{"id":4759,"date":"2023-04-28T14:07:08","date_gmt":"2023-04-28T14:07:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/?p=4759"},"modified":"2025-03-28T15:37:23","modified_gmt":"2025-03-28T19:37:23","slug":"athletic-trainers-helping-the-wildcats-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/2023\/04\/28\/athletic-trainers-helping-the-wildcats-win\/","title":{"rendered":"Athletic Trainers: Helping the Wildcats Win"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading4759_1ff28a-32, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading4759_1ff28a-32[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading4759_1ff28a-32\"]{display:block;padding-bottom:var(--global-kb-spacing-md, 2rem);text-align:center;font-size:var(--global-kb-font-size-sm, 0.9rem);font-weight:400;font-style:italic;font-family:proxima-nova;}.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading4759_1ff28a-32 mark.kt-highlight, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading4759_1ff28a-32[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading4759_1ff28a-32\"] mark.kt-highlight{font-style:normal;color:#f76a0c;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;box-decoration-break:clone;padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:0px;padding-left:0px;}.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading4759_1ff28a-32 img.kb-inline-image, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading4759_1ff28a-32[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading4759_1ff28a-32\"] img.kb-inline-image{width:150px;vertical-align:baseline;}<\/style>\n<span class=\"kt-adv-heading4759_1ff28a-32 wu-subheading wp-block-kadence-advancedheading has-kb-palette-14-color has-text-color\" data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading4759_1ff28a-32\">Front: Dan Boeher. From Left- Luis Zamora Patino, Will Razzano, Chris Stella, Amanda Denney<\/span>\n\n\n<style>.kadence-column4759_843324-d4 > .kt-inside-inner-col{padding-right:var(--global-kb-spacing-lg, 3rem);padding-bottom:var(--global-kb-spacing-lg, 3rem);padding-left:var(--global-kb-spacing-lg, 3rem);}.kadence-column4759_843324-d4 > .kt-inside-inner-col,.kadence-column4759_843324-d4 > .kt-inside-inner-col:before{border-top-left-radius:0px;border-top-right-radius:0px;border-bottom-right-radius:0px;border-bottom-left-radius:0px;}.kadence-column4759_843324-d4 > .kt-inside-inner-col{column-gap:var(--global-kb-gap-sm, 1rem);}.kadence-column4759_843324-d4 > .kt-inside-inner-col{flex-direction:column;}.kadence-column4759_843324-d4 > .kt-inside-inner-col > .aligncenter{width:100%;}.kadence-column4759_843324-d4 > .kt-inside-inner-col:before{opacity:0.3;}.kadence-column4759_843324-d4{position:relative;}@media all and (max-width: 1024px){.kadence-column4759_843324-d4 > .kt-inside-inner-col{flex-direction:column;justify-content:center;}}@media all and (max-width: 991px){.kadence-column4759_843324-d4 > .kt-inside-inner-col{flex-direction:column;justify-content:center;}}<\/style>\n<div class=\"wp-block-kadence-column kadence-column4759_843324-d4 dynamic-main-col\"><div class=\"kt-inside-inner-col\">\n<p>Wilmington University\u2019s athletic trainers are a busy bunch. The University fields 16 teams \u2014 nine women\u2019s and seven men\u2019s \u2014 in NCAA Division II sports. An athletic trainer is present at every home contest, some of the away games or matches, and at every on-site, in-season practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt can get hectic,\u201d says Head Trainer Chris Stella. But he and his staff of one part-time and three full-time trainers manage their duties with skill, dedication, and enthusiasm. &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And those duties are many, varied, and critical to the success of the University\u2019s athletic program. Recognized by the&nbsp;American Medical Association&nbsp;(AMA) as an&nbsp;allied health care profession&nbsp;since 1990, athletic training requires skill in five domains of clinical practice: prevention; clinical evaluation and diagnosis; immediate and emergency care; treatment and rehabilitation; and organization and professional health and well-being.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Professional standards for athletic trainers are becoming more demanding. Says LaGwyn Durden, director of Sports Medicine at Sport Science Institute: \u201cEmerging science has allowed for better understanding of how to address various injuries and reduce incidence. As such, athletic trainers need to find time in their already busy schedules for continuing education to ensure that they are providing care based on current industry standards of care and best practices.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the near future, all athletic training education programs must be at the master\u2019s level in order to be accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education. Transition to this requirement has been gradual for the past seven years and will take full effect with incoming students during the next academic year, according to National Trainers\u2019 Association President Dr. Kathy Dieringer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>She notes that the profession is expanding beyond the world of sports. \u201cIn the last decade or so, athletic trainers have found their way into a number of other settings,\u201d she says. \u201cThey are working in performing arts, physician practices, military and industrial settings, hospitals, rehabilitation clinics, and in public safety, working with police and firefighters. There are so many opportunities out there.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Stella, who marks 19 years as head trainer in 2023, says he and his staff typically work a six-day week. \u201cEveryone picks their day off,\u201d he says. It helps that his team works well together and exchanging shifts so someone can take off a specific day is common. Also, they get a bit of a breather in the summer, when no teams are in action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He points out that there is a close-knit core of people in the Athletics Department \u201cwho have been here for a long time,\u201d and the result is \u201ca fun experience, a family atmosphere.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Making up his immediate University family are full-time Assistant Trainers Dan Boeher, Amanda Denney, and Will Razzano, plus part-timer Luis Zamora Patino. All five have B.S. degrees in Athletic Training, and all sit for a board exam and have to be state licensed in order to practice.