12-year-old California soccer player dies after collapse
A Highland boy has died after collapsing at the end of soccer practice.
Adriel Enriquez, 12, collapsed after soccer practice the evening of Feb. 26 at the Inland Empire Soccer Complex, on Little League Drive, in San Bernardino. He was a player with the San Bernardino-based Platinum IE soccer club.
A San Bernardino County Fire paramedic engine company and American Medical Response ambulance were dispatched to the scene. Adriel died on the way to Community Hospital of San Bernardino, according to the San Bernardino County Coroner’s website and his uncle, Josh Gutierrez.
“Adriel had no medical issues that we were aware of, and his passing was unexpected and an absolute shock to say the least,” Gutierrez wrote in a Facebook.
The coroners office had not yet determined the cause of Adriel’s death, as of Thursday afternoon, March 5.
Gutierrez set up a GoFundMe campaign to help Adriel’s family cover funeral expenses and to provide financial stability while they grieve.
“There are no words that make sense when a child is taken too soon,” Gutierrez wrote. “Adriel loved soccer. It wasn’t just something he played, it was something he truly loved. He showed up with heart, with passion, and with a smile. Tragically, Adriel collapsed during soccer practice, went into cardiac arrest, and passed away. What started as a normal afternoon doing what he loved turned into every parent’s worst nightmare.”
By Thursday afternoon, the campaign had raised $71,475.
Adriel is survived by his father Ricky, his mother Brenda, and his brothers Axel and Arley, Gutierrez wrote on the GoFundMe page.
Adriel has been a member of the Platinum IE soccer club since May 2024.
“We lost one of our Platinum IE family members,” the club wrote in an Instagram post. “Adriel Enriquez suddenly and unexpectedly” passed away “after practice doing what he loved most, being on the field with his team.”
“He was the sweetest, most gentle and shy soul, with a quiet strength that touched everyone around him,” the post says.
The club held a vigil for him on Monday at the soccer complex.
“Adriel brought joy, teamwork, and heart to the field. His legacy will continue in the friendships he built and the lives he touched,” a comment by Brian and Valerie Kaura on the GoFundMe page reads. “May you feel the strength of this community wrapping around you during this unimaginable loss.”
The day Adriel collapsed, temerpatures were unseasonably warm, with highs between 84 and 88 degrees, according to the Weather Channel and Accuweather.
Adriel’s death mirrors one in August 2023. Yahushua Robinson, 12, died while sprinting during PE class at Canyon Lake Middle School in Lake Elsinore.
Although the Riverside County Coroner determined that Yahushua’s death was due to a heart defect, Lake Elsinore was in the grips of a heat wave that day.
Temperatures reached 96 degrees by 11 a.m. at the time of Yahushua’s PE class. The high temperatures reached at least 104 degrees later in the day, according to the National Weather Service and Weather Channel.