A high school wrestler dies after a medical emergency in Massachusetts

Freddy Espinal was a 17-year old at Peabody Veterans Memorial High School

Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK

A 17-year old high school wrestler died on Sept. 22, after suffering a medical emergency during practice in Massachusetts, the Salem News reported.

Freddy Espinal, who was a junior at Peabody Veterans Memorial High School, suffered the emergency in a gym away from his school and he was not wrestling at the time of the incident, according to a report by WFXT-TV. Espinal was also a member of the Red Roots Wrestling Club.

On a GoFundMe page organized by Wayne Moda, who coached Espinal on both his high school team and club teams, Moda wrote that Espinal was "a kindhearted young man who was passionate about his family and sports, specifically wrestling." Since being launched, the page has raised more than $52,000 to "ease the financial burden of his passing."

In a Facebook post, Moda paid tribute to Espinal.

"I can tell you as his club and high school coach, Freddy was a larger-than-life personality on and off the mat," wrote Moda. "He was passionate about his family and wrestling which he worked incredibly hard at after falling in love with the sport his freshman year.

"Wrestling aside, I thoroughly enjoyed him as a person, he genuinely made me laugh with his antics and he was committed to his teammates and friends. To me, my wrestlers are an extension of my family. Not my children but close... We spent lots of time together wrestling but more importantly, navigating life. I loved him and will miss him dearly."