Jump Strategy Changes in Collegiate Women Soccer Players

Countermovement jumps (CMJ) are often utilized to monitor athletes because of their sensitivity to neuromuscular fatigue, which can be seen through assessing jump strategies. The current literature has reported conflicting views on how jump performance is impacted over acute and longitudinal testing. This is likely due to insufficient analyses regarding the impact of fatigue on jump strategy. This study aimed to investigate how the integration of jump strategy metrics and single-subject analysis could provide a better representation of the presence of fatigue among collegiate women soccer players. Eighteen participants were utilized in this study. Participants were required to complete three CMJs and a rate of perceived exertion (RPE) questionnaire for three consecutive days to determine how jump strategy was impacted using an ecologically valid method to induce fatigue (sport practice). Significant increases in performance from pre-to-post practice were seen across all three days at the group level. Jump data was collected over five different time points throughout the season to examine jump performance with the accumulation of fatigue. A one-way repeated measures ANOVA revealed significant changes in jump strategy metrics where jump height remained unchanged throughout. Both studies utilized a single-subject analysis to observe individual changes. During both studies, athletes were identified as having performance changes that deviated from the team. This study showed that incorporating jump strategy metrics into an analysis can provide a detailed depiction of what is occurring. Incorporating these factors can allow practitioners to make better data-driven decisions and help reduce the chance of injuries.