Coppell High School junior Taylor Evans is an active member of the CHS sports medicine team. The sports medicine team is in charge of tending to the players’ injuries during games and ensuring the team has enough water and protection to play its sport safely. 

What motivated you to join sports medicine?

Originally I thought it would be something interesting. I went to the meeting about it at [Coppell Middle School North] and really enjoyed it. I stayed because I enjoy the people I get to work with and I like taking care of athletes and their injuries. 

What training did you need?

A lot of the time it’s a learning-on-the-go experience. You learn more by doing. The older you get, the more reliable you are to take care of athletes by yourself, and you’re not as dependent on coaches and trainers. 

What are your duties during games?

It can vary depending on the sport, but the basics are making sure the athletes have enough water to drink so they don’t end up dehydrated, checking for injury and bleeding especially if they are in white uniforms because blood on them is hard to scrub off [and] if anyone gets hurt, it’s our job to hop up and do it. We got an award from Children’s Health Hospital called “Team Behind the Team” award, which basically means the sports med team has been doing a good job consistently. 

How does sports medicine impact your schedule?

It’s a time commitment for sure because a lot of the time we arrive before games to help set up and stay after to help clean up everything. The coaches help balance our time so we’re not pushing ourselves too much with school and everything else we have to do. It’s really time-consuming, but I enjoy what I’m doing so it’s not too bad. The sports med team spends a lot of time together and you rely on your friends to help make the long hours shorter. I’ve made so many friends working together with everyone. 

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