuries, programs often target a single injury and all players do not benefit from participation. Players with a greater number of risk factors are most likely to sustain an injury, and unfortunately, less likely to benefit from a group injury prevention program. …

Identifying Determinants Of Match Performance In Division I Women’S Collegiate Soccer Players, Jacob L. Grazer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to better understand position specific physical qualities and how they relate to high speed running performance throughout the course of a competitive collegiate soccer season. The amount of literature devoted to female soccer players is scarce when compared to the vast amount of literature associated with male soccer players. The objectives of this dissertation were: 1) to determine if playing position has an influence on physical qualities such as speed, change of direction ability, countermovement jump performance, relative strength, rate of force development, and intermittent endurance capacity, 2) investigate the differences between high and …

Effects Of Isolated Core Stability Training On Standing Static Postural Control, Recovery Of Standing Postural Control And Kicking Velocity In Soccer Athletes, Ali El-Kerdi

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

BACKGROUND: About 1/3 of injuries are non-contact in nature and half of these involve the LE’s. There are numerous anatomical and physiological mechanisms and systems involved in stabilizing the trunk for movement of the lower extremities. The ability of the trunk to maintain the position and motion of the trunk over the pelvis and LE’s is predominantly accomplished via quick postural responses to internal and external forces. These pre-programed postural responses are integrated within the neuromuscular system. It is theorized that poor core stability is a result of a failure in the neuromuscular system to support the trunk and pelvis …

Relationship Between Stress-Recovery State And Running Performance In Men's Collegiate Soccer, Nicholas A. Coker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between changes in running performance and the stress-recovery state in Division I collegiate soccer players. Methods: Running performance was evaluated in eight NCAA Division I male soccer players (179.39 ± 5.24 cm; 75.46 ± 5.98 kg; 20.37 ± 1.41 yrs.) over the course of 12 games during a single competitive season. The 12 games were divided into four blocks [B1(n=3), B2(n=3), B3(n=3), and B4(n=3)]. Running performance and game load were assessed using a wearable physiological harness and Global Positioning System (GPS) module. Game load, absolute distance, and distance covered …

The Relationship Between Pass Completion Percentage And Perceived Player Workload In Ncaa Division I Women's Soccer, Alexa L. Passingham

Undergraduate Honors Theses

In an attempt to demonstrate the interconnecting nature of the pillars of sport (Hacker, 2000) this thesis explores the relationship between physical, psychological and technical variables. Five National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Women’s Soccer players were analyzed in four conference matches. The athlete's rate of perceived exertion (RPE) values were correlated to pass completion percentages (PC%) to investigate the potential effect that psychological satisfaction or dissatisfaction of technical performance has on perceived exertion ratings. PlayerLoad^TM (PL) values, gathered through the utilization of a Catapult Minimax S4 GPS device (miniMax-10 Hz, Catapult Innovations, Melbourne, Australia), were used as …

The Impact Of Training Loads On In-Match Soccer Performance Variables: A Position-Based Case Report, Garett Bingham

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

It is critical to maintain multiple fitness characteristics during the soccer season through the use of training, but also to ensure that the training loads do not hinder subsequent match performance. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the impact of the training load on key physical performance variables in the subsequent match. Five Division I female soccer players were analyzed across six weeks of training and matches. Training loads in the forms of odometer, high intensity odometer, estimated odometer and sRPE were accumulated at time points from one to five days prior to a match. The accumulated training …

Physical And Technical Demands Of Women’S Collegiate Soccer, Ryan Alexander

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to explore the physical and technical demands of the women’s college soccer game through a case study approach. With advancements in technology, motion analysis has become commonplace in most professional environments. However, the literature on amateur soccer is quite scarce and warrants more attention. The aims of this dissertation were: 1) to describe the physical demands of each position for a women’s college soccer player as they relate to total distance covered, efforts, and distance covered in high-speed velocity bands, 2) explore the variation in physical performance during a competitive season, and 3) compare …

Lower Body Strength And Power Characteristics Influencing Change Of Direction And Straight-Line Sprinting Performance In Division I Soccer Players: An Exploratory Study, Chieh-Ying Chiang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to investigate the influence of lower body strength characteristics on change of direction (COD) performance in NCAA Division I soccer athletes. Specifically, this dissertation served to examine: 1) whether the lower body strength and power were related to COD performance, 2) whether stronger athletes had superior COD performance than weaker athletes, 3) whether the force production asymmetry and strength dominant (SD) associated with COD performance, and 4) weather sex differences existed in kinetic variables during the stand phase of cutting.

