14-year-old West Virginia athlete learns to walk again after rare injury
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Chase Hartung loves sports. He also really loves playing them.
It was last fall when the 14-year-old from New Cumberland, West Virginia, about an hour from Pittsburgh, was on the football field and his life changed forever.
"I didn't really process anything that was going on," he said.
During a play, Chase was hit hard. He fell to the ground, couldn't move and all he could think about was the pain.
His dad Howie was there and rushed onto the field.
"He said, 'I can't move at all.' So I was really concerned about a spinal injury. I mean, he was motionless," Howie said.
Chase was loaded onto an ambulance with Howie right by his side.
"He was in so much pain, I stood the whole ride and just held his foot to the ceiling," Howie said.
They traveled to Trinity Medical Center in Steubenville. They weren't there long before they were sent to UPMC Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh.
"He had a broken hip socket, also called an acetabulum," said Dr. Z. Deniz Olgun, an orthopedic surgeon.
"It is a complicated surgery. You need to have further training, past residency for it."
That surgery would include a plate and screws in Chase's hip.
"For the first six weeks, he was using crutches and not putting any weight on that leg. He was also wearing a brace to prevent the hip from dislocating again," Dr. Olgun said.
Chase would have to learn how to walk again. But, through it all, he had incredible support from his teammates and family and it gave him a smile that never faltered.
From his stay at UPMC Children's to his long, tough recovery, nothing was going to slow him down.
"The day after the surgery, I got on a walker and I was walking around on the walker, and that was the first time I really walked," he said.
"Chase was always a trooper. He was very brave and he always kept his cool," Dr. Olgun said -- even during the exercises with his physical therapist.
Instead of needing a break, "He was constantly, 'OK, I did this, what can I do next, what can I do next?' And that was just the whole entire 3 to 4 months he was with me," said Virginia Mozingo, Chase's outpatient physical therapist.
And it would be that determination that would get Chase back on the basketball court, the baseball field, then the soccer field.
"I went to one practice and it was awesome," he said.
Chase dominated in the sport. In fact, he led his team in assists and was one of their top scorers this season.
"He wants to do the best he can do all the time. And I knew whenever he came in to play for me, he was going to give me his very best every time," said Chase's soccer coach Dallas Brewer.
Chase says he's thankful for not just his family and friends, but credits his doctor and his faith.
"I just believe God would help me through all of this," he said.