Article reposted from bearcatsports.com
Author: David Boyce
Two weeks before the first day of football practice, Northwest Missouri State lost an assistant athletic trainer. While head athletic trainer Kelly Quinlin was happy for Nicole Buck’s new job at Quincy University, Quinlin was left in a bind.
It didn’t help that Quinlin was about to go on vacation before the new school year kicked in.
And speaking of kicking, Quinlin is pregnant with her fourth child, due sometime in January.
Quinlin, though, didn’t waste time finding a replacement. When the football team walked into Bearcat Stadium on August 11 for its first practice, a new assistant athletic trainer was in place.
Call it being in the right place at the right time, or better yet, having the credentials and athletic training background, Christy Tapps was the right person for the job. She is thrilled to officially be part of the Bearcat family for the 2016-17 school year.
Besides helping out at football practice, Tapps’ main responsibilities are track, tennis and doing the paperwork for insurance billings.
“I am extremely happy,” Tapps said. “I couldn’t be more excited to be here. It is a wonderful place, such a close-knit family atmosphere. Everybody welcomed us here with open arms.”
Tapps arrived in Maryville two years ago when her husband, Dr. Tyler Tapps became assistant professor in the school of health at Northwest. They quickly learned that Maryville was the perfect community to raise their children. They have a 3-year-old son, Landon and a 1-year-old son, Carter.
Because of the close-knit nature of Northwest and Maryville, Quinlin was able to learn about Tapps’ background in athletic training before Buck left. Tapps received her undergraduate degree from Missouri State. She spent two years as a graduate assistant at Oklahoma State, working with cross country and track.
Tapps’ third year at Oklahoma State was spent as an intern and she worked with women’s tennis.
“I always had a passion for helping people and a passion for sports,” Tapps said. “I knew that was an area I wanted to get into. What I love about athletic training is taking athletes with an injury and getting them back to doing what they love.”
Those qualifications fit perfectly for what Quinlin looks for in an athletic trainer at Northwest. In the past, she always hired Northwest alums for the position.
When Buck left on July 29, Quinlin needed to act fast, and she knew the perfect candidate already lived in Maryville.
“I saw her at the swimming pool and said we need to talk,” Quinlin said. “We met up and had some lunch. We did go through the interview process. I knew her just being around town. That helped me feel comfortable with the whole situation.”
Quinlin likes the fact that Tapps learned her craft from another school.
“I actually think that is awesome,” Quinlin said. “It is great to bring in new blood, somebody that has been around and give us new ideas and teach us some stuff that maybe we need to improve on.
“I am over the top thrilled she is here. She is going to be great for our program. I like her positive attitude, work ethic, and you can tell she is very dedicated and very caring with student-athletes. She is going to help us out in a great way.”