Soccer player, 13, dies after collapsing at tournament in Westminster

A 13-year-old soccer player died Saturday after collapsing during a tournament match in Westminster.

Only 10 minutes had elapsed during the second half of the soccer match Saturday morning when Felipe De La Cruz flung his arm in the air and requested that he be substituted for another player, said Mark Marquez, team manager for Strikers FC North.

After Felipe jogged off the field at Westminster High School, he sat down on a bench and collapsed.

As Felipe’s face turned blue, Marquez said, members of Strikers FC North team darted to Felipe. A coach’s wife started performing CPR and a parent, who happened to be doctor, assisted.

“He was never really conscious,” Marquez said.

Paramedics later arrived and took the Hacienda Heights teen to the nearest hospital, where he died, said Capt. Larry Kurtz, spokesman for the Orange County Fire Authority.

It is unclear what led to Felipe’s sudden collapse. By all accounts, Kurtz said, Felipe was healthy and had no history of health issues.

In a show of support, the youngster’s teammates gathered at the hospital where grief counselors spoke with them, said coach Ron Esparza, whose wife performed CPR on Felipe.

Felipe was one of 17 players who made up Strikers FC North, a competitive club soccer team in Orange County.

Felipe’s death was a huge loss for the team, which considered dropping out of the tournament until the youngster’s father asked if they could play Sunday in his son’s memory, Esparza said.

The team now had a mission when they went into Sunday’s game.

Donning armbands with Felipe’s number, 18, the team assembled on the high school’s soccer field to honor their fallen teammate.

The team played with 10 players, leaving the 11^th position vacant. Their opponents did the same.

In the end, the game was tied 1-1.

“It was just a beautiful day of honoring Felipe and honoring his family,” Esparza said.

At the soccer field, the coaches erected a small memorial with Felipe’s gym bag, a photograph of him, a cooler filled with bouquets of flowers, candles and a signed soccer ball.

Inside the gym bag, the team’s coaches discovered that visitors had left $1,900 for Felipe and his family, said Marquez, the team’s manager.

Felipe was dedicated to the sport, and traveled the longest to practice, he said. The boy would travel from his home in Hacienda Heights to Orange for soccer practice two to three times a week.

In between the car rides to and from practice, Felipe did his homework, Marquez said.

Felipe never missed a practice and always arrived on time, he said.

Once Felipe arrived to practice, the team said, he was focused and practiced plays to perfect his game as a defender and midfielder.

“He was just a spectacular kid,” Marquez said. “He was the type of person that would lure you in with his charm.”

To further honor Felipe, he said, the team came up with a code that will be used during games.

Now when the team shouts “18” – Felipe’s team number, they will not only invoke the memory of the fallen teammate, they will also be calling out for support and backup.

A GoFundMe page was created by the team to help pay for Felipe’s funeral and assist his family.

veronica.rocha@latimes.com

Twitter: VeronicaRochaLA