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Each member of the team has specific assignments, although all trainers are capable of covering any of the sports. In addition to his administrative duties, Stella, who has a master\u2019s in Physical Therapy from the University of Delaware, covers volleyball, men\u2019s and women\u2019s cross country, men\u2019s basketball, baseball, and golf. The entire staff splits up spring track and field.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>The number one priority is preventing injuries<strong>.<\/strong> Nothing gladdens the heart of an athletic trainer like helping an athlete stay healthy throughout his or her season.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Razzano, who has been on the staff since 2015, covers men\u2019s soccer, softball, plus cheerleading, and he assists with women\u2019s basketball and track and field. His workday varies depending on the season. \u201cFor example,\u201d he says, \u201cpreseason soccer runs three-a-day practices \u2014 8 a.m., 10 a.m., and 6 p.m. So, I\u2019m in the office from 7 a.m. until about 9:30 p.m.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On routine, non-game days, trainers write any injury notes, catch up on doctor or physical therapy appointments for the athletes, complete paperwork, and work on the athletes, who often fill the 10 training tables and four taping stations evenly split between two rooms \u2014 one at the Pratt Student Center and one at the Athletic Complex.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Over his two decades at the University, Stella has seen a significant upgrade in athletic training facilities. \u201cWe have high-end, Division I-type whirlpools, and the equipment in both rooms is excellent,\u201d he says. \u201cWe try to use it as a recruiting tool.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Game days are the most demanding. While players arrive at least an hour early, trainers arrive before that. Timing depends on the sport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cFor soccer, they get there an hour early,\u201d says Razzano. \u201cFor softball, they start stretching about 2\u00bd hours prior to the start time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When trainers arrive, they first gather the tools of their trade: Gatorade, cups, water bottles, ice chest, crutches, splint bag, defibrillator, medical kit, and the injury binder, in case anyone needs to be seen immediately due to injury. For soccer and lacrosse, these items are loaded into the Gator utility vehicle, which is also used to cart any injured players off the field.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cPost game is mostly cleanup and being available for anything that happened during the game,\u201d says Razzano. \u201cAfterward, we clean and wipe down the training room with disinfectant, change the pillowcases, and finish any team laundry and towels.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Denney, the longest-tenured assist-ant trainer, joined the staff in 2008. She supports women\u2019s soccer, women\u2019s basketball, women\u2019s lacrosse, and women\u2019s bowling.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Admitting to an obsession with working out, Denney is a triathlete who completed the 2014 Ironman Lake Placid (New York) race.\u00a0But even this Iron woman concedes that her work can be \u201cvery physical some days.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt seems we always have a new injury to evaluate and treat,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd we basically have one athletic trainer for each team, which means I will have to treat, by myself, possibly 10\u201315 athletes a day in the athletic training room.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Yes, the job is demanding. \u201cBut,\u201d says Boeher, \u201creturning an injured athlete to play or helping an athlete feel better in order to help them compete is so satisfying.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Adds Denney: \u201cWhat I found to be the best part of my job is how grateful some athletes can be when you help them get back on that field.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Boeher, who joined the staff in 2017, is responsible for men\u2019s lacrosse as well as tennis, and also assists with track and field and men\u2019s basketball. Because lacrosse is a contact sport, he must travel with the team to all away games. (In the other, non-contact sports, the home team\u2019s trainer is responsible for the visiting team.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For Denney and Boeher, life got a little more demanding in December, when they both became first-time parents.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Stella brought in Zamora Patino as a part-time assistant more than a year ago to work with the softball and baseball teams during their off seasons. As a runner and recreational soccer player, Zamora Patino says, \u201cI understand the frustration that the athlete goes&nbsp;through when they\u2019re medically unable to safely return to the sport that they love.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He says his experience at WilmU will help him reach his career goal: working as an athletic trainer in Major League Soccer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When they\u2019re not icing down sore muscles or wrapping ankles (Stella estimates they used 3,800 rolls of tape\/prewrap last year) trainers are treating ankle sprains, shin splints and knee problems. And the occasional concussion.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While lower-body injuries are the most frequent, Wildcat athletes also suffer the occasional concussion, even though the University doesn\u2019t field a football team. In fact, Stella says, all sports \u2014 including bowling and golf \u2014 have recorded concussions. Some have occurred away from the sport, in the student-athlete\u2019s everyday life, but all are treated by the athletic training staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re very thorough and at the conservative end of the spectrum when it comes to concussions and return to play,\u201d Stella says. \u201cWe treat them all the same. Every student goes through the same process. Basically, the person is resting until their symptoms clear.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe inform their professors and get them extensions for class work. Returning the student to the classroom is the first priority. Once their symptoms resolve, we put them through a series of tests, both written and physical, then functional testing \u2014 running, sprinting \u2014 then they return to non-contact practice before upgrading to full contact.