Ronda Webb knew that something was terribly wrong with her son, but the scariest part was not knowing the cause.
On Oct. 16, Jake Webb, a star senior running back and linebacker at Arlington High School, suffered flu-like symptoms that rapidly worsened. Early the next morning, he was admitted to Arlington’s Cascade Valley Hospital. When doctors were unable to identify the source of the problems, Webb’s parents rushed him to Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center in Seattle.
As Webb, who has rushed for 1,001 yards and 14 touchdowns this season, suffered through a severe fever and liver, kidney and heart problems, doctors finally identified the culprit: Toxic shock syndrome. Most common among women under the age of 25, the affliction can be potentially fatal and is rare (From 1979 to 1996, the number of cases reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was 300 per year).
“It’s been pretty scary,” Ronda Webb said, “… It was pretty much the worst thing ever.”
She said doctors aren’t completely sure how her son contracted toxic shock syndrome, but they suspect it may have started with an infected cut in Jake’s leg.
The worst seems to have passed for Webb, who missed Arlington’s Western Conference North Division game at Oak Harbor last Friday. Based on his positive reaction to antibiotics, Webb was discharged Monday afternoon from Children’s Hospital. According to Ronda Webb, Jake won’t play this week against Cascade, but that disappointment pales in comparison with what really matters.
“He is looking much, much better now,” Ronda Webb said of her son. “He’s anxious to get home. … Thank goodness he’s such a strong young man. He’ll get his energy back.”
Although he couldn’t be with his teammates on Friday, Jake Webb still kept tabs on the game. His father, Vic Webb, drove to Oak Harbor and frequently called Jake with updates of Arlington’s eventual 42-26 defeat.
Ronda Webb thanked the friends, teammates and coaches who visited Jake at the hospital and left dozens of messages on her voice mail the past week.
“The support has just been fantastic,” she said. “He’s had a lot of people who love him in Arlington.”
New girls hoops coach for Everett: Kelly McCoy is the new head coach of the Everett girls basketball team. McCoy, a 25-year-old first-time head coach, replaces Craig Langley. Langley resigned to pursue other interests, according to Everett athletic director Jo Levin. Levin has high hopes for McCoy, who gained playing and assistant-coaching experience in Michigan before she came to Everett. McCoy takes over a team that advanced to the Class 4A district playoffs but graduated several key seniors. “We’re pretty excited to give her this opportunity,” Levin said. “She’s very articulate. She knows the game of basketball, and she really wanted the job.”
Snohomish swim squad forfeits two wins: Due to the use of an academically ineligible athlete, the Snohomish girls swim team was forced to forfeit non-conference victories over Kamiak and Mercer Island. Snohomish is now 8-2 overall and 7-0 in the Wesco North.
Bellevue lineman named an All-American: Stephen Schilling, a senior offensive tackle on the nationally ranked Bellevue High football team, has been named a U.S. Army All-American. He is one of 78 players picked to compete in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl Jan. 7, 2006 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. The game will be televised on NBC. Considered an elite college recruit, Schilling “is one of the top linemen on the (West Coast) because of a combination of size (6-foot-5, 290 pounds), speed (4.9 seconds in the 40-yard dash), technique and nastiness,” recruiting expert Tom Lemming said in a press release.
Thornhill to lead Shorecrest grapplers: Lee Thornhill has been hired to coach the Shorecrest wrestling team, according to Don Dalziel, Shoreline School District athletic director. Thornhill takes over for previous Scots coach Marcus Requa.
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