As the fall sports season commenced, the absence of previous athletic trainer John Young surprised many Clayton High School athletes.  Instead, in what used to be John’s desk, sat a woman, Ashley Mettlach.

The youngest of four, Mettlach was born and raised in south St. Louis.  She attended Truman State University and received her Bachelors in exercise science and athletic training.  After college, Mettlach went to work with athletes from Missouri Baptist University and received her Masters in sports management there.

 

Mettlach grew up playing sports her whole life, mainly volleyball and soccer.  However, her athletic career was threatened when she found out she had a sports induced heart condition.

“Basically, the valves at the top of my heart are too big, and whenever I’m doing exercise activities, those vessels and venules at the top of my heart don’t close,” she said. “This allows all of the blood to pool at my extremities instead of allowing enough blood and oxygen to get to my brain, causing me to pass out very easily.”

This incident forced her to quit playing soccer.

Luckily, after being diagnosed, Mettlach learned to recognize the signs and symptoms of her condition so that she was able to stop herself before she passed out.

Mettlach’s condition helped her become more aware and knowledgeable of her body, which turned out to be one of the reasons she wanted to pursue the career of being an athletic trainer.

However, there were other motives as well.

“My family is a medically inclined family,” Mettlach said. “We’re really interested in it.  I love sports and I love helping people, so it kind of went hand in hand that I would do this.”

The most common injuries that Mettlach sees in athletes are sprained ankles and concussions.

“There’s not really a way that you can prevent any injury besides being strong and being healthy,” Mettlach said.

Although Mettlach does not mind helping out athletes, she does not want to see anyone seriously hurt.  As far as concussions are concerned, Mettlach advises to always be aware and conscious of the signs and symptoms of concussions so that help can be given as soon as possible.

While Mettlach has plenty of athletes to care for at CHS, she has a different crowd to care for back home.

Mettlach has a 20-month-old son named Sheldon who is, “healthy, happy, and a ball full of energy.” And Mettlach’s family will grow even larger when she marries Colby Johnson in October.

So far, Mettlach has enjoyed working at Clayton.  “It’s been crazy,” she said.  “There’s lots and lots of kids here that need attention, but that’s okay. I enjoy what I do.”