Coaches, trainer, AED save sophomore’s life
September 18 started as just another Wednesday for Hollidaysburg resident Jen Davis.
Her husband, Dave, was at work near Lake Raystown Resort and her son, Spencer, was at football practice at Charles W. Longer Elementary School, so Jen decided to go for a walk across from the facility and glanced over to see if she could get a glimpse of him.
“I was out walking, and I just walked past the field and looked over,” Jen said. “I saw there was a player down and couldn’t tell who it was. Practice was still going on, so I continued walking. That’s when (Hollidaysburg Area football coach Homer) DeLattre flagged me down and told me I needed to go over, because it was Spence.”
At that moment, Sept. 18, 2024, became a day Jen will remember for the rest of her life, because if not for the heroic actions of a group of coaches and Hollidaysburg athletic trainer Amy Smearman, it could have been the date on Spencer’s tombstone.
‘Just a regular practice’
Four weeks into the high school football regular season, Hollidaysburg was off to its best start in years at 4-0, and sophomore Spencer Davis had been helping the Golden Tiger starters prepare for their competition by participating on the scout team.
Davis, listed at 6 feet, 2 inches and 237 pounds, had an assignment of mimicking the Mifflinburg punt team in a drill Hollidaysburg was running to prepare for its road game on Friday.
“It was just a regular practice,” Hollidaysburg assistant coach Joe Montrella said “They were doing special teams. They were doing a punt return scenario, and Spencer was covering the punt as a tackler. He got hit as part of that play right in the chest. I don’t want to say it was extremely hard. It was a decent hit, but it was nothing that you don’t see in the course of a football game on a Friday night. It just ended up being perfectly oriented where the other kid’s shoulder went right into his chest.”
Davis collapsed immediately.
“I was probably 20 yards away standing on the sideline watching the play develop,” Montrella said. “Initially, when he went down, he went down right away. It looked like the type of hit where you would lose your breath. It was more in the chest, not the head or neck, but he fell without any support and did hit hard on the ground.”
Montrella and fellow assistant coach Rodney Chism both said their initial belief was that Davis had the wind knocked out of him.
“After 20 or 30 seconds, he still wasn’t coming around,” Montrella said. “His breathing started to change into almost a snoring, and we could tell he was having trouble breathing. That’s when we got one of the players to help us get his helmet off as we held him still, and then his color started to change. He started to get paler and was continuing to have that abnormal breathing.”
Trainer nearby
As Hollidaysburg’s varsity football practice played out, the school’s athletic trainer, Amy Smearman, was working at an eighth grade football game at Tiger Stadium, less than half a mile from Longer Elementary’s practice field.
“When Spencer got injured, I was on the other side of the field,” DeLattre said. “When I got over there, after evaluating the situation, I called Amy right away and when I hung up with her, I called 911.”
Smearman grabbed her equipment, including one of the school’s several automated external defibrillators, and made her way to Davis.
“Once I got there and saw Spencer, I knew right away that it was an emergency,” Smearman said. “The coaches had just removed his helmet to access his airway. They had rolled him on his back. I knelt down by him, and we were checking for pulses at that point. He wasn’t breathing, and we knew we had to start CPR.”
Along with Smearman were coaches Montrella, Chism and Adam Walstrom.
Montrella’s wife, Kristi, is a cardiology nurse practitioner, and had urged her husband to be adamant on his CPR training and had discussed her experiences in the field with him throughout the years.
Chism spent 32 years working with the state and is currently a security resource professional at Hollidaysburg.
“I fell back on what was natural to me. I assessed him for a pulse,” Chism said. “I thought I felt a weak pulse, and then he stopped breathing completely at that point and started to change color. He turned a light shade of blue and then a darker shade of blue.
“We realized at that point he didn’t have a pulse. As we began CPR, Amy was taking care of the breathing and Coach Montrella and I were tag teaming the compressions. We paused to check for a pulse and realized he was starting to get a pulse and applied the AED, which walked us through on when to stop compressions and apply a shock.”
Walstrom, who Smearman described as extremely calm under pressure, helped get the AED set up on Davis.
“It was somewhat terrifying,” Smearman said. “But you really didn’t have time to think. By the time we realized we had to start CPR, everything just felt like a reaction. The three coaches did amazing, because I was taking care of the airway, and they were taking care of doing compressions while (Walstrom) was grabbing the AED off my cart. Everything was happening the way it was supposed to happen.”
