By Katie Parkinson

They don’t get to break records, win games, or hear their names during school announcements. Team managers are often overlooked, but they are an important part of sports teams.

“The managers are like my right hand women,” swim coach Andy Wilcox said. “Their jobs are crucial at swim meets and during practices.”

According to senior Jacqueline Kerr, swim managers Monica McGraw, Sarah Vickery, and Erin Hutchison are a big help at practice, especially when taking times.

“[Taking times] is a big job,” Kerr said. “Just doing that alone is pretty supportive.”

According to McGraw, the managers take times both at practices and during meets in order to help the swimmers track their progress, and improve.

However McGraw also finds way to make the work fun. According to McGraw, when she has to fill up water bottles for the team, she likes to make a game out of it, racing to fill up as fast as possible.

“I have a system where I line [the water bottles] up, take the lids off, and turn the hose on just a little bit,” McGraw said.

According to basketball manager Shannon McAuliffe, her job during practices and during games is different. During practice she fills up water bottles and helps out during team drills, while during games her job is to videotape them for future reference and take down statistics.

While helping the team out by getting them their kick-boards and water bottles is important, according to Vickery, her most important contribution to the swim team is giving moral support. One way she is able to do this is just by listening to the swimmers.

“I’ve listened to [the players] complain when they’ve had a touch practice, McAuliffe said. “I was a manager last year too, and there were a couple of times that I talked [the players] up, and gave them pep talks when the coaches were mad.”

According to McGraw, another benefit of being supportive is meeting new people on the team.

“A lot of people know my name now,” McGraw said. “I feel like I’ve made a lot of friends.”