2008 Woodie Awards
Injuries a painful part of competition
By Matt Matusek
Rocket Staff Writer
Issue date: 12/2/05 Section: Sports Extra
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In Derek DelPorto's two years of being head coach at Slippery Rock University, his team has experienced a variety of injuries ranging from stitches in the eye to pulled trapezious muscles.
"I want everyone to know what it's like to be a wrestler," DelPorto said. "It's not easy what they go through."
In a study done in 2000, 418 male wrestlers were followed throughout the season. By the end of the year, the wrestlers suffered 219 injuries. According to the study, the most common place to get injured while wrestling is in the knee and shoulder.
Most of the injuries, 63 percent, occurred during practice. Of those injuries in, 68 percent happened during 'hard wrestling,' 23 percent occurred during drills and nine percent took place during conditioning.
Senior Jason Cardillo has dealt with his share of injuries. Cardillo, along with freshman Zach Brower, needed surgery to correct losing two teeth while wrestling. Brower also had to deal with past shoulder problems, with a joint sprain and a separated shoulder in his short time on the SRU squad.
On top of losing teeth, Cardillo has been plagued by a high ankle sprain. The sprain is a nagging injury that can last for weeks without rest. Cardillo and sophomore Mike Lauff needed surgery after suffering a sports hernia.
Knee injuries have also been a big problem for the team. Sophomore Cory Mancuso required surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and a posterior cruciate ligament (PCL).
The average length for a torn ACL or PCL is usually 4-6 months.
Freshman Braden Shaw needed surgery for his torn medial collateral ligament. Junior Gerald Christian tore his meniscus and needed surgery. Christian and red-shirt freshman Garry Price have suffered pulled hamstrings.
Fellow freshman Chris Clarke has been bothered by ankle injuries. He has dealt with a high ankle sprain and also a torn ligament in his ankle.
Sophomore Charlie Pienaar, a national qualifier last March, tore cartilage in his sternum and ribs and had a bone bruise on his tibialis. Brother David Pienaar, a freshman, has been injured with broken fingers in his hand.
Freshman Jake Zeoli ruptured his spleen and has broken his wrist while at SRU. Sophomore Jerimiah Frederick has broken his wrist and pulled his trapezoid muscle.
DelPorto, who wrestled at SRU until 1999, suffered nerve damage in his neck, along with a torn oblique muscle and torn cartilage in his sternum and ribs.
Along with the bodily injuries, wrestlers must deal with stitches in tough places. Freshman Sal Lascari has needed nine stitches in his eye twice. Freshmen Nick Rivero and Matt Burkholer also needed eye stitches. Gerald Christian required five stitches on his chin.
All wrestlers need to be wary of skin infections, and several Rock wrestlers have been infected with ringworm, impetigo and herpes, all of which are treatable. Also, a number of wrestlers suffer concussions, which could hinder any athlete for the rest of his or her life.