‘It felt like forever’
By this time, Jen Davis had made her way to her son’s side.
“The closer I got, I saw they were doing compressions on him, so I sprinted through practice,” Jen said. “He regained consciousness for a second, and I got up by his head and told him, ‘Spence, your mom is here. You’re going to be OK, hang on buddy,’ and then his eyes rolled behind his head, his lips were a gray-blue color and his heart stopped again at that point.”
The AED instructed Smearman and the three coaches to shock Spencer twice and continue compressions.
“It was a team effort between myself, Adam, Rodney and Amy,” Montrella said. “A police officer showed up and even jumped in at one point doing compressions. We were getting tired. That’s how intense it was. It was happening very quickly. But it felt like forever.”
Though she’s been with Hollidaysburg as the athletic trainer for 24 years, Spencer’s medical emergency was the first time Smearman had to perform CPR.
“It was scary,” Smearman said. “It was very scary. You knew at that point that this player’s life is in your hands.”
After following the AED’s instructions of harder compressions and shock treatment, Chism felt for a pulse and got some good news.
“Once we did several sets of compressions and two shocks, he did have a pulse,” Chism said.
As Spencer regained a pulse, an ambulance arrived and took him and his mother to UPMC Altoona. He was later transported to UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh for further treatment.
“They saved his life,” Jen said. “We had multiple physicians come into his room out in Pittsburgh and say that the fact the first responders, the coaches and trainers, knew what they were doing and started compressions immediately and that they used the AED is what saved his life. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be here right now.”
Blank slate
Spencer Davis has no recollection of the day he almost died. He can remember the day before and waking up in Pittsburgh the day after he suffered sudden cardiac arrest.
“That day is completely blank,” Spencer said. “I don’t remember any of it. I don’t even remember waking up and going to school.”
When Spencer was told what happened to him, his first reaction was to check on his teammate that ran into him on the drill at practice.
“I was really worried about how the person that hit me was doing,” Spencer said. “I was worried about him and wanted to make sure he was OK.”
Spencer spent seven days at Children’s Hospital before being discharged. He’s currently wearing a ZOLL LifeVest, which is a portable defibrillator. If he would go into cardiac arrest, the vest would save his life.
It hasn’t gone off in the weeks since he returned home. He recently returned to school, though he’s only doing half days so far, and he participated in Hollidaysburg’s homecoming and has attended the Tigers’ last two home football games.
“Some things feel normal,” Spencer said. “It’s not there yet, but it’s coming back.”
Spencer hasn’t had any major issues beyond the broken ribs he suffered as a result of the CPR, which is expected during that procedure.
If everything comes back normal at his next appointment on Tuesday, he will receive a diagnosis of commotio cordis, which is what NFL player Damar Hamlin suffered during his near-fatal hit in January of 2023.
“It’s where the heartbeat was in a downward beat when he got hit, and it was just at the exact time that caused his heart to go into arrest,” Jen said. “He’s a healthy 16-year-old. Never in a million years would I think I would be walking and find out that my child was in cardiac arrest. Concussions? Yes. He’s had concussions. A broken limb? Sure. It’s a contact sport, but I never in a million years thought he would go into cardiac arrest from a hit.”
Even though Spencer was familiar with the Hamlin hit and aftermath, he didn’t really think it would be possible at the high school level.
“Even after the Damar Hamlin incident, I was thinking it would take someone like that strong — someone who is NFL material that benches 225 pounds at the combine for 18 reps to impact someone like this,” Spencer said.
Timing critical
If not for the immediate response of Montrella, Chism, Walstrom and Smearman, Spencer’s positive outcome likely would have been different.
“In children, brain damage begins very quickly after cardiac arrest,” said Dr. George Jabbour, the medical director at UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute at UPMC Altoona and UPMC Bedford. “Within three to five minutes, brain cells start to suffer damage due to lack of oxygen. By nine minutes, severe and permanent damage is likely and after 10 minutes, survival chances are significantly reduced.”
According to Jabbour, the overall out-of-hospital cardiac arrest rate of survival is around 8.8%.
