A Massachusetts teenager has died after suffering a medical emergency during wrestling practice.
Freddy Espinal, 17, was at practice on Sunday, Sept. 22, when the medical emergency occurred, according to Boston.com and the Salem News. The teenager died soon after.
Espinal was a junior at Peabody Veterans Memorial High School, according to a letter shared on Facebook by his wrestling coach, Wayne Moda. He wrestled in high school and at the Red Roots Wrestling Club in North Reading.
The medical emergency happened at a gym off the high school’s campus and involved a program separate from the school, according to FOX affiliate WFXT-TV, which did not specify which program he was in at the time of the incident.
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Moda, who was both Espinal’s high school and club coach, said the teenager’s death “will be felt in the community.” He said Espinal fell in love with wrestling as a freshman and had a “larger-than-life personality on and off the mat.”
“Wrestling aside, I thoroughly enjoyed him as a person,” Moda wrote, “he genuinely made me laugh with his antics and was dedicated to his teammates and friends.”
Espinal’s girlfriend, Gisella Candido, told WFXT-TV that her boyfriend was a “stubborn” but “caring” person who would “always go out of his way to make sure people were okay.” She also said she last saw Espinal on Friday. “I just hugged him, held him,” she told the station. “And then he just left like that.”
Max LoRusso, Espinal’s team captain, said his late teammate “was always hard” every time he wrestled, and would leave “everything” on the mat. “It should inspire everyone to want to wrestle like Freddy,” he added.
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Espinal’s coach has set up a GoFundMe campaign for the teenager’s family to help “ease the financial burden” they now face. More than $46,000 was raised through online fundraising in the three days following Espinal’s sudden death.
According to Modi, wrestling practice for the RRWC was canceled on Monday, September 23. The next night, the coaches were in the clubhouse for any of Espinal’s teammates who wanted to “grieve, talk or just remember Freddy.”
A vigil was also held for Espinal on Tuesday, Sept. 24, according to ABC affiliate WCVB-TV. More than 100 teenagers participated.
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