Beaufort Co father sues soccer player who allegedly injured his high school son during game

The father of a Hilton Head Christian Academy student is suing Hilton Head Preparatory School, its soccer coach and a player after his son was injured in a game last year, according to online court records.

The suit was filed July 5 in Beaufort County on behalf of Roel Harsta and his son, who is identified as Chase H.

It accuses Hilton Head Prep, varsity soccer coach Joseph Almeida and a player identified as Logan B. of battery, negligence and negligent training.

On April 25, Hilton Head Christian Academy and Hilton Head Prep faced off in a varsity soccer game at Hilton Head Prep.

During the game, Logan “intentionally” and “outside of normal play” struck Chase in the face, causing “serious and permanent injury,” the lawsuit states.

The suit alleges that Logan had “a history of violating” the South Carolina Independent School Athletic Association code of conduct. Therefore, Hilton Head Prep and Almeida should have known that the player would “endanger the health, safety and well-being” of other players, the suit states.

Because of the school and coach’s negligence, the lawsuit claims the school and coach failed to enforce the code of conduct and allowed Logan to “put other players at risk.”

As a result, Chase suffered injuries that caused physical pain, mental anguish, impairment of health and bodily efficiency, absences from school for extended periods and medical expenses, according to the lawsuit.

The suit does not specify what type of injuries Chase endured. It also does not explain Logan’s alleged history of violating the athletic code of conduct.

Roel Harsta and his son are seeking to recover an unspecified amount of damages caused by the three parties involved.

Tabor Vaux, the attorney representing Chase and his father, declined to comment because both players were minors.

Administrators at Hilton Head Prep would not comment on the pending litigation.

Mitchell Griffith, the attorney representing Logan, also declined to comment on the suit.

However, Griffith said that he had never seen another case in Beaufort County where a student was sued for injuring another player in an athletic event.

“Obviously there’s a strong assumption injuries can happen in sporting events,” he said.

This story was originally published September 20, 2018 at 1:30 PM.