Softball Updates and Another Injury

Wow--it's been a week since my last post. Doing two separate posts today, one for softball and one for other news. Ugly Sticks lost both games on Monday the 17th. The other team should have been in a higher league based on their ability. Oh well. Naggers & Braggers (the coed team) also lost on Sunday the 23rd. In the second inning, Daniel's first at bat resulted in a walk to second base (men advance 2 bases in coed on a walk). Virginia hit and made it to first. The next guy struck out. Then Jadira was up to bat. She hit the ball between 2nd and 3rd base. The ground ball went to the shortstop. Daniel, who was on a dead run between 2nd and 3rd, saw that the shortstop would likely tag him, began to turn his body, and the two collided. Daniel barely had time to react. As the shortstop was standing up from stopping the grounder, his head went directly into Daniel's sternum. The two rolled out of the collision. The shortstop's head hurt, but he was okay. Daniel didn't come out of it so well. He appeared to be holding his chest (he was sitting upright) and then fell on his back. We ran out to check on him. The wind had been knocked out of him and he couldn't breathe. Air was coming out slowly, along with an awful moan. Brian called 911 while Joe held Daniel's head and I tried to get him to breathe. Daniel's eyes were rolling back in his head and he seemed to be in a panic (though Daniel never panics). His back arched and his arms and legs flailed...then he began to hear me. I was telling him that he needed to hit his chest so he could breathe. He hit his chest several times and finally began to breathe again. We cancelled the dispatch from 911 after finding out that he was okay. He stayed on the ground for a few minutes with about 30 people standing around him before leaving the field to finish recovering. Talking to him afterwards, I found out that he blacked out about the time that he fell on his back. He was out for about 45 seconds. He says that me talking to him is what brought him back. The convulsion freaked everyone out. I was ready to hit him in the chest to get him breathing, but didn't want to freak him out if he was aware (which I thought he was). I was very calm during the ordeal. I usually am in emergency situations. My stomach turned for the next two innings or so, thinking about the severity of the situation. Daniel is doing well, perhaps some cracked ribs, but otherwise okay. I ended up playing second base--something new for me. Didn't do bad, didn't do good, but I survived. Like I said, it was a loss and we are now 2-2 for the season. We have one more game for the first half. Will let everyone know the second half schedule when I have it. Daniel's next men's games are Thursday the 27th beginning at 7:45pm at Faragut. Not sure if he will be playing much as he is still recovering. Schedule changes require me to work that evening, so I won't be there. But feel free to come out and support the guys if you would like.