An eighth grade North Dakota student has died after suddenly collapsing on the basketball court during a game.
Jemimah Audu, 13, of Fargo, was playing basketball at Discovery Middle School on Friday when she suffered what is being described as a ‘sudden health event’ and abruptly went down during the game, according to Valley News Live.
She was immediately rushed to Stanford Medical Center where she succumbed to the medical emergency.
An autopsy to determine Audu’s cause of death is still pending at the University of North Dakota.
Loved ones said she was a healthy girl that had no known prior medical conditions, according to a GoFundMe page created to support her grieving family.
Johnny and Sara Cox, Audu’s parents, expressed their gratitude to the first responders, including police, fire and EMT personnel, for their swift efforts to help her, according to the fundraiser.
They also thanked emergency room staff, who they said ‘tried so hard to revive her.’
‘She was a kind and beautiful soul to all she encountered,’ the description read. ‘She enjoyed basketball and her youth group at Northview Church.’
Jemimah Audu, 13, of Fargo, North Dakota, died after suddenly collapsing on the court during a basketball game
The eighth grader was playing basketball at Discovery Middle School (pictured) on Friday when she suffered what is being described as a ‘sudden health event’ and abruptly went down during the game
An autopsy to determine Audu’s cause of death is still pending at the University of North Dakota
The middle schooler was also described as having an extremely close relationship with her brother, Jethro, a fifth grader at Eagles Elementary who, like his sister, shares the family’s athletic talent as a football player.
Donations to the GoFundMe page will go directly to Audu’s parents and help cover the unexpected costs of her final arrangements.
Coaches and students have posted flowers and shared memories on West Funeral Home’s tribute wall to honor Audu’s life.
‘Rest in peace Jemimah. Your smile always lit up the whole room, you were always joyful and had a smile on your face,’ one anonymous student wrote.
‘Seeing you in the bathrooms in school, you’d always say hi to me,’ they added. ‘You had so much potential, so much in front of you. You went away too soon. Heaven gained another angel.’
While the cause of Audu’s tragic death remains unknown, sudden cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death among young athletes, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Several reports suggest that between one in 50,000 and one in 100,000 young athletes die of sudden cardiac arrest each year, though estimates vary.
Sudden changes in the heart’s electrical signals can trigger this emergency, causing the lower chambers to beat rapidly and erratically, which prevents the heart from effectively pumping blood throughout the body, according to the outlet.
Loved ones said Audu was healthy girl that had no known prior medical conditions
Audu’s parents, Johnny and Sara Cox, sent their gratitude towards emergency room staff, who they said ‘tried so hard to revive her’
Conditions that strain the heart or damage its tissue – such as thickened heart muscle, long QT syndrome or a hard blow to the chest – can also raise the risk of sudden cardiac arrest.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the GoFundMe page had raised nearly $3,500 toward its $15,000 goal.
The funeral for the 13-year-old girl is scheduled for December 1 at Northview Church in Fargo.
