Introduction
We all love sports because we never know when the next hero might emerge. We hope each year it will be the utility player in baseball that comes off the bench in the playoffs with the game-winning hit or for the underdog team to make a deep run in the postseason, but there are so many other positions outside of the team and the coaches that have to come together to make this possible.

There is one group of individuals that throughout the NCAA and professional sports that are at every practice and game, interact with all the players and are not allowed to have an 'off-shooting night'; these are the Athletic Trainers, and Point Loma is proud to have one of the best groups of ATCs in the West.

Athletic Trainers at PLNU
The Athletic Training staff at Point Loma is a bit of a unique group (and that it's not just their personalities). Lindsy Donnelly and Mark West are full-time Athletic Trainers with the Athletic Department, while Jeff Sullivan, Nicole Cosby and Susan Ganz all are full-time faculty in the Kinesiology Department, while having a work load in the clinic.

Jeff Sullivan is a graduate of Point Loma and has been with the Sea Lions for 10 years. After earning his undergraduate from PLNU, Sullivan went on to receive his master's degree from San Jose State and Ph.D from Oregon State. He then returned to Point Loma where he is now the Department Chair for Kinesiology and Director for the Athletic Training Education Program. Sullivan worked with the men's and women's basketball programs for eight of the past 10 seasons but this year he has moved on to be the primary Athletic Trainer for men's & women's tennis, cross country and track & field. Sullivan is married to a fellow PLNU graduate, Hannah, and the couple has three children.

Susan Ganz is one of the original members of the Point Loma Athletic Training staff. While working for the Sea Lions for the past 16 years Ganz has seen Point Loma's Athletic Training staff grow immensely.  At first it was just Susan and Leon Kuglar running Athletic Training services for all sports out of the classroom currently known as K4. Susan gives credit to Kuglar for really moving the Athletic Training program ahead at Point Loma. Ganz received her undergraduate degree in Physical Education with an emphasis in Athletic Training from Azusa Pacific after starting her college education at Washington State, in her hometown of Pullman, Wash. She would go on to earn her master's at Austin Peay University while working for the women's basketball program, and her Ph.D from the University of New Mexico. Ganz was heavily involved with Athletic Training on a national level. She served as the president of the NAIA Athletic Trainers Association for five years and was named the NAIA Athletic Trainer of the Year in both 2005 and 2009. Currently she is serving as a full-time professor with the Kinesiology department while also being the head Athletic Trainer for the men's and women's basketball teams. Susan is married to her husband Shane and the couple lives in Encinitas.

Lindsy Donnelly has been a member of the Point Loma Athletic Training staff in January of 2007. She began as a part-time staff and Athletic Trainer and has since worked her way into Head Athletic Trainer and adjust faculty for Kinesiology. Donnelly is another Sea Lion at the core having graduated from PLNU in 2006. While Jeff Sullivan oversees all aspects of academics for the Athletic Training Education Program, it is Donnelly that is in charge of the Athletic Training Clinic and the staff. She can be found each day from 12:30 p.m. to 30 minutes after the last practice providing care to Point Loma student-athletes. Her primary sports are men's and women's soccer, and baseball this year, but as she and the rest of the Athletic Trainers mentioned they all work cohesively to provide care for all the teams.

Nicole Cosby joins Jeff Sullivan as another PLNU grad to make their way back Point Loma. She is in her second year back with the Sea Lions after earning her master's degree from San Jose State and doctorate from the University of Virginia. In her first go-round at PLNU, Cosby was an instructor but has returned as an Assistant Professor and Assistant Athletic Trainer. She is currently teaching classes ranging from Risk Management and Emergency Response to Pharmacology. Nicole, who ran for Point Loma and head coach Jerry Arvin during her days as an undergrad, now works with the cross country and track & field teams. Cosby has been married to her husband, Dwayne, for six years and the couple has a beautiful daughter named, Imani.

Mark West joined the PLNU Athletic Training staff in the Fall of 2012. He recently earned his master's degree in Athletic Training from California Baptist after receiving his undergraduate degree in Exercise Science from La Sierra. He has worked as the head Athletic Trainer at La Canada High School in Pasadena and as an assistant Athletic Trainer with the UCLA baseball team. Here at Point Loma, West works with the volleyball and track & field programs.

