Lehigh Valley Orthopedic Institute’s sports medicine team, in partnership with West Scranton Wrestling Association, hosted a free wrestling clinic on Sunday, March 26. The camp, held at the Hilton Scranton and Conference Center, was free of charge and open to youth wrestlers in kindergarten through 12th grades.
During the two-hour event, prominent collegiate wrestlers, including Penn State University’s Carter Starocci and Aaron Brooks, as well as the Orthopedic Institute team, led the students in a variety of drills designed to help them improve their wrestling skills. Starocci and Brooks both won their third-career national titles at the 2023 National Championships.
The wrestling clinic is part of Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN)’s Impact Athlete program. The program features athletes who were molded by their community to become successful collegiate athletes. Starocci and Brooks are the latest athletes to join the Impact Athlete program. Steve Hultgren, director, Sports Performance Initiatives, Lehigh Valley Orthopedic Institute, says the goal of the Impact Athlete program is to provide regional youth athletes with strong inspirational role models who encourage them to pursue their goals.
Other LVHN Impact Athletes include Jahan Dotson, a wide receiver for the Washington Commanders, and University of Florida track and field star and 2022 NCAA Indoor and Outdoor Champion (400 meters) Talitha Diggs.
According to Hultgren, providing area youth with role models who have gone on to wrestle at a collegiate level is important. “LVHN is proud to host its second Impact Athlete wrestling event to more than 200 kids. Wrestling is a popular sport in our area, and we’ve had several local wrestlers go on to achieve success at the college level. These wrestlers can show youth wrestlers that hard work and dedication can lead to success and a higher level of competition,” Hultgren says.
