High Schooler Dies After Experiencing Medical Emergency During Wrestling Practice

A Massachusetts teenager has died after experiencing 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 Salem News. The teen died a short time later.

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 at the high school, and with the Red Roots Wrestling Club in North Reading.

The medical emergency occurred at a gym away from 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 participating in at the time of the incident.

Moda, who was both Espinal’s high school and club coach, said the teen’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 he was committed to his teammates and friends.”

Espinal’s girlfriend, Gisella Candido, told WFXT-TV her boyfriend was a “stubborn” yet “caring” person who “would always go out of his way to make sure that people were okay.” She also said she last saw Espinal on Friday. “I was just hugging him, holding him,” she told the station. “And then just like that he’s gone.”

Max LoRusso, Espinal’s team captain, said his late teammate was “always going hard” every time he wrestled, and would leave “everything out” on the mat. “That should inspire everyone to want to wrestle like Freddy,” he added.

Espinal’s coach organized a GoFundMe campaign for the teen’s family to help “ease the financial burden” they now face. More than $46,000 has been raised through the online fundraiser in the three days following Espinal’s sudden death.

According to Moda, wrestling practice for RRWC was canceled on Monday, Sept, 23. The next evening, coaches were at the club for any of Espinal’s teammates that wanted to “grieve, talk, or to just remember Freddy.” 

A vigil for Espinal was also held on Tuesday, Sept. 24, according to ABC affiliate WCVB-TV. More than 100 teens attended.