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The mental health of athletes is another, and relatively new, area of concern for athletic trainers. \u201cWe were definitely in the forefront of this in 2017 when the NCAA recommended schools offer mental health counseling,\u201d says Stella. \u201cWe started with one counselor and we\u2019re now up to three, and we\u2019re still trying to grow that pool.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Stella says he and his staff work closely with Head Team Physician Dr. Joseph Straight in dealing with mental health issues. \u201cDr. Straight has some specialists working with him who help determine whether there will be treatment in house, treatment by the doctor, or referral to long-term treatment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Arlen Stone also treats WilmU athletes. His priorities are illnesses, general medicine, and urgent care issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>What I found to be the best part of my job is how grateful some athletes can be when you help them get back on that field.\u201d <\/p>\n<cite>\u2014 Amanda Denney<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>The entire sports medicine team stays in contact to plan each athlete\u2019s progress through injury and rehabilitation. But, as Stella emphasizes, the number one priority is preventing injuries. Nothing gladdens the heart of an athletic trainer like helping an athlete stay healthy throughout his or her season.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Fortunately, since they spend so much time with athletes, the trainers are not only diligent and skilled professionals, they also are fans. Just ask the coaches.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Razzano, for instance, \u201cloves the sport,\u201d says Softball Head Coach Mike Shehorn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Razzano plays softball in a local league, and he often brings his glove to practice. \u201cHe\u2019ll come out and shag fly balls,\u201d says Shehorn. \u201cAnd at games, he\u2019s just as much in the game as if he was a coach. The girls love him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Razzano is \u201cfair and honest,\u201d Shehorn says. \u201cIf he says they can\u2019t play or practice that day, the players respect him and accept that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Christian Zwickert, head men\u2019s lacrosse coach, says Boeher \u201cis one of our biggest supporters, not only in the physical aspect, but also in dealing with mental health issues. Dan is the first step in creating mental health support for the guys. They absolutely love him and trust him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As Zwickert points out, men\u2019s lacrosse is the only sport \u201cwhere a piece of equipment can be used to hit another player,\u201d so injuries are fairly frequent, and the athletic trainer becomes all-important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIn the training room, Dan is boss,\u201d Zwickert says. \u201cEvery day after practice he gives me clinic notes, basically an update as to injuries and treatment. He even attends some coaches\u2019 meetings.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Kevin Day, head coach of women\u2019s lacrosse, says Denney is \u201cabsolutely phenomenal. She\u2019s very thorough and caring. She\u2019s almost like a big sister to the girls.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On road trips, Day and Denney sometimes work out together at the local YMCA. Well, not exactly together. Day, a competitive power lifter, is usually done long before Denney, who often hits the treadmill, the stationary bike, and the pool in her workouts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The trainers regularly join their teams in celebrating victories, which the Wildcats did a lot of in the 2021\u201322 academic year. They came out on top 65% of the time \u2014 174 out of 266 contests. And while players and coaches rightly deserve most of the glory, some of it should go to Chris Stella and his skilled staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u2014 Bob Yearick<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Front: Dan Boeher. From Left- Luis Zamora Patino, Will Razzano, Chris Stella, Amanda Denney Wilmington University\u2019s athletic trainers are a busy bunch. The University fields&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":6084,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[135,143],"tags":[335,446],"class_list":["post-4759","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-magazine","category-sports","tag-magazine-spring-2023","tag-sports"],"acf":[],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":135,"label":"MAGAZINE"},{"value":143,"label":"SPORTS"}],"post_tag":[{"value":335,"label":"Magazine Spring 2023"},{"value":446,"label":"Sports"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Spring23Mag_AthleticTrainers-1-483x480.jpg",483,480,true],"author_info":{"display_name":"Rachel Marchione","author_link":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/author\/rachel\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":135,"name":"MAGAZINE","slug":"magazine","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":692,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":431,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":135,"category_count":431,"category_description":"","cat_name":"MAGAZINE","category_nicename":"magazine","category_parent":0},{"term_id":143,"name":"SPORTS","slug":"sports","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":700,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":36,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":143,"category_count":36,"category_description":"","cat_name":"SPORTS","category_nicename":"sports","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":[{"term_id":335,"name":"Magazine Spring 2023","slug":"magazine-spring-2023","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":892,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":24,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":446,"name":"Sports","slug":"sports","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1003,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":2,"filter":"raw"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4759","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4759"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4759\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17751,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4759\/revisions\/17751"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6084"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4759"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4759"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4759"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}