VALDOSTA, Ga. – Helping prepare the No. 3 Valdosta State softball team to make a 2022 postseason push, assistant athletic trainer Claire Guilliams touches on all the facades on working with one of the top DII softball programs in the country. 
 
March marks National Athletic Training Month, to spread awareness about the important work of athletic trainers behind the scenes for athletic programs across the country. 
 
"A regular day in the office for me starts at 9 a.m., for treatments and rehabs," Guilliams said. "I typically have open rehab times from 9 a.m., until practice time later in the day. I always get down to the softball field an hour before practice begins (usually at 3 p.m. or 4 p.m.) to do any taping or pre-practice stretching. I get the water set up for practice and then make my way to the dugout where I stay until practice is over at around 8 p.m. or 9 p.m."
 
"Gamedays are a little bit different," Guilliams added. "I arrive at the softball field three hours before game time to get both dugouts set up, then I have time for any pre-game taping and stretching before the girls start warming up. Once we're done for the day, I clean up and take all my equipment back to my office and get ready for the next day!"
 
Guilliams graduated in 2013 with a Bachelor of Science in Athletic Training from Longwood University in Farmville, Va. She also attended Longwood for graduate school and graduated in 2016 with a Master's of Science in Counselor Education. She is a certified athletic trainer and certified in Graston Technique: Level M1- Basic Training, an advanced form of instrument-assisted, soft tissue mobilization, which incorporates the use of six specially designed stainless-steel instruments. GT therapy enables clinicians to effectively treat the adverse effects of scar tissue and fascial restrictions as well as improve and maintain optimal range of motion.
 
Guilliams, a native of Richmond, Va., grew up playing soccer with her dad coaching her since she was ten years old through high school. 
 
"Growing up in Virginia was exciting and full of history," Guilliams said. "If it wasn't a weekend full of soccer, we'd spend some time visiting historical places like Jamestown, Colonial Williamsburg, or Washington, D.C. When I'm not working, I love to read, spend time with my husband and our dog Gunner." 
 
"I suffered a few injuries in high school while playing soccer and that exposed me to the profession of athletic training," Guilliams added on becoming an athletic trainer. "It was exciting to think that I could continue to have a career in athletics well beyond my playing days. One of my biggest challenges in the profession is getting through the long seasons. Not only for myself but being able to keep the athletes healthy through the duration of our season, especially once we get into post-season play and their bodies really start to fatigue."
 
Guilliams said one of her favorite memories of being at VSU came last year when VSU softball won the South Region Championship and advanced to the NCAA Division II College World Series in Denver, Colo., last May, and looks forward to this season's run for VSU softball.
 
"Being able to work in college athletics has always been my dream, so I am so thankful that this is what I get to do every day," Guilliams said. "It is so exciting when an athlete who works hard in rehab every day comes back from an injury. When I see them get back on the field, it is such a good feeling. It makes me feel proud that I am able to be even a small piece to the puzzle." 
 
Guilliams explained she has been an athletic trainer for nine years and has seen a few injuries that she will never forget. 
 
"When I was a graduate student, I had a young lady take a pitch to her mouth that knocked out two of her teeth and fractured part of her jaw," Guilliams recalls. "It took a semester full of oral surgery and dental appointments to get her back on track, but she was able to get back on the field sooner than we thought and never once complained. She had the best attitude you could ask for when something like that happens. My least favorite part of the job is when I have an athlete suffer a significant or season ending injury. It's never an easy thing to deal with so I always do my best to be there for them mentally and physically to help them through those times." 
 
Guilliams and the Blazer softball team are back in action this weekend as it hosts Christian Brothers for a weekend Gulf South Conference series at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park.