by Trevor Pyle
Stanwood student Ben Zipp stands on the sideline during the Spartans’ practice Wednesday afternoon. Zipp suffered a head injury during Stanwood’s game on Sept. 12 against Meadowdale and was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.
STANWOOD — Ben Zipp is back.
Zipp, the Stanwood High School student and football player, may not be suiting up for the Spartans, but he’s back on the sidelines and in the classroom after suffering a serious head injury that required an airlift to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle and a six-day stay in the hospital.
The junior running back and linebacker was injured while playing defense in a non-conference contest against Meadowdale on Sept. 12.
He felt shooting pain in his head and neck, Zipp recalls. It’s when his hands and feet began to go numb, he said, that knew something was seriously wrong.
Zipp had suffered a subdural hematoma — bleeding on the brain — a dangerous condition.
Zipp told the team’s head trainer of his symptoms, and Zipp was airlifted to Harborview.
His memory of that stretch of time is hazy — he vaguely remembers giving the crowd a thumbs-up, and he remembers expressing irritation that his first ride in a helicopter was for so less-than-fun reasons. (“That’s when they started to know I’d be OK,” he said of the complaint.)
Treatment for a subdural hematoma can vary, and can include opening a person’s skull to drain the blood that is collecting around the brain. Zipp was fortunate; he had two CAT scans the evening after the game, and both showed that his injury wasn’t worsening. That allowed him to be spared surgery.
Zipp’s hospital stay included three days in intensive care. While his memory of his time there is vague because of the pain medication he was on, he was amazed by the officials, teammates, family and friends who filed into his room to wish him well.
“It was overwhelming,” he said. “There were days when there were 20 people in the room.”
After his release from the hospital, Zipp slowly began getting back into a normal routine. He takes several pills a day as his injury heals. He’s been told he may need to take them as long as three months; but he’s back in school, attending half-days.
“It’s great to have him back,” Stanwood coach Dick Abrams said. “There’s nothing more scary to a coach or a teammate as losing a teammate, having him in the hospital, and not knowing how it’s going to turn out.”
One activity Zipp can’t fully return to is football. He has been told not to participate in contact sports for at least a year.
And since he’s been told that his head injury may increase his chances for another serious injury, he’s not certain whether he’ll return to playing the sport.
But even if he doesn’t suit up again, Zipp is still an important part of the Spartans program. He attended last week’s game — walking to midfield as a captain for the coin toss — attended a recent junior varsity game and hopes to be on the sidelines as Stanwood’s season continues.
“Football is my thing, and it’s nice to be around,” he said.
Whether he’s in the classroom or watching the Spartans from the stands or sidelines, Zipp said he appreciates the way the community treated him after his injury.
“The support was amazing,” he said. “It’s the best feeling.”
Trevor Pyle can be reached at 360-416-2156 or by e-mail at
