Wingspans play different roles in different sports.

Generally, the taller the athlete, the longer the wingspan, but how long? And how much does that factor into an athletic advantage?

The Sentinel looked at several of the area's top wingspan to investigate.

Let's start by giving a baseline to go by.

There have been no uniformally equal studies done in this area. According to the Physics Factbook study, the length of an average human wingspan is an inch longer than the person’s height. But according to Science Reference and the NBA, the average wingspan is two inches longer than the person's height if they are male and a half inch if they are female.

Now that is just the average.

The Holland area has some athletes with some wingspans that simply shatter the averages.

We'll start right at the top:


Former Holland High School basketball player Coreontae DeBerry, now playing professionally in Europe, has plenty of above average features. His hands are huge, making a basketball look like a small cantaloupe. He stands 6 feet, 10 inches. But his wingspan is even more impressive, reaching 7-6.

“My wingspan helps me with rebounding, reaching over opponents and blocking shots,” DeBerry said.

He can reach over players even taller than himself, giving him a clear advantage.

Other basketball players have different wingspans. Grand Valley State forward Jake VanTubbergen looks like he has an extremely long wingspan. It is deceiving, though he has a good ratio at 6-9 to his 6-6 height.

Calvin all-conference players Bre Luurtsema and Ali Spayde have similar wingspans but they have different advantages.

Luurtsema, a Holland Christian graduate, stands 5-10 and has a 5-10 wingspan. Not a huge ratio, but a 5-10 wingspan is a big advantage in college basketball.

“Having a long wingspan is helpful. I am not the tallest player, but having longer arms helps in rebounding, defending and getting tips on shots,” Luurtsema said.

Spayde is a 5-9 guard but has a 5-10 wingspan. It helped her become perhaps the best pure shooter in the MIAA the past few seasons.

“It is definitely an advantage because there are a lot of guards that are shorter than me. When I have a longer wingspan, I can rise up above that and shoot over them. That is my big thing, if I get stuck, I can usually get over them to shoot.”


Volleyball is another sport that puts a premium on height. The wingspan ratio can also be deceiving.

When Hope College won the national championship, right-side hitter Amy VanderStoep from West Ottawa played a huge role. Her long arms allowed her to slam down kills with authority, almost like a slingshot. But though it looked like she had a huge wingspan, it was in fact nearly identical to her 6-1 height — of course in volleyball the 6-1 height is already an advantage on the outside or right side.

Sophie Riemersma is the opposite. The former Zeeland East all-state player heading to Miami (Ohio) stands 6-0, which is tall, but not overly tall for playing middle hitter, which she did in high school.

But Riemersma has a 6-2 wingspan, which allowed her to overcome the times she had a height disadvantage.

“It helps me a lot, especially when I am attacking. It gives me a lot of arm so I can be able to reach balls that other people wouldn’t be able to. Super high balls off sets I can get to because of my long arms,” Riemersma said. “Whenever I go up to approach, you want to face toward the right if you are attacking on the outside because you want to torque with your core, but at the same time, you want to turn your shoulder back and get your elbow up and swing back to the middle. Usually the torque comes from the core, but you have to bring along your shoulder and arm and it gives me an advantage in that way.”

Wingspan can play a huge factor in sports that don't rely on height as well.




Michigan State swimmer Kevin Mills from Zeeland stands 6-8 — already an advantage in the water. But his wingspan is a stunning 7-1, allowing him to take fewer strokes each lap.

“In swimming, you work on distance per stroke,” Mills said. “Having an extra few inches is huge. Every inch is more water, and the more water you are pulling, the faster you are going to go. Not to mention having a couple of inches on your opponents when you dive in. Being able to take only 12-13 strokes to get across the pool is a good weapon to have.”

Holland's Emma Henninges who is about 5-9 has a nearly 6-0 wingspan. She uses the same advantage. But while Mills mostly takes advantage in the sprints, Henninges uses it during distance race.

“She has really long arms. Her kick is constantly going, but her arm length is very important. You want to keep your strokes to a minimum and be efficient, and she does that,” Holland coach Lori Lepard said. “It is definitely an advantage.”


Another sport that wingspan doesn't seem to affect most of the time is tennis, but Kenzie Weener has used hers as a major advantage to become one of the top doubles players in area history. She is 6-0 and has a wingspan of 6-3.

She now plays at Spring Arbor and sometimes she feels the advantage before the match even starts.

“I notice even when I am warming up that intimidation is a big factor in my game. People notice my height and people notice my wingspan and they are scared of it. That is one of the main reasons why I love doubles. I have that advantage of being on top of the net always. Having that in my back pocket is so nice to have for tennis,” Weener said. “Being so tall and having this long of a wingspan helps a ton with your serve. You get more height on the ball, which allows you with topspin, have the ball create more spin, which catches players off guard.”

Once the points get going, that advantage increases in doubles because Weener covers most of the net — at least it seems like it.

“I feel like I can get to everything at the net. I know that I have to go for everything. Most of the time if I go for something, they will tense up and misfire because I am on top of the net and have that wingspan advantage,” she said. “At times I feel like I have more than half the court covered. That makes you feel confident in yourself and get to everything and reach those balls that others can not, which is a huge part of tennis.”

Wingspans can help in sports that don't even have the same physical or close interaction.


Minor league pitcher Grant Wolfram from Hamilton sees it every time he takes the mound. He is a 6-8 lefty with a 6-10 wingspan. Even though his opponent stands 60-6 away from him, there is still a significant advantage.

West Ottawa graduate Tyler Bosma, also a left-handed pitcher is 6-6 and has a 6-7 wingspan.

“It just comes out of my hand a little different. People see the ball later out of my hand. I can stay behind the ball and it has a bit more jump,” Wolfram said.

Rebounding, swimming, serving, pitching and spiking, it seems like the elite athletes have an arm up on the competition.
