A Brooklyn girl who claims her high-school softball coach told her to “take it like a man” when she injured a finger during practice now wants to hit the city where it hurts – in the wallet.
Lincoln HS junior Rebecca Sacerio, 16, of Coney Island, is suing the Department of Education for $5 million.
She claims to have suffered permanent damage while taking part in the five-hour session with a right index finger broken in three places.
“I told her it looked swollen and had a funny color,” Rebecca recalled of the May 2, 2009, incident. “[Coach Sari Schoenfeld] told me her hand always looked like that when she played.”
Rebecca, who plays third base, said that the coach had been hitting line drives to her and her teammates and that one smashed into the finger on her throwing hand.
But when she told Schoenfeld, the coach allegedly told her to “take it like a man!”
And when another liner hit the same finger, she again was told to tough it out.
“She’s a tough coach, and I just followed her orders,” said Rebecca, recalling that when she returned home that night, the finger had ballooned and she was in a lot of pain.
Her mother, Paula, applied ice and gave her Tylenol, but two days passed with no improvement. Finally, a specialist told her she needed surgery.
Rebecca underwent three hand operations, and vertical and horizontal rods were implanted in the finger and kept there for five weeks. They have since been removed.
But she contracted a postsurgery infection, now has arthritis in that finger, and has had to learn to write using her middle finger because her index finger is “useless.”
All of which could have been avoided, the suit says, if her coach had applied first aid instead of tough love.
“You don’t force a girl to continue practicing if she’s injured,” said lawyer Jeffery Lessoff. “This is not the New York Yankees here.”
Rebecca, the suit says, was injured because of “negligence, carelessness and hazardous behavior by the defendant.”
A department spokesman declined to comment.
Schoenfeld, reached on her cellphone, said only, “No comment.”
Rebecca bears no hard feelings toward Schoenfeld, who still coaches junior-varsity softball at the school.
“I’d play for her again,” she said. “I just wouldn’t listen to her if she told me to practice through an injury.”
Her mother didn’t rush her to a doctor or emergency room when she came home with a “ballooned” finger and alot of pain. Her mother waited 2 days before seeking medical attention? Why didn’t she call her pediatrician who would have told her to go to a specialist or the emergency room!!! That parent is negligent. Hey when kids play sports your doctor or orthopedist is on speed dial. Sue the mother and reprimand and retrain the coach. The mother was the girl’s last line of defense and should have reacted sooner.
Let Them Play! 
A Brooklyn girl who claims her high-school softball coach told her to “take it like a man” when she injured a finger during practice now wants to hit the city where it hurts – in the wallet.
Lincoln HS junior Rebecca Sacerio, 16, of Coney Island, is suing the Department of Education for $5 million.
She claims to have suffered permanent damage while taking part in the five-hour session with a right index finger broken in three places.
“I told her it looked swollen and had a funny color,” Rebecca recalled of the May 2, 2009, incident. “[Coach Sari Schoenfeld] told me her hand always looked like that when she played.”
Rebecca, who plays third base, said that the coach had been hitting line drives to her and her teammates and that one smashed into the finger on her throwing hand.
But when she told Schoenfeld, the coach allegedly told her to “take it like a man!”
And when another liner hit the same finger, she again was told to tough it out.
“She’s a tough coach, and I just followed her orders,” said Rebecca, recalling that when she returned home that night, the finger had ballooned and she was in a lot of pain.
Her mother, Paula, applied ice and gave her Tylenol, but two days passed with no improvement. Finally, a specialist told her she needed surgery.
Rebecca underwent three hand operations, and vertical and horizontal rods were implanted in the finger and kept there for five weeks. They have since been removed.
But she contracted a postsurgery infection, now has arthritis in that finger, and has had to learn to write using her middle finger because her index finger is “useless.”
All of which could have been avoided, the suit says, if her coach had applied first aid instead of tough love.
“You don’t force a girl to continue practicing if she’s injured,” said lawyer Jeffery Lessoff. “This is not the New York Yankees here.”
Rebecca, the suit says, was injured because of “negligence, carelessness and hazardous behavior by the defendant.”
A department spokesman declined to comment.
Schoenfeld, reached on her cellphone, said only, “No comment.”
Rebecca bears no hard feelings toward Schoenfeld, who still coaches junior-varsity softball at the school.
“I’d play for her again,” she said. “I just wouldn’t listen to her if she told me to practice through an injury.”
Her mother didn’t rush her to a doctor or emergency room when she came home with a “ballooned” finger and alot of pain. Her mother waited 2 days before seeking medical attention? Why didn’t she call her pediatrician who would have told her to go to a specialist or the emergency room!!! That parent is negligent. Hey when kids play sports your doctor or orthopedist is on speed dial. Sue the mother and reprimand and retrain the coach. The mother was the girl’s last line of defense and should have reacted sooner.