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Zachary Tran

Two days later, on October 1, 2003, Zachary Tran, a 6-year old 1st grader from Vernon Hills, Illinois, became the second Lake County, Illinois youth to die playing sports. Zachary was at soccer practice when his mother last saw him practicing around the goal. She asked Zach to pay attention to the coach because she needed to take one of the children in her carpool to the restroom.

Several minutes later, while no one was looking, the goal somehow fell on Zach, causing massive head trauma. Paramedics were unable to revive him, and Zachary was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital less than an hour later. The official cause of death was cardiac arrest due to massive head injuries.

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Jessica Clinton

The next day, October 2, 2003, it was Port St. Lucie, Florida's turn to suffer the pain of a youth sports death. Jessica Clinton, a 17-year old high school senior, was getting some water during cheerleading practice when she fell, lost consciousness, stopped breathing, and later died. An autopsy revealed that Jessica died of cardiac dysrhythmia caused by an undetected congenital heart condition called mitral valve prolapse. Jessica was student council president and head of the cheerleading squad, known for her "million dollar smile." About 1,000 people attended her open-casket funeral.

Nick Frid

That same day, October 2, 2003, three thousand miles north, in Durham, New Hampshire, an undetected heart condition claimed the life of another student athlete. 18-year old Nick Frid, a first-year pre-vet student at the University of New Hampshire, was practicing with the novice crew when he collapsed and died from SCA, which kills an average of 7,000 children a year. "Nick was just a great kid, and we all are devastated," said UNH crew coach and family friend, Pete Cathey. "Nick was the kind of person where you just couldn't wait to see what he'd be like in 20 years, what his kids would be like."

Joseph DiPrete-DiGioia

On October 4, 2003, just two days later, Joseph DiPrete-DiGioia, a 14-year-old high school freshman from Belfast, Maine, was running a 3.1 mile course in the Maine 2003 Cross Country Festival of Champions. No one was at course checkpoints using walkie-talkies. When Joseph failed to emerge at the finish line, his mother Maura told me she knew something was dangerously wrong.

She begged organizers to mount a search, but for two hours they ignored her pleas, assured her they had searched extensively, but wanted to assume that Joseph had simply skipped out of the race. They did not announce him missing, and continued with 2 more races, 300 runners.

After the awards ceremonies began, his coach and his mother found Joseph in the grass beside the running trail, a victim of sudden cardiac arrest. Joe had been missing for almost 2 hours, and was found 10 min after the staff started looking. Doctors put the time of his death about 10 minutes before being found ...(he was alive in the cold rain for 1 1/2 hours). "Joseph was a bright student and well liked by everybody he hung out with," said Joseph's school principal, Butch Arthers.

Jacob Salter

Six days later, on October 10, 2003, Jacob Salter, an 8-year old from the Washington, D.C. suburb of Centreville, Virginia, collapsed on the sideline during a youth football game. A cardiac nurse began CPR, and Jacob's parents raced to the scene, his father driving his SUV right on to the field, his mother, Annie, arriving moments later. "I kept saying, 'Jacob, mommy loves you, your daddy loves you, don't give up yet, keep fighting, Jacob,'" she said. Jacob was pronounced dead two hours later at a nearby hospital. He suffered from a heart condition called mitral valve prolapse (leaky heart valve), but had been cleared to play by a cardiologist. While Jacob's parents were worried about their son's condition, they said he enjoyed football so much they couldn't bear to keep him from playing. Scott Galloway, commissioner of the Fairfax County league, remembered Jacob as a "sweet little kid." At the end of a memorial service for Jacob on the field where he fell, teammates ran the "flea-flicker" play they had been practicing for Jacob where the quarterback would give him the ball, Jacob would toss it back and then run deep for a touchdown pass. The play went off as planned, with one difference: when the ball was thrown towards the end zone, Jacob wasn't there to catch it.

Osten Gill

On October 15, 2003, five days later, Osten, a 16-year old high school sophomore from Rushford, New York, collapsed on a bus returning from a football game. He had complained of dizziness and nausea after being hit during the game and had been vomiting on the sidelines and on the bus. Osten died at a hospital several hours later. Although the cause of death has not been reported, his symptoms were consistent with head trauma.

Craig Boatwright

The next day, October 16, 2003, tragedy struck the Everman (Tex) High School football team. Less than a year after another player, Corey Fulbright, was paralyzed from the neck down after making a tackle in the Class 3A, Division 1 state championship game, 17-year old senior Craig Boatwright collapsed on the school track as he was nearing the end of a two-mile run to work off a punishment for a team infraction. An assistant coach and trainer performed CPR before Craig was transported by ambulance to nearby Huguley Memorial Medical Center, where he pronounced dead less than an hour later from a previously undetected congenital heart condition. A 6 foot-4, 215-pound defensive end on Everman's two-time defending state championship team, Craig was looking forward to playing for the Texas Christian University "Horned Frogs" after graduation. Well-liked on and off the field (he was a candidate for homecoming king the day after he died), Craig was also a standout shot put and discus thrower. At a memorial service in the school's packed gymnasium, coaches and players remembered Craig for his character (he donated his 2002 championship ring for an auction benefiting Fulbright) and his heart. "Even though they're telling us his heart was injured, those of us who knew him know he had a huge heart," said coach Erik McGuffin. "He had a heart made of gold."

Nicolette Bailey

A day later, on October 17, 2003, Nicolette, a 10-year-old fifth grader from Topeka, Kansas, collapsed and died during a youth basketball game. No details of her death have been reported, but an undetected congenital heart condition resulting in SCA seems the likely cause.

Michael Grimm

The next day, October 18, 2003, Michael, a 5-year-old kindergartner from Lake Oswego, Oregon, collapsed while playing soccer at a park while his father, the team's assistant coach, helped out on a neighboring field. Michael died almost instantly. Preliminary autopsy results were inconclusive, but an undetected heart condition resulting in SCA seems the likely cause. The redheaded boy was described as introspective, loveable, playful and energetic.

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Additional Information: You can read more on this subject in; Home Team Advantage: The Critical Role of Mothers in Youth Sports (HarperCollins 2006) by author and MomsTeam founder Brooke de Lench

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Article Updated: August 25, 2007

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