The Daily Collegian

Issue date: 5/8/08 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Brian Tedder/Collegian

Media Credit: Brian Tedder/Collegian

Thoracic outlet syndrome sounds painful.

The most painful part of the condition for Massachusetts softball pitcher Bailey Sanders, however, was losing so much feeling in her throwing hand that she didn't have the strength to throw a softball and could only watch as her teammates pressed on without her.

This was one year ago at the NCAA Regionals in Amherst, hosted by UMass. The Minutewomen lost twice to No. 1 seed Oklahoma, 2-0 and 6-3, on May 19 and 20, falling short of making another run at the Women's College World Series.

"It was frustrating. I had never had to sit out before," Sanders says. "I was watching my teammates and thinking, 'That should be me.'"

Sanders joined the Minutewomen as the perfect complement to the team's ace, Brandice Balschmiter. UMass coach Elaine Sortino had found the ideal pair. Balschmiter's overpowering fastball was now teamed with Sanders' arsenal of movement pitches with vicious spin.

All of that was derailed when it was needed the most - in the postseason. Balschmiter pitched all but two innings of the regional round, going 2-2; both losses at the hands of the Sooners.

Nearly a full year later, Sanders, now a sophomore, is part of a UMass team poised to claim its 20th Atlantic 10 championship in its history. The Minutewomen face Fordham today at 2 p.m. in the second round of the tournament. If they can repeat as conference champs for the fourth straight year, they will be back in NCAA Tournament, where Sanders will have another chance to help her team make a push for the Women's College World Series.

The strange part of the story is that she may not have been able to play this year had she not discovered the problem 12 months ago. And if she wasn't a softball pitcher, she may have gone her entire life not knowing she suffered from the condition.

Thoracic outlet syndrome occurs when the space between the first rib and the clavicle (where the subclavian artery and several clusters of veins and nerves pass from the chest to the arms and neck) is smaller than it needs to be. Sometimes, this can cause constant problems for the patient, generating pain or numbness down one arm that has been known to be mistaken for carpal tunnel syndrome, among other conditions.

Bailey's situation was exacerbated anytime she lifted her arm over her head. As a pitcher in softball, that motion is somewhat necessary. However, as a three-sport athlete in high school, the problem was likely developing for years. Bailey was not only a pitcher (and talented hitter), but a four-year letterwinner as a swimmer who specialized in the backstroke and an all-state volleyball player.

"She was predisposed to this [condition]," Sortino says. "All three of those sports send your arm over your head all the time, and think about how much she pitches. Her arm is winding around over her head all the time."

Bailey says she began feeling numbness in her finger during the 2007 season, and by the time the team reached the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, the numbness spread to her entire hand, and she could not hold onto a softball.

Every time Bailey threw a pitch, that space where those arteries and nerves passed would close, causing blood clots to travel down her arm where they built up in the two primary arteries in her forearm. One of the arteries became backed up from her hand to her elbow, while the other had a two-inch clot in the wrist.

"It was definitely a bit scary, and it happened at the worst time possible," Bailey says.

She pitched just two innings during the tournament - which was two innings more than doctors had originally cleared her for - but those two innings were the final two for UMass that season, losing to the Sooners, 6-3, for the second time that weekend.

After the season, Sanders spent six months working her way back into playing form. On July 3, Bailey's first rib on her right side - only a few inches long - was removed at Mass General Hospital. That allowed the blood to flow more freely and prevented any future clots from forming.

A month later on August 9, Bailey underwent a second surgery to remove the clots in her arm. Doctors used one of the veins in her forearm to replace the most badly clotted artery. Luckily, the first replacement went well enough that the second clogged artery did not require surgery.

All that remains from the ordeal is an eight-inch, zig-zag shaped scar that runs the length of her forearm and a sophomore pitcher who is throwing harder than ever.

"As of right now, I have full feeling in my hand," Bailey says with her usual extra-wide smile. "I've never had another episode, so I'm cured."

By October, Bailey was cleared to begin pitching again, which really meant it was finally safe for her to lift her arm over her head. In November, she went back to working out full-time and preparing for 2008. She missed the entire fall season to rehab but worked her way back into playing shape in time to start the season.

On Feb. 8, the first day of the regular season, Bailey started the Minutewomen's second game, a 2-1 loss to Maryland, going six innings and giving up three hits. She finished the year fourth in the A-10 with a 11-5 record and a 1.88 ERA.

"It's a miracle," Sortino says. "It's really exciting to see her now. She looks good. I don't think I've ever had a kid work harder than that kid."

Sortino's plan eventually worked out. Sanders and Balschmiter have entered games in relief of one another and started back-to-back games in doubleheaders, carrying UMass to a perfect 20-0 record in conference this season.

"They're a nice complement to each other," Sortino says. "This is what I had hoped for last year. It just took a little bit longer to work it out."

Jeremy Rice can be reached at jeremyr@student.umass.edu.

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