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How sad& tragic was this? Your thoughts & some of the story inside->?

March 24th, 2011 19 comments

My thoughts go out to this poor kid his friends & his family. ->

Prep star hits game-winning shot for perfect season, falls and dies

Tragedy struck Western Michigan on Thursday night when Fennville (Mich.) High basketball star Wes Leonard hit a game-winning shot in a 57-55, overtime victory over Bridgman (Mich.) High, then collapsed on the court while celebrating the victory and was pronounced dead at a hospital shortly thereafter.

According to the Associated Press, Leonard, who you can see making the game-winning shot above, was celebrating his game-winning layup with the rest of his teammates when he collapsed to the ground. Paramedics tried CPR on the star at the site and in the ambulance, but he was pronounced dead upon reaching nearby Holland Hospital.

The star’s death was due to an enlarged heart, Ottawa County medical examiner David A. Smart told ABC News after concluding an autopsy on the player’s body on Friday.

"Obviously, in the midst of celebration, I think shocking is exactly the word," Fennville Superintendent Dirk Weeldreyer told The Holland Sentinel about Leonard’s collapse.

Making matters even more disorienting for Fennville fans were the events that transpired just before Leonard’s death. The junior — who was also the quarterback of the school’s football team last fall — not only hit the winning shot in the team’s final regular-season game, but by doing so he also ensured that the Blackhawks would finish with a perfect, 20-0 record.

"It’s tough to take in," Leonard’s teammate Shane Bale told The Sentinel. "It’s like somebody from your family, you know?"

Rest of this sad story is on this link.->

http://rivals.yahoo.com/highschool/blog/prep_rally/post/Prep-star-hits-game-winning-shot-for-perfect-sea?urn=highschool-329684

What a devastating tragedy.. it really makes you think. I knew a kid who loved the game and died while playing it. He was my age (16) and he finally got into the school that he had been dreaming to attend. His passion, talent, skills and love for the game got him a spot on the team. He wanted to lead his team to the championship, but he passed away during practice due to cardiac arrest. To honor him, his team set their goal to win the championship for him and they did!