The family of a Mount Ida College football player, who in 2011 died of a heart attack after a winter conditioning session, is suing the college and related insurance companies.
New Jersey residents Donald and Dara Mazza are seeking punitive and compensatory damages from both the college and the National Collegiate Athletic Association because the February 2016 workout was done at a campus training facility under school supervision. Their son, sophomore Michael Mazza, suffered a seizure and “probable cardiac dysrhythmia” after the training session. The lawsuit claims the session was a “covered event” described by the NCAA’s insurance benefits summary, according to the wrongful death lawsuit initially filed in February in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Monmouth County.
The claim, which names four different insurance companies and brokers as defendants, doesn’t list a specific dollar amount for damages.
Mount Ida College is a Division III school in Newton, Massachusetts, a Boston suburb. The team listed Michael Mazza as a 6-foot, 3-inch, 295-pound offensive lineman. He was 20 years old with no apparent history of heart problems when he died within 45 minutes of returning to his college dorm room after the Feb. 22, 2016, workout, the lawsuit states.
