Inside the gym at Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa, an outside hitter like Stella Winterfeld is out of the ordinary.
“She just does so many things well,” said Kyle Van Den Bosch, Northwestern volleyball head coach. “Offensively, she can score in a variety of ways. She hits with power, she has roll shots, she’s a good blocker.”
Yet for all the individual attributes, the rising college senior deflects any praise.
“I love that it’s a team sport and that you need all six people to be able to succeed,” Winterfeld said.
“She’s a natural leader, she brings a calmness to our team,” Van Den Bosch added. “But she also has such a kind heart for her teammates. She really cares for people.”
Winterfeld’s intentions are evident in her practice. The steady timing and harmonic movement create a sporty symphony. But a few years ago, everything was suddenly out of rhythm.
‘I had kind of given up’
During her sophomore season in the fall of 2024, Winterfeld was practicing as her team was getting ready for the NAIA national tournament.
“I got hit once in practice in a warmup game and then, I think about a week and a half later, (I got hit) again in practice,” Winterfeld said. “And then, beginning of February, I got hit again in a spring practice and yeah, that was spring of my sophomore year.
“I was miserable. I couldn’t really go to class. I couldn’t really do a lot. If I went to class, I didn’t do anything on technology. I tried not to look at the screens in front of me and then I would go home and take a nap for the rest of the day.”
Winterfeld took it easy over the summer in the hopes she’d feel better when her junior year started in the fall. But she never quite felt like herself.
“At that point, I was just so accepting that this was my life,” Winterfeld said. “Anything I’m going to do, I’m just going to have to go home and go to bed right away. That’s where I was at. I had kind of given up.”
“She was pretty miserable,” Van Den Bosch added. “You could just tell she’s not getting a lot of sleep, her head always hurt, she had a headache all the time. So, you’re just more concerned about her.”
“Once October (2025) hit, I really couldn’t function any more the way that I was trying to,” Winterfeld said. “I was trying to read words on a paper in classes and I had to re-read the same sentence five times to even have it register in my brain.
“I couldn’t do it anymore and that’s when we found Dr. Combs, finally.”
‘I just remember feeling like somebody finally knows what I’m saying’
Dr. Josefine Combs is a licensed clinical neuropsychologist and sports psychologist for Sanford Orthopedics and Sports Medicine in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, as well as a former college volleyball player. She has a keen eye for how head injuries impact athletes.
“With Stella specifically, there were some unresolved lingering post-concussive symptoms,” Dr. Combs said. “We always like to say, ‘if you’ve seen one concussion, you’ve seen one concussion.’ What that means is even within the same person, like with Stella who had repeat injuries, they are not bound to be the same.”
“I just remember feeling like somebody finally knows what I’m saying,” Winterfeld said.
Winterfeld attacked her rehab the same way she practiced – with purpose. Even though she was forced to miss nearly a month in the middle of the season, Dr. Combs and the concussion team at Sanford came up with an active recovery process to help Winterfeld feel stellar again.
“Modified activity is actually shown to lead to a quicker recovery, so we want people to go for walks, we want people to get in touch with their sport again,” Dr. Combs said. “We have what’s called a ‘return to play’ protocol that has defined stages that each athlete completes to ensure a safe return.”
“I couldn’t play in practice, but I could pass against the wall while saying the names of my family members or the alphabet or any category that I could think of,” Winterfeld said.
Despite missing seven games, Winterfeld didn’t miss a beat. She not only led Northwestern to an appearance in the NAIA national championship game, but she was also named the Great Plains Athletic Conference’s player of the year.
“She was playing so elite that I don’t think they couldn’t not give it to her because she was playing at that high a level,” Van Den Bosch said.
“I think I also felt safe in that situation coming back because I knew Dr. Combs’ team had me and I was going to be fine,” Winterfeld added.
‘I will never be able to tell her thank you enough’
Stella Winterfeld’s winter of discontent has given way to the prosperity of one last run this fall with her squad. Inside the gym and inside her head, with a little assist, Winterfeld figured it out.
“She would’ve crushed no matter what she set out to do just because of who she is,” Dr. Combs said. “But I think it’s very satisfying and helpful to know that there are resources and that there are people that really care about you; not just about what you can do for the team or the sport, but you as a person and want to see you succeed lifelong.”
“She’s amazing,” Winterfeld said about Dr. Combs. “I will never be able to tell her thank you enough because I am so grateful for everything she has done for me.
“There were so many moments when I was just about to throw in the towel because it was just exhausting mentally and physically, so it meant the world to be able to just know that everything had been worth it in the end.”
Learn more
- Neuropsychologist plays vital role in concussion recovery
- Injuries can take a mental toll on athletes
- Gymnast competes again with help from sports psychologist
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Posted In Brain & Spine, Neurology, Sioux Falls, Sports Medicine
