An 8-year-old boy named Tyce Gardner was gathering baseballs behind home plate during practice when a first baseman on the 8th grade team threw a ball during a drill, striking him in the chest. Within moments, Tyce was unconscious, not breathing and without a pulse. The coach who rushed to his side, Gene Richins, had never performed CPR on anyone before that night — and the North Summit Fire District has now honored him for what he did next.
A Coach Steps In When Seconds Mattered
According to KSL News, Richins started CPR on the boy immediately after recognizing something was wrong. Another coach, Bryce Gardner, was coaching third base at the time and called 911. Bryce later said he thought Tyce was gone after the impact, a fear that underscores just how dire the moment felt before crews arrived.
Richins had taken a few CPR classes over the years but told KSL he had never actually performed the technique before that practice. North Summit Fire District officials praised his willingness to act anyway, and he has since encouraged others in the community to learn CPR themselves, saying everyone should know how.
Firefighters Arrive and Restore a Pulse
Coaches and parents had already begun CPR by the time first responders got to the field, according to ksl.com's earlier reporting from the night of the incident. That account quoted a description of Tyce as unconscious, not moving, not breathing and without a pulse when crews reached him. Separate reporting from kjzz.com described a coach who reached the child, noticed he wasn't breathing, and immediately activated the 911 system.
Accounts differ on exactly how fast help arrived. kjzz.com reported that paramedics arrived about two minutes after the call, while KSL's more recent reporting states that medical crews arrived in about three minutes. North Summit District firefighters defibrillated Tyce and, per the KSL account, restored his heartbeat within six minutes. North Summit medical director Austin Smith said compressions were started almost immediately, a detail that likely made the difference in those critical minutes. First responders also restored the boy's breathing, according to ksl.com, before he was transported by University of Utah AirMed to Primary Children's Hospital — a detail confirmed separately by kjzz.com's coverage of the rescue.
A New Fire Station Just a Half-Mile Away
The timing of the response was helped by geography. The new Henefer Fire Station, which had opened in May, sits only about a half mile from the baseball field, per ksl.com's original report. The North Summit Fire District also offers community CPR classes, as KJZZ noted, a resource that organizers point to as part of why bystanders on scene were prepared to act before crews even arrived.
Firefighters administered a defibrillation shock that helped restore the boy's pulse, according to parkrecord.com. The sequence described by multiple outlets — immediate compressions, a defibrillation shock, and a restored heartbeat within minutes — mirrors the pattern researchers have identified as critical in cardiac emergencies. A review published by PubMed Central found survival rates of 41% to 74% in some public-access defibrillation settings when bystander CPR is provided and defibrillation occurs within three to five minutes of arrest.
Recovery and a Return to the Field
Tyce spent two days in the hospital and wore a heart monitor for 30 days afterward, according to KSL. He also underwent numerous MRIs as doctors monitored his condition. Doctors believe Tyce will make a full recovery, though he is not yet cleared to medically compete, KSL reported.
Despite that restriction, Tyce — the youngest of three brothers — told KSL he is excited to return to his older brother's baseball team once he's able. He said he was thankful for the people in his town, a sentiment that captures the community response that followed his collapse on the field.
The case echoes other youth sports emergencies where fast bystander action made the difference. A Paso Robles soccer coach was reported by KSBY to have used CPR to help save a player who collapsed from a rare heart condition, while local youth coaches have received Hands-Only CPR training and kits have been shared. For Henefer, the lesson landed close to home: a coach with only a few old CPR classes behind him, and no hands-on experience, turned out to be exactly what an 8-year-old needed on an ordinary night of practice.