“The most remarkable part of this story was the recognition of the early need for CPR by the coaches, which was quickly initiated by nonmedical personnel, on a football field, with limited resources,” Jabbour said. “The close proximity of the AED was essential in restoring normal heart rhythm in a timely fashion. The collective efforts of those individuals was crucial in this child’s survival and avoidance of any significant neurological damage.”
District prepared
Though most parents and Spencer himself never thought what happened could be a possibility, DeLattre and Smearman had it on their radar thanks to some down time away from sports during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
“Looking back on it, that was a blessing,” DeLattre said. “We didn’t have a real detailed emergency action plan by facility. It was sort of general. Whenever we went into COVID, there were things Amy and I had always wanted to do since I became the athletic director and we started working together. There were a few things we wanted to be more detailed with.
“The emergency action plan was certainly one of those things. During the COVID time period, Amy and I sat down and went venue by venue in every situation and every facility that we have, and we made a detailed plan.”
Part of that plan was having AEDs at different locations and access for medical help.
“What to do as far as when to call 911 and how to send someone to an entry point for the ambulance to be quicker and more efficient at getting on site,” DeLattre said. “All those things were more detailed and put into place. It ended up being something we relied on instantly from the moment we called 911. That’s when the emergency action plan began, and we were blessed to have a group of coaches and staff and everyone that put that into place.”
In the weeks since Spencer’s sudden cardiac arrest, DeLattre has tried to raise awareness.
“I reached out to all the local (athletic directors) from District 5, 6 and 9 about a week after and shared our (emergency plan) in case they didn’t have anything in place,” DeLattre said. “I know some don’t. I know some have what we had prior to 2020, which was just a small modified plan. I asked everyone to review our plan and make sure they took time to review it with their staff and share it with their head coaches and assistants. The more people that are aware and it’s second nature to them and not something they have to look up, that gives a much better chance of success.”
Importance of AEDs
DeLattre said all schools have AEDs available but most don’t have multiple available at different locations and facilities.
“We have one near our gym, one near our auditorium, and we have one in the elementary buildings,” DeLattre said. “Amy has one on her at all times. The closest one at the time was at Longer Elementary, but the one Amy had on hand expedited that process.”
The AED used to save Spencer’s life helped guide the first responders through the process.
“Different AED brands are designed differently,” Smearman said. “This isn’t the same for every brand of AED, but we have the ZOLL AED Plus. It was very helpful. Most AEDs will do this, but once you power it on, it basically starts to walk you through what you should be doing. It may say ‘apply the pads’ or ‘stop CPR’ or ‘analyzing’ where you basically stop and don’t touch the person. It will tell you if a shock is needed or it will tell you to continue CPR. The model we had told us to press deeper and press faster. It helped us keep the timing down, and it gave us immediate feedback, which was very helpful.”
Chism said Smearman bringing the AED was crucial due to its instructions.
“AEDs are essential whether it’s a practice or an event,” Chism said. “It’s something you should have on hand and access to immediately. You never know when and if you will need it. This was a situation where a young man, just minutes earlier, was running around and now he’s on the field unconscious without a pulse. Thank God we were able to administer CPR and have a success story with him, but I think had there been any other lapses or gaps in time, I don’t believe the situation may have had as positive of an outcome as it did.”
Spencer’s father, Dave, did not witness his son’s heart stopping on the practice field but reunited with Spencer, Jen and their daughter at UPMC Altoona and was thankful Hollidaysburg was in a better position to help his son than some rural area schools might be.
“I grew up in the small town of Williamsburg,” Dave said. “I don’t know if Williamsburg would have the same outcome that we did on the 18th. Being trained in CPR and not just calling for someone but starting it immediately is critical. Having an AED within three minutes increases the likelihood of someone not just surviving but living a normal life.”
Future changes
The Davis family would like to make sure if there is ever another medical emergency like Spencer’s that the outcome is similar.
“With this type of injury, there’s like a three minute window,” Jen said. “They did what they had to do, and he’s here and healing well. If you looked at him right now, you wouldn’t even know what took place (a month) ago.”
Much of that is thanks to the response he received.
“Spence wants to advocate for awareness,” Jen said. “People need to be aware that it could happen and that the response time is imperative. You need to be trained. You need to have an AED, and you need to know how to use it.”
The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association requires some training but does not mandate that its coaches become certified in CPR.
