A lawsuit against Francis Lewis coach Bryan Brown has drawn the ire of those in the New York City high school softball community.
Lewis sophomore Alina Cerda, 15, claims she broke her ankle during a May practice because she didn’t know how to slide, The Post reported Wednesday. Cerda had a plate implanted in her ankle after the accident, according to her lawyer, Clay Evall, and her family is suing the city and Brown for negligence.
“I think it’s a little absurd,” Bayside softball and girls basketball coach Steve Piorkowski said. “You know how many broken ankles we have in the PSAL every year? It’s sad, but I don’t know if it warrants a lawsuit. There’s an inherent risk in sports.”
According to reports, Cerda said Brown wasn’t there to supervise the sliding drill. But Francis Lewis graduate Tina DeLuca, who was the Patriots’ star pitcher last year, tells a different account of what happened.
“He was there the whole time,” DeLuca said. “He was the one who got her up and put her on the bench.”
When reached by phone Wednesday, Brown said he was unable to discuss the legal matter.
Piorkowski says that whether Brown, a fourth-year coach, was monitoring the drill with 100 percent of his attention doesn’t matter – injuries can happen either way. The Bayside coach said he does a “jurisdiction” drill with outfielders running toward each other every preseason. It’s designed to teach them how to call for the ball without mishap.
“Every year kids collide,” Piorkowski said. “That’s why you’re doing a drill. That’s how you avoid it.”
Cardozo senior third baseman Samantha Mersten said last year in practice she was hit in the head with a ball and suffered a concussion and her teammate, Sara Meletis, suffered a broken nose when she was hit with a line drive. Neither had any thoughts about suing coach Larry Alberts.
“That’s ridiculous,” Mersten said. “Accidents happen. It’s a sport.”
Evall and the Cerdas feel that without adequate training, a drill cannot be performed properly, which leads to injury.
“They were doing a sliding drill without any instruction,” Evall told The Post. “This is not the Marines. These are young girls and you have to give some training.”
DeLuca said Brown had taught sliding and the drill was designed to refine their skill. Cerda, an oft-used reserve infielder, had slid in games previously, DeLuca said.
Brooklyn College softball coach Bill Dumont, who recently left his softball coaching job at James Madison HS in Brooklyn, said he has never attended Francis Lewis practices, but finds it hard to believe Brown wouldn’t teach something as rudimentary as sliding.
“He’s very diligent,” Dumont said. “This is a guy who always follows the rules.”
And one who is dedicated to the sport he coaches, according to Susan Wagner coach Marco Altieri. Brown, who works as a guidance counselor at Lewis, was a regular at citywide softball meetings, Altieri said, when many of his peers were not.
Lewis is 50-12 under Brown the last four seasons in PSAL Queens A-I, one of the top divisions in the city. The Patriots have won a playoff game in three of his four seasons, including last spring when they advanced to the PSAL Class A quarterfinals.
“He’s an outstanding coach,” Piorkowski said. “We need outstanding coaches in softball.”
This lawsuit, some coaches say, could be a deterrent to the sport’s future.
“It’s a ridiculous situation,” said Archbishop Molloy softball coach Maureen Rosenbaum, who is also the wife of Francis Lewis athletic director Arnie Rosenbaum. “It’s going to make people not want to coach if they win this battle.”