Behind every practice, game, and championship run at Jesuit High School Sacramento is a dedicated team working to keep student-athletes healthy, strong, and prepared to compete. At the center of that effort is the collaboration between Head Athletic Trainer Dr. Jamie Superak and Performance Coordinator Jay Nacionales, whose partnership creates a comprehensive approach to athlete care and development. 

Jesuit Sacramento is unique for maintaining both a full-time athletic trainer and a full-time sports performance coach. This uncommon but optimal structure at the high school level allows the two roles to work closely together to serve the student-athletes. 

"We are the only institution in the greater Sacramento area that has a full-time athletic trainer and a full-time sports performance coach," said Nacionales. "What that allows us to do is collaborate on injuries and prevention strategies."

For Superak, that collaboration is essential to delivering the best possible care to athletes. As head athletic trainer, her role spans prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation across Jesuit's athletic programs. 

Rather than focusing solely on a quick return-to-play her priority is long-term health and durability. Superak works closely with injured athletes throughout their recovery, often seeing them daily as they rebuild strength and stability. 

"I have them coming in every single day to do strengthening and proprioception exercises," she said. "We're making sure that we're not only healing the injury, but making them stronger to prevent the same injury in the future. We provide far more intensive rehab and treatment than I think you'd typically see at other high schools."

While Superak focuses on treatment and rehabilitation, Nacionales leads Jesuit's strength and conditioning program across all sports. His work centers on building strength and technique and developing resilience throughout the year. 

"As the sports performance coordinator, my role is to be in charge of all sports teams regarding their strength and conditioning," Nacionales said. "We are highly technique-based, and we use a programming model where athletes have to graduate to the next exercise selection."

The program operates year-round, adapting to the offseason, preseason, and competitive season. This continuity not only improves performance but also reduces the risk of injury. 

"The care our student-athletes receive mirrors what you would expect at the intercollegiate level," said Athletic Director Hank Weinberger. "What sets Jesuit apart—even compared to many college programs—is the level of integration between athletic training and strength and conditioning. Year-round, Dr. Superak and Coach Nacionales work in constant partnership: supporting the teams currently in season, while also preparing athletes in the pre and postseason to be at their strongest when their time to compete arrives."

Data also plays a crucial role. Nacionales conducts preseason performance testing, while Superak tracks injury trends throughout each season. Together, they analyze that information to refine training and prevention strategies. 

"The injury data that we can observe based on Jay's preseason testing, combined with the postseason injury trends, helps guide our strength and conditioning programming," Superak said. "We're using it not only to increase performance but also to mitigate the risk of injury."

Through thoughtful training, intentional rehabilitation, and ongoing communication, Jesuit's sports medicine team is shaping not only stronger athletes but also more prepared young adults. Whether students go on to compete at the collegiate level or pursue other paths, the habits they build, discipline, resilience, and a commitment to improvement, will serve them long after their time on the field comes to an end.