Lady Dawgs student-manager is important part of the team

JENNIFER FIERRO • PICAYUNE STAFF

BURNET — Every morning, Burnet High School female athletes have to find their name on the roll board and turn the washer to hide them.

But on this particular morning, several months ago, the Lady Dawgs found friendship bracelets in front of each washer.

Thinking they were a gift from athletic coordinator Doug Messer, the athletes thanked him. And he immediately told them the bracelets weren’t from him. They were a gift from manager Angelica Watson, who spent three days making 200 bracelets.

“I spent every second I had during the day,” she said. “My hands were sore, but it was worth it. It was something to unify them all together. I believe that if you’re not a team, you’re going to fall apart.

“They all said thank you one at a time,” she added. “It made me very happy.”

“That’s one of the sweetest things I have ever seen in my teaching career,” Messer said. “Everybody she sees, she lifts them up. You can count on that kid smiling.”

Watson credits assistant coach Brent Kelley for her role in the girls program, manning the video camera during contests. Since then, she has added washing and folding towels, cleaning and organizing them, making rosters and checking attendance.

“I wasn’t the best player in sports, but I still wanted to be a part of the team,” she said. “It’s something to do for the team.”

Junior Riley Scott said, in addition to the bracelets, Watson will write and play music for the Lady Dawgs during team dinners to uplift them.

 “I don’t think that words can describe what she does,” Scott said. “She has the biggest heart. It shows she cares about us.”

The manager plans to study cellular biology with the aim of curing cancer. She’s lost 11 family members to the disease.

Watson, who said she can be very quiet and used to have low self-esteem, said her greatest blessing is the friendships with the players.

“They’re like sisters,” she said with a smile. “They count me as part of the team. They all invite me to come with them. Sometimes, they let me break them out (of a team huddle).”

Messer said being a part of an athletic program is a privilege, and Watson is grateful to be a member of the Lady Dawgs program.

“She’s going to be pleasant, she’s not going to ask questions,” he said. “If I say I need something done, I don’t have to check. I know it’s done. She plays that role to all the girls in the program to be that support system”

jfierro@thepicayune.com