Free Republic

What had been a dream ending to a perfect regular season for the high school basketball team in the small southwest Michigan community of Fennville turned swiftly and tragically into something worse than a nightmare. You can awaken from a nightmare, shake away the demons and drift back into reality. There is no shaking away the horrific reality at the Fennville High School gymnasium Thursday night when Wes Leonard, the school’s star in basketball and football, collapsed on the court moments after making a game-winning basket. Leonard was pronounced dead at Holland Hospital about two hours later. He was 16....

A western Michigan high school basketball player collapsed on the court and later died after making the game-winning shot to finish off his team's perfect season. Wes Leonard, a 16-year-old Fennville High School basketball player, died Thursday night, Holland Hospital spokeswoman Deb Patterson said. The cause of death has not yet been determined. "It's tough to take in," Leonard's teammate Shane Bale, told The Holland Sentinel. "It's like somebody from your family, you know?" Paramedics performed CPR on Leonard before he was pronounced dead at the hospital, Patterson said. Leonard had scored the game-winning layup in a 57-55 win over...