K-State cheerleader overcomes serious injury

By: Drew Galloway

Injuries are part of sports and cheer is no exception. According to livescience.com, for high school and college women, cheer is the most dangerous sport that they could play. Kansas State cheerleader Avery Hittle is one of many cheerleaders who have gotten injured doing what she loves.

Hittle was born with three impingements in her hips causing her hips to not be able to move correctly. Those impingements caused her labrum to tear in her hip.

"I think it started to tear gradually every time I have had hip pain or hip problems," Hittle said.

Before she cheered, Hittle was a competitive gymnast until she had to stop competing due to her hip problems.

"I started cheering after gymnastics and I didn't have problems with my hip until I got to K-State," Hittle said.

She wound up having hip surgery in August of 2020.

"The first couple of weeks were really, really, hard," Hittle said. "I couldn't get out of bed or do anything by myself."

She had to be on crutches for the first six weeks.

"I didn't get out of bed for like a week," Hittle said. "The pain was the worst I've ever experienced. It was awful."

Her parents and friends helped her in those first few weeks.

"We spent a week taking care of her in Manhattan but after that she was pretty independent," her mom, Amy Hittle, said. "We were there for moral support but she handled most of it on her own."

One of her teammates, Jada Simmons, was also there by her side.

"Her injury impacted me because I didn't have my best friend by my side during games," Simmons said. "I was always checking on her daily to see if she needed anything."

While being out she learned something about herself.

"I really learned how to be patient because I hate being the one to sit and watch," Hittle said. "The doctors also said it would be six months to comeback and I thought I would be completely back by now and that's not really what has happened because I am still rehabbing it and not fully back yet."

Although she is not fully back in action yet and is going through physical therapy and rehabbing her hip, she was able to try out for the K-State cheer team for next fall.

"I was able to submit my tryout video from last year since tryouts were virtual due to the pandemic for this year's tryout," Hittle said. "The coaches were very nice and gracious to let me do that."

She has a goal in mind to be back at 100 percent.

"I want to be back by the first football game," Hittle said.