Rick Barletta was a member of MMI’s State Champion, District 11 Basketball Champion, and Anthracite League Champion teams of 1973. After graduation, he attended Lycoming College, where he earned a varsity letter in tennis. He was a math teacher at Pottstown High School, where he coached the boys’ and girls’ tennis teams, and girls’ basketball team, which won two Ches-Mont League championships and two District 1 AA championships, and had two appearances in the State Final Four.
In 1984, he began coaching tennis at West Hazleton High School, where his teams won three Anthracite League championships. In 1985, his Kirby Park tennis team won the national championship behind his wins in singles in the Middle States Regional League, the sectional championships, and the national championships. In 1992, he began coaching the boys’ tennis team at Hazleton Area High School. After only one year, he was named Wyoming Valley Conference Tennis Coach of the Year.
In 1996, he and his partner were ranked first in Eastern Pennsylvania and fifth in Middle States in men’s doubles. In 2003, he again ranked first in Eastern Pennsylvania and sixth in Middle States with another partner. Five years later, they won the Middle States Regional and Sectional Championships in men’s doubles. Mr. Barletta served as Director of Tennis for the City of Hazleton, after which he became the Head Tennis Pro at Valley Country Club, a role he has held for 34 years and counting. He was previously inducted into the Hazleton Area Sports Hall of Fame and serves as the Tennis Pro and Pickle Ball Pro at The Strand in Naples, Florida.
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