Senior Abby Fisher has been on the male-dominated wrestling team since her freshman year, so it’s no surprise that she challenged herself with the varsity football team—not as a player, but as an athletic trainer.
Fisher decided to work with the football team this fall in order to gain valuable experience for her dream career as an athletic trainer. After attending an athletic training summer program at William and Mary College, Fisher began working with the football team.
Fisher said the program taught her how to treat minor injuries. She was a consistent help to the team, said varsity football coach Jim Kuhn.
“It’s strictly medical—she [taped] ankles, broken fingers and wrists,” Kuhn said. “She [was] a positive member of our team.”
Fisher first got the idea to pursue a career in athletic training after talking to photo instructor and former football trainer Michael Seymour, who advised her to apply to schools where she could major in athletic training.
“Being an athlete herself and her rapport with her classmates and the kids on the football team are what makes her successful—not how much she knows about first aid or how to tape an ankle,” Seymour said. “Because the kids trust her, they come to her more often and she is more effective as a trainer.”
The William and Mary program helped Fisher prepare for college, Seymour said.
“She’s already going to know how to tape, know all her first aid, be CPR certified,” Seymour said. “She’s had the experience of working with a team and getting the dynamics down with the players. She’s going to be light-years ahead of other people interested in sports medicine.”
Post-college, Fisher said she plans to train professional or college teams.
Before each practice and game, Fisher taped up senior offensive lineman Jeff Schaeffer’s ankles and wrists.
“Abby definitely [was] a positive influence on this team,” Schaeffer said. “She [kept] us in line and [was] fair with a first-come-first-serve policy.”
Quarterback Michael Flack said that Fisher was a helpful trainer for the football team, and that they have her to thank for their safety.
“She [provided] us with professional tape jobs, which enable us to perform at our highest level possible,” Flack said.
Kuhn said that he was pleased that Fisher decided to work with the football team. Although her medical duties are general, she helped out the coaches by taking over tedious jobs the coaches used to have to perform.
“I’m flabbergasted by the progress she’s made,” Seymour said. “The reason why I thought she was going to be really great as an athletic trainer is that 50% of what you do as a trainer is interpersonal skills and she’s already got the dynamics down with players.”
