A 1982 graduate of Lock Haven University, Joe Baranik competed for the Bald Eagles under head coach Neil Turner. Baranik received the Outstanding Freshman Award in 1979, placed at the PSAC Championships twice and captained the LHU lineup for two seasons.

After accruing 38 career wins on the mats for the Bald Eagles, Baranik turned his focus to coaching, first enjoying a successful stint at the University of Virginia from 1987-1988, helping to produce the school’s second and third All-Americans in school history in Billy Wagner and John Mytiko.

After a brief stint at Maury High School in Norfolk, Va. from 1989-90, Baranik was the assistant wrestling coach at the United States Military Academy from 1990 to 1993. He helped to recruit the eighth-best recruiting class in the country in 1992, out of 110 Division I programs.

From 2000 to 2003, Baranik was the assistant under 2x Olympian, 7x national champ (6x “OW”) and NWHOF Distinguished Member Gray Simons at Old Dominion while helping coach Jeff Rusak to an undefeated regular season, conference championship his senior year and a number four national ranking.

Baranik also worked under 2x All-American and NCAA champion Fred Powell while earning his master’s degree at Slippery Rock, helping to produce four NCAA qualifiers.

At Hollidaysburg from 1993-99, Baranik, in his fifth season leading the Golden Tigers, helped lead Charlie Brenneman to a state runner-up finish. The following season, Hollidaysburg finished in fifth place as a team, as Brenneman again reached the finals and Eric Frick won a PIAA AAA state title.

Baranik then started the Div. II wrestling program at St. Andrews University in 2006. SAU, now an NAIA program, produced 15 national qualifiers and three All-Americans and over 60 Scholar Athletes.

For the past 27 years, in addition to his coaching roles, Baranik serves the Pennsylvania wrestling community as the owner and founder of the award-winning Pennsylvania Wrestling Newsmagazine. The 32-page magazine has subscribers in 22 states and won the

National Wrestling Media Association Publication of the Year in 2008 and the State

Publication of the Year Award in 2011.

Baranik currently resides in Mebane, N.C. and works as a science teacher while also coaching wrestling at Albemarle High School in Charlottesville, Va. He and his wife, Roberta, have two adult children in Troy and Marina Baranik.