FAIRMONT, W.Va. – Fairmont State University is proud to announce the hiring of Sami Lusk as the first head coach in the history of its newly established women's wrestling program.

"This is an exciting time not only for Fairmont State University but also for the sport of women's wrestling," said Greg Bamberger, Director of Athletics. "We are excited to welcome Sami to the Falcon family. Her passion for the sport, commitment to the development of the student-athletes along with her experience both competing and coaching paved the way for her to be named our first head women's wrestling coach."

Lusk joins Fairmont State after being the women's wrestling assistant coach and sports nutritionist at Wartburg College. During the 2025-26 season, she helped the program earn a National Dual Championship, conference championship, regional runner-up finish, and an 11th-place finish at the inaugural NCAA Women's Wrestling Championships. The program also led the NCAA with 21 Academic All-Americans, recorded the third-highest team GPA nationally, and produced three All-Americans.

"I am incredibly honored and grateful for the opportunity to become the first head women's wrestling coach in Fairmont Sate history," Lusk said. "To be trusted with building this program from the ground up is something I don't take lightly and I am excited to lay a foundation built on hard work, discipline, and a championship mindset."

In addition to her coaching responsibilities at Wartburg, Lusk also served as the sports nutritionist for the men's and women's wrestling programs and the football team through a partnership with Ekin Nutrition. She contributed to athlete performance and recovery efforts while supporting the men's wrestling. Lusk also continued serving on the Team Iowa National Staff during the 2025-26 season.

Prior to Wartburg, Lusk coached at Caldwell Girls High School in Idaho during the 2024-25 season, leading the program to its best season to date with multiple state qualifiers and placers while helping establish the team as one of the top girls wrestling programs in the state. She was named the 2025 Girls Coach of the Year and later coached two athletes to National All-American honors. During that same year, she also served on the Team Idaho National Team staff.

"Women's wrestling is growing at an incredible rate and I am honored to be part of that movement here at Fairmont State," Lusk mentioned. "My goal is to build a program that competes at a high level, develops strong women on and off the mat, and creates something future generations can be proud of."

Lusk additionally coached with Team Iowa USA from 2023-26 and DC Elite Girls Wrestling from 2021-24, where she ran practices, coached camps and clinics, and specialized in freestyle and folkstyle development.

Lusk competed in multiple sports growing up before beginning wrestling during her senior year of high school. In her first season, she became a state placer with only four losses while becoming the first female wrestler in her high school's program history. She later signed to wrestle at Grand View University, joining the program during its second season of competition.

While competing at Grand View, Lusk battled through injuries and surgeries before returning with a breakout season, posting a 25-5 record in 2023. She earned All-America honors and set the program's single-season pins record with 23 falls. During her collegiate career, she also became heavily involved in coaching camps and clinics, helping shape her coaching background and development philosophy.

Lusk graduated from Grand View in 2024 with a bachelor's degree in kinesiology, a minor in psychology, and a certification in nutrition.

"This is an opportunity to make history, and I am excited to get to work with our student-athletes, the university, and the community to build something special," Lusk added.