A day with the Rider sports training team

WICHITA FALLS, Texas (KAUZ) — March is National Athletic Training Month.

For the Rider athletic coaching staff, one of the biggest parts of the job is the athlete-coach relationship.

“You see them at their lowest points sometimes and you see them improve through rehab and get back on the pitch,” head coach Robert Doley said. “It’s a joy.”

In his 19 years as a sports coach, Doley said there was no typical day.

“We are coming here very early,” Doley said. “Kids come for therapy in the mornings and in the evenings we cover sporting events.”

Doley recently added Dr. Christanie Monreal to her staff. Monreal worked in the athletics department at Midwestern State University for 12 years before transitioning to high school athletics.

“You can actually make an appointment with a student athlete since they don’t have classes scheduled throughout the day,” Monreal said. “Whereas here at the secondary level, we have to work around this school schedule.”

Another key relationship for athletic trainers is the one established with their student aides. Junior Kateri Wiersema got involved in sports coaching her freshman year after getting injured while playing football.

“I found myself in the training room more than on the pitch,” Wiersema said. “It became a passion for me. I realized how much it could lead to a career.

Whether it’s the relationship that develops with a student-athlete or a student aide, these coaches love their jobs.