Eli Palfreyman, the 20-year-old captain of the Ayr Centennials, was in the locker room during a pre-season game when he collapsed. His mother rushed to the changing room, and the team’s trainer began to perform chest compressions. His pulse had become faint by the time he was put in an ambulance and taken to a local hospital. He died shortly after.
Per Shantz, his father told the athletes,
“The happiest day in Eli’s life was when he was named captain, and he said you cannot take a shift off the rest of the year because Eli’s spirit will be pushing you to do your best every shift, and I want to see it.”
His cause of death has not been reported. The team added, “Thank you for the outpouring love and support for our beloved Captain and beautiful young man Eli. Words can’t describe how much it means to his family and our Ayr Centennials Family. We are all broken but feel your arms around us.”
