MAYFIELD, Ohio — Right as school lets out, Jessica Downing and her fellow student trainers at Mayfield High School get to work.
What You Need To Know
- Student athletic trainers said they are usually the first ones on and last off a field
- They prep the sidelines for practice and games, among other duties
- The head athletic trainer for Mayfield High School said student trainers are encouraged to start as underclassmen
“We’re starting because we gotta get everything out there and we have to get out there before the guys start coming up on the field,” Downng said.
The Mayfield Wildcats football team will travel to face the Nordonia Knights on Friday night in the Spectrum News 1 OHSAA Game of the Week. Both teams will try to stay unbeaten in Week 3.
Downing became a student athletic trainer after her freshman year.
“We had a big meeting and here we are,” Downing said.
She’s now a senior. She said the idea of studying athletic training in college has crossed her mind.
“I was thinking about doing it. I’m still undecided on whether I want to or not,” Downing said.
One important skill she’s learned is how to properly wrap tape.
“This is to support down here, the bend in her finger, she’s a soccer player, she’s a goalie” Downing said.
But something like fitting a football helmet must be done by a professionally-certified athletic trainer. Heather Fisher is the head athletic trainer for the school. She said experienced student trainers get to do more advanced tasks such as taping.
“My juniors and my seniors get more responsibilities, different responsibilities on game night,” Fisher said.
Which is why she said she recommends students start as underclassmen. Downing said she now has it down to a routine.
“It takes practice… it’s pretty easy once you learn how to do it,” Downing said.
Fisher said her trainers spend a lot of time on the athletic field, especially if there are games scheduled the same day as as another team’s practice. She said they’re usually the first ones on the field and the last to leave.