“The PIAA requires a first aid course or certification at some point in time,” DeLattre said. “There’s a course or certification you have to submit to PIAA just like a coaching education. Every coach in Pennsylvania has to do that when they start coaching. It’s on their web site.
“You have to get those two things within a two-year period once you start coaching. But it is not required by our school district that every coach is CPR certified. Every coach must complete yearly sudden cardiac arrest certification, which is a 20-minute video you watch. You get certification for it after taking a test.”
The Davis family would like to see CPR training become a requirement.
“We want to march this thing up to Harrisburg to make sure that there’s an outcome that helps a small community like Claysburg, Williamsburg or Chestnut Ridge or one of the local school districts that are small and need that same kind of reaction time,” Dave said. “It’s just crazy that there is no requirement to have an AED in schools or CPR certification for coaches. Hollidaysburg took a preemptive strike to make sure that we did have a plan in place that other school districts might not have.”
Lingering trauma
After meeting the Thursday following Spencer’s sudden cardiac arrest, the team decided to play its game against Mifflinburg in honor of Davis.
The Golden Tigers won, 37-29, and got to FaceTime with Spencer after the victory.
“The team called me Friday after the game against Mifflinburg,” Spencer said. “Then the coaches called me after their Sunday meeting. It was nice. As good as it was for me, I think it was good for them to see that I was doing OK.”
DeLattre had never dealt with anything like what happened with Spencer during his long coaching career.
“I have been coaching for 28 years,” DeLattre said. “I have been through injuries and different things happening to kids, but this is something I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. I remember sitting and watching the Damar Hamlin situation and wondering what we would do in that situation. But it’s something you don’t even think of happening. Someone said there’s a one in 13 million chance of having a situation like Hamlin. For it to happen at our practice was unimaginable.”
Montrella was among the coaches who attempted to shield the players from what happened when he realized how serious Spencer’s issue was and directed players away from the field.
“It was pretty traumatic for the kids, seeing that happen,” Montrella said. “When that happened in the NFL, it was on TV, and those NFL players — they are professionals, adults, and they were shaken. You’re talking about ninth through 12th grade kids observing that. They were shaken.”
Spencer lying on the field struggling to breathe lingered in Montrella’s thoughts.
“I couldn’t sleep that night,” Montrella said. “I had to call off work the next day. I couldn’t concentrate at all. It was just replaying in my head. By lunch, I was ready to get to practice and be around all the other kids and coaches and see everybody. I think I hugged all the players that Thursday at practice.”
Spencer’s future
Damar Hamlin returned to play professional football after his sudden cardiac arrest, and though Children’s Hospital has already contacted Hamlin’s foundation about setting up a meeting between the NFL star and Davis, Spencer said he’s probably played his last down of the sport.
“Baseball has always been my love,” Spencer said. “Football has always been something I just enjoyed doing. I think I’m going to just stick to baseball and focus on that.”
Spencer is currently taking classes in a culinary school, but he isn’t sure what he wants to do with his adult life now that he’s seen the impact medical professionals and those trained in CPR can make on someone.
“They saved my life,” Spencer said. “I really want to give back. I want to do whatever I can to make sure if someone else has something like this happen that their outcome can be as good as mine.”
When Spencer returned home from Pittsburgh, Hollidaysburg held an event for him to visit his coaches, teammates and some members of the community, including Smearman.
“I got to hug him, and I just cried,” Smearman said. “Some of the others probably did too. It was just a very good feeling to see him, to touch him when we hugged him. That was just a joyous emotion. Now, for me, there’s some kind of bond there that has developed. He is living proof that having the right emergency action plan, training and AEDs available can work. It’s also to me a miracle everything fell into place the way it should have been.”
Spencer has been getting a similar reaction everywhere he goes.
“It’s been amazing,” Spencer said. “I haven’t gone through a room without someone asking me how I’m doing or telling me they have been praying for me and my family.”
The hugs, smiles and Spencer’s future are all a reality because of the crucial efforts from first responders that admirably performed life-saving duties while an ambulance was on its way.
“Those minutes were the difference between Spencer being in a hospital or us being at his funeral,” Jen said. “Time is imperative. We can’t stress enough how important it is to be trained and know what you are doing.”
‘A miracle everything fell into place’: Coaches, trainer, AED save sophomore’s life