ROWAN COUNTY, N.C. — When 13-year-old Bryson Blanton stepped up to the plate, he had no idea that life was going to throw him a curveball; but his mom says what happened next was nothing short of a miracle.
For the Blanton family, the normal sights and sounds you’d expect at a youth baseball field were replaced by the unexpected during a game last month.
“The first thing that I said to him, he needs CPR, do CPR,” said Samantha Blanton.
Samantha says her seemingly healthy 13-year-old son was playing his second game of the day in Rowan County.
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Bryson had just made a diving catch in the outfield to end the inning. He then got up to bat and hit a double down the center. Bryson sprinted to second base, and that’s where everything changed. Bryson fell to the ground, and his heart had stopped.
“He was without a heartbeat and oxygen for six to eight minutes until the [Automated External Defibrillator (AED)] arrived,” Samantha said.
But there were angels in the stands that day. An off-duty Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department officer and a firefighter performed CPR on Bryson until the ambulance arrived.
Bryson made it to the hospital, and doctors diagnosed him with a heart condition that went undetected his whole life. He’s been in the hospital for the last few weeks.His mom says they didn’t know how he’d be when he woke up because his brain went without oxygen for minutes.
“We just prayed, we knew that we needed a miracle,” Samantha said.
And those prayers were answered. He spoke with Channel 9’s Hannah Goetz and said, “Thank you for the prayers and support.”
Bryson is still in the hospital, but he is awake with no permanent brain damage. He now has a small machine on his heart that can shock him if this ever happens again.
“It was weird,” Bryson said. “I would never expect to die on the field for like eight minutes.”
He doesn’t remember much, but his mom says she’ll never forget.
“I know by the grace of God we were at that field that day with those angels there, because had we not been up the field, he would have been home, possibly alone,” Samantha said. “He’s 13, and I know that everything happens for a reason, and I thank God every day for my miracle.”
You can help the Blantons during Bryson’s road to recovery by clicking this link.