Athletic Trainers


Dennis Petrucci
ATC, MA, CSCS
 Dennis comes to Southwestern bringing the experience of working at both the Division I and professional levels of sport. He has his A.T.C. (Certified Athletic Trainer from the National Athletic Trainers Association) and C.S.C.S. (Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist from the National Strength and Conditioning Association). His resume includes working with countless elite athletes in major sports including: several NFL and NHL players, Men’s and Women’s Olympic soccer athletes, Olympic and professional beach volleyball players as well as being invited to go on tour with Aerosmith by Steven Tyler himself.

Dennis started his athletic training career at San Diego State University where he received his Bachelor of Science degree. He then went on to The Ohio State University to obtain his Master of Arts degree. While at Ohio State he worked with several of the athletic programs including football, hockey and baseball to name a few. After graduating from Ohio State, Dennis moved back to San Diego to work with a minor league professional basketball team, the Stingrays as their Head Athletic Trainer. While there he worked with athletes such as Magic Johnson and Master P. The following year he accepted a position at Pepperdine University where he had opportunities to work with many Olympic level volleyball players and professional beach volleyball players. He then came back to San Diego to be the Head Athletic Trainer for the San Diego Gulls, a minor league professional hockey team. While with the team they won a national championship and he was able to work with many athletes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as they were affiliated with the Anaheim Ducks and Colorado Avalanche. During the Gulls off-season Dennis has also worked with several other San Diego area professional teams including the San Diego Spirit, Sockers, Flash and Gauchos. He has also earned a few international “caps” by going on tours as the Head Athletic Trainer for the United States National Rugby team where they play against some of the best teams in the world such as Fiji, New Zealand and Australia. His wealth of experience has been a great benefit to Southwestern College.

He is married to wife Christina and has two daughters, Sienna and Juliet.

 

 


Stacy Struble
MA/ATC		 Stacy Struble is Southwestern College’s newest certified athletic trainer. Stacy brings to the SWC a background in sports medicine that is varied and includes work in all levels of athletic performance. She comes to us from the University of San Diego where she oversaw the sports medicine program for Campus Recreation & Sports Clubs. There she worked with injured patients from the general student population and 25 sports clubs, including rugby, lacrosse, soccer, surfing, quidditch and waterski. Stacy also served as assistant clinic manager at the USOC Olympic Training Center, here in Chula Vista for nearly 4 years. She has supported teams internationally and domestically, including USA Softball, US Soccer, USA Rugby, USA Canoe/Kayak, USA Beach Volleyball, USA BMX Cycling, USA Triathlon, US Ski and Snowboard, USA Bobsled/Skeleton and many more. She served as USA medical staff for many 2008 Beijing Olympic and Paralympic athletes and supported TEAM USA at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. Stacy also served as a medical volunteer to all teams competing at the 1996 Paralympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia and in Sydney, Australia in 2000.

Prior to her work at the USOC, Stacy worked in the outpatient physical therapy setting for several years, specializing in some of the most challenging rehab cases in the clinic and working closely with the orthopedic surgeons, physical and occupational therapists. Stacy provided athletic training services to local high schools and volunteered services at many community events over the years. Following the Games in Sydney, Stacy chose to seek additional volunteer experiences in Australia, and offered her expertise to the Carlton Football Club, Professional Australian Rules Football and to the Australian Rugby League, both with on the field care an in teaching first aid courses. She aided a first year rugby league coach in developing the Melbourne Vikings, and assisted the newly formed team to the Premiership. Upon return to the USA, she completed master’s degree program in Sport Management, which eventually brought her to California, where she completed her program requirements on tour with the AVP professional beach volleyball.

Stacy’s interest in the profession began early, as she volunteered as a student athletic trainer at her high school in Elkhart, Indiana. She was a standout student in the Athletic Training Education program at Ball State University, having graduated Cum Laude.

She resides in San Diego and enjoys spending her free time sailing, playing beach volleyball, gourmet cooking, acting as an international ambassador to travelers visiting San Diego and camping.