11-year-old recovering after devastating baseball practice injury

FOUNTAIN, Colo. (KKTV/Gray News) - A Colorado boy is in the hospital after suffering a serious injury while practicing baseball on Monday evening.

The Koval family told KKTV that their 11-year-old son named Donnie was hit in the face with a line drive while practicing with his brother.

They said Donnie suffered multiple facial fractures to his forehead and to his orbital sockets.

“Our beloved young athlete, Donnie Koval, suffered a devastating injury during practice that left him hospitalized,” Zeb Vargas wrote on a GoFundMe account set up on Donnie’s behalf.

Vargas started the fundraiser on Tuesday asking for donations to “help cover the mounting medical expenses” for the 11-year-old.

“We are coming together to rally around Donnie and his family as they navigate this challenging time,” Vargas wrote.

According to Donnie’s father, Branden Koval, his son needed immediate medical attention after suffering the injury, including specialized surgeries that have continued Wednesday.

“It’s very scary, you know, to see your kid go down and really not know what’s going to happen,” Koval said.

He added that everything they had gotten back from doctors as of Wednesday afternoon had been good, but he emphasized that Donnie still has a long road ahead of him to get back to the sport he loves.

“He’s going to have a long, long journey, lots of mental toughness to get through… that’s probably going to be the hardest part is the mental part, you know. He’s going to have to not be scared of a baseball,” Koval said.

He said seeing the community’s support for his son has been amazing.

“I never imagined that we’d have this much support and from other teams that we play against. They’ve been supporting him, people that we’ve never met, don’t even know, through the baseball community,” Koval said.

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