The major findings of this dissertation include: 1) strength and power characteristics were moderately …

High School Female Recruiting Guide To College Soccer, Elizabeth Sinclair

Senior Theses

Ask any athlete how she got to where she is today. Did she play on an Olympic Development Team (ODP), or did she get recruited from a showcase tournament? There are a variety of paths when trying to play collegiate soccer, and one path is not better than the other. Even the thirty girls on the same college team may experience a vastly different recruiting process, but, somehow, they all end up in the same place. This paper offers mere overall guidance to the recruiting process for female high school soccer players, with helpful tips to use along the way. …

Soccer Participation And Youth Obesity In The United States, Lee Schober

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Conservative Treatment For Meniscus Rehabilitation, Nicole Spencer, Julie Willis

Thinking Matters Symposium Archive

The purpose of this review is to produce a nonsurgical treatment plan for meniscus injuries using therapeutic exercise, to eventually prepare the athlete for return to play after the sustained injury. Using therapeutic exercises, a rehabilitation program can be created for athletes who do not wish to pursue surgery. The treatment plan was designed for a soccer player who had a partially torn meniscus.

The Effect Of Moderate Altitude On High Intensity Running Performance During A Game With Collegiate Female Soccer Players, Jonathan Bohner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Competition often requires teams that reside at sea level to compete against opponents whose residence is at a moderate altitude. This may pose a potential competitive disadvantage considering that moderate altitude may cause decrements in VO2max, distance covered, and time to exhaustion in endurance athletes. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of altitude on game performance measures. Six NCAA Division I female soccer players (20.33 ± 1.21 y; 168 ± 6.45 cm; 62.5 ± 6.03 kg) were retrospectively examined. Comparisons were made between two competitions that were played at sea level (SL) within two weeks of …

Quantification Of Eccentric Load Using Accelerometer Imbedded In Gps, Chow Chea Yeo

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Global positioning system (GPS) with a triaxial accelerometer is widely used to monitor movements of athletes in games and training, and “body load” (BL) representing the accumulation of the rate of changes in three planes of movements is obtained to determine the training load of a session. Deceleration, change of directions and stopping require eccentric contractions of leg muscles, potentially causing muscle damage and affecting athletic performance. Thus, it is important to monitor eccentric loading in games and training. A variable known as “eccentric index” (EI) purports to be a better representation of eccentric loading than BL. However, it is …

Lower Limb Fatigue Asymmetry Of Preferred And Non-Preferred Legs After A Repeated-Sprint Test In Football Players With Previous Hamstring Injury, Cameron Lord

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Football is the most widely played sport in the world and is thus associated with the highest total number of injuries of all sports. 12% of all football injuries are to the hamstrings, as this muscle group is subjected to constant stress during training and match play performance (Ekstrand, Hägglund, Waldén, 2011; Woods, Hawkins, Maltby, Hulse, Thomas & Hodson, 2004). While the influence of limb dominance has been extensively examined as a risk factor for injury in upper limb-dominant sports (e.g. badminton, tennis and baseball), little research has focussed on the dominance in the lower limbs. Since almost all footballers …

Comparison Of The Physical, Physiological And Perceptual Demands Of Small-Sided Games And Match Play In Professional Football Players, Stephen Hissey

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The physical and technical requirements of a range of small-sided football (soccer) games (SSGs) have previously been examined in order to compare their requirements to competitive match play. SSGs are used to combine the technical, tactical and physical components of normal match play in training in order to make the training sessions specific to football. However, most previous research has focused on youth players and it is known that the playing patterns, and thus session outcomes, are different for elite players. Consequently, research examining elite players is required in order to improve our understanding of the use of SSGs in …

Convergent Validity Between Field Tests Of Isometric Core Strength, Functional Core Strength, And Sport Performance Variables In Female Soccer Players, Jeffrey Scott Wagner

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Previous research has failed to definitively explain the role that core fitness plays during sport performance. Movements of sport performance require the core musculature to simultaneously provide spinal stability while producing external forces that aid limb movement. The core is central to most kinetic chains; therefore, a better understanding of core function during sport should help to benefit performance. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare tests of isometric core strength that evaluate the ability of the core to provide a stable base of support, and tests of concentric functional core strength that evaluate the ability of …