Story by: Nick Picht on October 3, 2023
On the back side of Scottsburg High School’s campus in Southern Indiana, behind the football field, sits a small, purple brick building. There’s no air conditioning, and the sound system barely works.
The sounds you can hear are those of a group of boys maneuvering around a wrestling mat, practicing their takedowns and pins. They’re members of the high school’s wrestling team, preparing for their fall season.
Among them is 17-year-old Kellan Carter.
On this Monday morning, Kellan is dressed in sweatpants and a long-sleeved shirt, unintentionally hiding the nearly 4-inch scar along the inside of his right elbow. That scar serves as a reminder of the past year of his life.
“[It was a lot of] recovery and getting my mind right,“ Kellan said.
Since sixth grade, wrestling has been a part of who Kellan is.
He began attending Invicta Wrestling Academy in New Albany, Indiana, building a foundation for his athletic success. He continued wrestling into high school and only saw his talent develop further. As a sophomore, Kellan was 42-2 and on his way to a prolific high school career.
In June 2022, between his sophomore and junior seasons, Kellan was training when he attempted to defend a lateral drop — a takedown throw — when he heard a pop in his elbow.
“I was just praying it was broken, get two months out and be able to come back,” Kellan said.
The news was much worse.
Kellan met with Luke P. Robinson, M.D., orthopedic hand surgeon at Norton Louisville Arm & Hand, who diagnosed him with a torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow. Dr. Robinson recommended UCL reconstruction surgery, more commonly known as Tommy John surgery. The name comes from the All-Star baseball pitcher who underwent what was then a pioneering procedure in 1974.
“It’s a lot of discussion, because most athletes who have this injury don’t need surgery,“ Dr. Robinson said. “So it takes a certain type of athlete with a certain type of injury to need this surgery, and for [Kellan], it was a matter of talking about the recovery. He’s an elite-level athlete and wanted to get back for his senior year. So it’s a lot of rehab. There’s a technical aspect, but there’s a lot of recovery that requires time with a therapist and time with rehab, which he understood well and was motivated to take part in.”
Dr. Robinson performed the successful surgery roughly two weeks after Kellan’s injury. From there, the wrestler began the monthslong recovery process, a physical and emotional journey that included missing his entire junior season. Coping was difficult. He leaned on his family and coaches.
“It was rough; it crushed me for a while,” Kellan said. “[For] one or two months there, it was heavy. But right after that, I just needed to get back into the sport through some other way. I just knew my time was going to come. Once these nine months are over, it’s going to be my time.”
While rehabbing his elbow, Kellan took up assistant coaching, giving him a different perspective of the sport while also allowing him to stay connected to his teammates.
His time as a coach also motivated him to get back on the mat.
On April 7, 2023, nine months after Tommy John surgery, Kellan competed in his first tournament at Jeffersonville High School, picking up where he left off nearly a year earlier. He finished second in the freestyle category and first in the folkstyle category.
“It was unlike anything else,” Kellan said. “It was the culmination of those nine months of wanting to get back. I was hungry.”
Kellan’s success hasn’t stopped there.
In June, he competed in the national Amateur Athletic Union Wrestling Scholastic Duals tournament in Orlando, Florida. He went 8-1, beat four state qualifiers from other states and earned Silver All-American honors.
His results weren’t shocking to the man who repaired his arm.
“Ultimately, what I do is a small portion of that recovery,” Dr. Robinson said. “It’s up to the patient, and I think for him, he’s motivated, he works hard and he was dedicated to get back to that elite level he was at, and that probably explains a lot of his success.”
Now more than a full year out from surgery, Kellan is back home in Indiana and back in the gym with his teammates. He’s ready for his senior season, which may bring even more accolades and college scholarships.
For Kellan, success is measured more in personal growth than it is in awards.
“[I want to] improve every day and let my outcome reflect my training. If I do, I should be pretty solid,” he said. “I just want to get everything I can out of the sport and let this experience strengthen me as I prepare for my future and for college.”
Repairing the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in an athlete’s elbow usually requires a surgical reconstruction, most often with another tendon taken from the patient’s own body, according to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. In the case of MLB All-Star pitcher Tommy John in 1974, such a repair was novel. A surgeon used a tendon from the player’s other arm to rebuild the throwing arm’s elbow, and the pitcher went on to a long and successful career afterward.Today the surgery has become more common but still requires monthslong recovery and rehabilitation for an athlete to return to sport.
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