Defining Athletic Trainers
A Certified Athletic Trainer is a unique health care provider who specializes in the prevention, assessment, treatment and rehabilitation of injuries and illnesses. While this might sound straightforward there are many misconceptions or misunderstandings about the role of the individuals dressed cleanly and professionally on the sideline at every event. Some believe Athletic Trainers just tape ankles or they act as a personal trainer but this is something the profession is working hard to change.

"Many people still call us trainers," said Donnelly. "The distinction is that we are Allied Healthcare Professionals, and trainers by the common standard are personal trainers. And while personal trainers do a great job it is the differences in our education that sets us apart."

It is that education that Lindsy, Jeff, Nicole, Mark and Susan try to pass along to the student-athletes, and especially the newcomers, to dispel them of the misconceptions some have of the Athletic Training profession.

"First thing we do for new students is to clarify our purpose," said Donnelly. "Our purpose is not to be their mother or father. Our purpose is not to do everything for them and cater to every need. Our purpose is to teach them how to take care of themselves properly, how to protect themselves from injury, and in the event of injury facilitate their recovery.

"Many student-athletes come in and based on their past experience with ATCs will expect things to be spoon-fed to them or come on a silver platter, but my feeling is that part of the college experience is to be well rounded, learn and be educated about multiple facets of your life," she continued. "So our goal is to take care of you (the athlete) but teach you the process. There is not always going to be an athletic trainer around, so let's teach each person the skills to manage one's own health, and we can be there for the complicated stuff."

Athletic Training education at PLNU
The education in Athletic Training for some, and not just student-athletes, began in the classrooms and Athletic Training facilities here at Point Loma. As one of its more than 60 areas of study, PLNU offers the Athletic Training Education Program (ATEP) through the Kinesiology department. Students are given the opportunity for observation hours during the Spring of their freshman year, and if they are interested they will enter a three-year program to train them to pass the National Athletic Trainers' Association Board of Certiciation Exam (BOC), and become a certified athletic trainer.

When the program begins during their sophomore year, athletic training students will intern at a local high school to get hands-on experience working with a contact sport, while also getting their first opportunity to work in the Point Loma's Athletic Training Clinic. Their junior year of the program is the most intense as the students are assigned to work with a designated Certified Athletic Trainer and his/her corresponding team. They are expected to be the first ones providing care to the team and also travel on many of the road trips.

The ATEP program all comes together during the final year when the senior athletic training student's rotations are all held off-campus. They have a rotation with an orthopedic surgeon, a general practitioner and physical therapist to allow them to define exactly what occupation they would prefer in the healthcare profession. The students will also have received all the instruction they need to take and pass the National Athletic Trainers' Association-BOC examination.

The Facility
While the students are here they have the chance to not only work with skilled Athletic Training professionals, they get to work in a very scenic and functional facility.

"We are very fortunate with our facility and especially the location," Donnelly explained. "It is located between all the athletic facilities and it is hard to miss if you are headed to any of the locations.

"We are blessed and fortunate to have the space and the equipment we have," she continued. "Many other teams and transfers have come to PLNU and raved about our AT facilities, and we are very grateful for it. It is great to work in and we get to look at the beautiful ocean every day."

Intrinsic job perks
One of the unique parts of the profession for an ATC at the collegiate level is being assigned to a team and the travel that can accompany it. Each ATC will be assigned to a team and will handle all athletic training duties associated with that team, both at home and on the road. They will travel just like another member of the team - taking the bus trips, sitting in the airports and at the restaurants. But this offers many opportunities to know the individuals on the team, and this is one of the true job highlights for many athletic trainers.

"That is what I particularly love about athletic training," said Donnelly with a smile on her face. "We get to know them on a personal level and not just as students-athletes or individuals that are injured. I really like getting to know the person and not just fixing an injury.

"I used to love going to the NAIA national tournaments in Decatur, Alabama with the softball and soccer teams," Donnelly explained. "I got to know the teams so well it was like traveling with family. When I'm on the road and it feels more like family; those are the things I really love."

Conclusion
It has been the dedication and true love for the job that has helped Lindsy, Jeff, Susan, Nicole and Mark create one of the best Athletic Training programs in the West and truly become the unsung heroes of the Point Loma Athletic Department.