Game savers: Seton Hill trainers honored for reviving heart attack victim

John Palumbo is a regular at Seton Hill men’s basketball games, but he didn’t get to see the Griffins’ last home game two weeks ago.

That’s when he was stretchered out of the gym after suffering what officials described as a “widow maker” heart attack but was revived by Seton Hill’s team trainers and Independence Health staffers Trevor Lotz and Nicole Markiewicz.

Palumbo, 72, of Bethel Park returned to the Greensburg campus Saturday, where he and the trainers who saved his life were honored Saturday afternoon in between Seton Hill’s women’s and men’s games.

“I have total gratitude. It’s just absolutely unreal what occurred,” Palumbo said. “I thanked them with all my heart. They’re the ones who brought me back.

“There’s not enough words to say when you get a second chance at life.”

Palumbo, who retired in 2014 after a 32-year career as a paramedic, has been a constant presence watching Seton Hill games, where his cousin’s son, Ryan Meis, is a senior shooting guard.

Palumbo usually rides to the games with friends, but that day he drove himself to campus.

As he walked from his car and up a steep hill to the gym, he felt chest pains. He collapsed while standing on the track above the gym floor during the women’s game.

Meis, who was preparing for the game, said he didn’t immediately realize it was Palumbo who was in distress.

“It was crazy. When I got there, everything was fully under control, but it was certainly wild. It puts everything in a whole different perspective,” Meis said. “It’s pretty amazing he was here and people knew what to do.”

Lotz, who serves as Seton Hill’s head trainer, was behind the bench and saw the commotion across the gym. He and Clarion University trainer Dave Snowberger ran across the gym floor and up the steps to the back of the stands to find Palumbo not breathing and without a pulse.

Markiewicz, who was in the locker room preparing for the men’s game, was alerted to the situation and ran to assist.

She and the other trainers performed CPR and used an AED device to shock Palumbo’s heart to revive him before he was transported to Independence Health Westmoreland Hospital, where he underwent an emergency procedure to repair his heart.

Doctors said Palumbo received two stents to correct a 95% blockage of his left anterior descending artery.

“You just kind of go blank and the training takes over,” said Lotz, 29, a Pottsville native who took over as Seton Hill’s head trainer in October 2o22. “Getting to see him standing in front of me — the emotion is kind of overwhelming. He’s alive and well, and that’s all that matters to me.”

Markiewicz, 28, of Scottdale has worked as a trainer at Seton Hill since 2020.

“It’s one of the things we are certified for. We’re prepared for it, but it’s nothing you see every day,” Markiewicz said. “It’s more than just taping ankles and passing out water. It can be about saving lives.”

Palumbo said he doesn’t remember much after he collapsed. He said he is feeling better, has started cardiac rehabilitation and is looking forward to resuming golfing and playing softball.

“I’m feeling good,” Palumbo said. “I was in the right place at the right time.”