Jonathan Foster ’10
Staff Writer
The life line to all Staples Athletes, the athletic trainers, are a hardworking group, armed with countless roles of tape, and the knowledge and determination it takes, to keep these athletes in action.
Arriving at school around noon, Gaetana “G” Deiso, Head Athletic Trainer, and Erin Guertin, Assistant, get straight to work, preparing for the busy day that lies ahead of them. Restocking the training room, filing and completing mounds of paper work and insurance forms, “there is a ton of stuff,” said G.
Once 2:15 rolls around, the hard work begins. In a half an hour period an influx of students pack into the cramped training room requesting treatment. G and Erin’s repertoire of abilities are more than enough to handle all that is asked of them. Prevention taping for ankles, arches, blisters, hyper extensions, or anything that needs to be taped, is cared for. In addition to this, electrical stimulation, ultrasounds, impact tests, massages, and even some forms of counseling can all be conducted by the trainers. Massages however, are not done like those at the spa. “Massages are done with a purpose to get them on the field again… they are not pleasant” G said.
Seeing up to 50 athletes in a day, many of them needing to be taped up, the trainers go through many roles of tape. At the beginning of the year, 50 cases of tape, are ordered to last for a school year of taping. Each case containing 32 individual rolls, there is a mind blowing grand total of 1600 rolls, and nearly all of them are used.
Once everyone clears out of the training room, the trainers spread out to the various sporting events going on at Staples. Prioritizing each sport by the amount of contact, the trainers spread out, trying to keep the athletes in a safe environment.
After repeatedly helping many of the star athletes, and going to many of the games for different teams, the trainers really become a part of all the teams at Staples. When asked about the most memorable moment as a trainer at Staples, G instantly replied “remembering the big victories, really close games in over time and double overtime.”
G and Erin are always looking out for Staple’s athletes, sending them out to the field in tip top shape.
