Teamwork Makes the Dream Work

"Student Managers Provide Vital Help"

(Wrestling managers Karley Koehler and Kalyn Sandmeyer track points and match footage at a recent invitational.)

For gladiators in ancient Rome, thunderous applause justified a short time in the arena. Current athletes also experience the thrill of victory and the cheers of friends, family, and fans. Yet sports can often teach other lessons beyond winning and losing, and for student managers, the rewards go beyond personal glory. 

For boys basketball assistant coach Eric Ward, whose time in the arena ended years ago, he understands the importance of teamwork and valuing each player on the bench, including managers.. “The managers help in a variety of ways, helping coaches and players in every practice and on game days. The duties are wide ranging, from getting the balls out everyday, setting up the scoreboard, operating the scoreboard during practices, helping with drills and practice stuff, helping prepare for game days, jerseys, water, etc.”  Over the past two decades, a team manager has become an important part of the boys basketball team. “Wesley Ivey was our manager the previous 4 years, prior to that was Colten Maas, and before him the first manager was Elijah Lippert.  All of these guys were excellent in their roles and were 100% a team member, treated and with the same expectations as any player.”

So when Ward turned to his son Jack to fill shoes once filled by Elijah Lippert, he understood the unique lessons that would be learned. “It has been awesome to have Jack at practice everyday. He loves basketball, and being around the game everyday will only benefit him. They guys have really accepted him and treat him great and like part of the team!”

Despite just being in 4th Grade, Jack Ward describes the whole opportunity as “Pretty fun.” For game days, he sits at the end of the bench and tends to the clean, cold, high-quality H20, but at practices, he gets to run the scoreboard and clock. “I wanted to do it,” Jack insisted and described the thrill of getting to fill in for drills when squads have an odd number. Jack also gets insight into the team he serves. Regarding the coaches, Jack said, ““Sometimes in a win, when they shoulda won by a lot, (coaches) still get kinda mad if they didn’t win by much.” He also learns lessons from the players, including one who foolishly “punched the wall and broke their hand.” Ultimately, Jacks feels he has plenty of time still in the day since “I usually don’t have homework.”

(Above) Jack Ward enjoys the interaction at practices and his spot at the end of the bench on game days. 

For the wrestling squad, the co-op between Maple River and USC utilizes three student managers to help the Longhorns during tournaments. Karly Koehler, Riley Getchel, and Kaylyn Sandmeyer  have duties ranging from setting up the iPads, tracking stats in the record book, checking out parents with their kids, cheering on the wrestlers, and double-checking that the wrestlers don’t forget anything important. “They love when we tell them what to do,” all three girls echoed sarcastically. For Koehler and Getchel, their involvement as wrestling managers came naturally.  ““I’ve grown up with wrestling my whole life,” Getchell explained and felt as if it was a great way to meet new friends. One of those new friends is a former rival from another school, Kayln Sandmeyer. While none of the girls knew each other prior to the activity, they blurted out, “We love them.”  Sandmeyer had another motivation for joining. “I did it because I quit basketball, and Paige asked if I wanted to help, and I’ve loved it ever since.” She also quickly learned some of the challenges. With events happening on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, the girls have to manage their own work schedules as closely as they manage the wrestlers. “I really think that people should do it if they don’t want to commit to a sport.”

Just like Jack gained insight into the basketball scene, the wrestling managers also have gained an interesting perspective. One of their surprises was how funny the wrestling coaches could be. “We’re like their daughters,” and they marveled at how angry the coaches could get at the wrestlers in contrast to “how much they love us.” Their observations on the wrestlers came as little surprise: “They’re really crabby until they eat.”

(While Riley Getchel (left) keeps the book, Karly Koehler and Kalyn Sandmeyer (right) record and mark the video footage.)

(Izzy Hollerich (left) and Claire Caven answered the call when the girls basketball team needed managerial help. )

While the girls basketball squad lost their manager to the JV squad, Coach Devin Drager still utilizes two JV players to help keep track of varsity statistics. Izzy Hollerich and Claire Caven explain how they ended up serving the team.  “At our Rochester Lourdes tournament, there were three of us freshmen that went on the trip, so we were the only ones not playing and they needed someone to keep stats.”  For Hollerich, her duties involve tallying offensive and defensive rebounds for both teams while Caven focuses on turnovers, steals, and assists. 

In today’s digital age, being a manager goes beyond books and bottles. All three programs utilize iPads and software to distribute footage for the high school sports communities. For basketball, the program is Hudl, which allows players, coaches, scouts, and Maple River Messenger sports writers to watch footage and collect statistics. For the boys team, Eli Healy and Landon Lueck also found themselves being nabbed for duty. After assistant coach Jordan Drager pulled them aside with the instruction, “don’t miss any key parts,” the boys found the job frequently stressful. With the software digitally keeping scores and statistics, the iPad needs to track the ball at all times. “One time, there was  a free throw,” Healy explained, “and I was on the other end. He shot his first shot, and I turned it really quick, and it was very stressful.” For the girls basketball team, Reagan Reuter found herself roped into duty by the coaches. “I think they always appreciate it,” Reuter stated. “Whenever you say you forgot to move it, they lightly make fun of you.” Her duties come with perks and disadvantages. ““I enjoy it. It allows me to be more of a part of the varsity team,” however, Reuter explains the drawbacks: “Having to stay quiet,” she added. “You really want to get up and cheer.”

For wrestling, the program is TrackWrestling, and according to Sandmeyer, “The boys actually watch them.” Unlike Hudl, the wrestling managers have to mark key moments during the recording process, so issues like not recording it was a pin, choosing the wrong mat at big tournament, or forgetting to hit the record button are blunders that will make the hungry wrestlers even more crabby. 

(While Reagan Reuter (left) sits at the top bleacher for a full court view, wrestling managers need to get right on the edge of the mat to record.) 

Originally printed in the Maple River Messenger