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A Family Looks For Answers After This Healthy 15-Year-Old Collapsed and Died Following Routine Workout

The cause of Star Ifeacho's death is currently unknown.

Tragedy has struck a Kentucky high school basketball team. Paul Laurence Dunbar High School (Lexington, Kentucky) sophomore basketball player Star Ifeacho died after collapsing in the locker room following a team workout Wednesday. He was 15.

The Kentucky Herald Leader is reporting that the cause of his death is currently unknown, but that an autopsy will be performed Thursday.

Fayette County schools spokeswoman Lisa Deffendall told the newspaper that the basketball team's players were working on drills and playing 2-on-2 games with an athletic trainer and coaches present when the incident happened.

“Star had stopped shooting baskets and was with the athletic trainer when he collapsed in the locker room,” Fayette schools superintendent Manny Caulk said in a news release, as reported by the Herald Leader. “The athletic trainer immediately provided emergency care, including CPR and the use of the AED (automated external defibrillator), while 911 was called. When paramedics arrived, they took over his care and transported him to the hospital.”

Grief counselors are available to the high school's students and staff today. Ifeacho's senior teammates, Taveion Hollingsworth and Kaelen Whiteside, took to their respective Twitter accounts to share these emotional thoughts about their late friend.

Ifeacho, a 6-foot-1 shooting guard, certainly showed potential, averaging 6.8 points and 5.9 rebounds in 30 games for his squad this season.

Prayers up to his family and friends.

BET Sports News — Get the latest news and information about African-Americans in sports, including weekly recaps, celebrity news and photos of your favorite Black athletes.

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