Alum Credits Classroom Training for Saving a Life

Certified athletic trainer Anthony Vignola ’24 returns to SHU to share his story and inspire aspiring ATs

Key Highlights

• ^{Anthony Vignola ’24, a certified athletic trainer and SHU alum, helped save a student-athlete who went into sudden cardiac arrest during practice at Choate Rosemary Hall}
• ^{Vignola credits his SHU athletic training education—especially classroom simulations like Operation Chaos—with preparing him to stay calm, focused and effective during the emergency}
• ^{He emphasized that SHU’s realistic, high-stress training scenarios built the muscle memory, confidence and decision-making skills needed for real-world crises}

Most days, athletic trainer and Sacred Heart University alum Anthony Vignola’s tasks are largely predictable—​​​​taping ankles,​ evaluating injuries, creating individualized rehab plans ​and working with high school athletes at a private, coeducational school to prepare them for practice and play. But he has always known predictability might one day give way to a critical situation. Recently, that day arrived.

Vignola, who is in his second year as an athletic trainer at Wallingford’s Choate Rosemary Hall, was finishing his day when the call came in. An athlete had collapsed during practice, and the on-scene athletic trainer needed backup.

In under a minute, Vignola and a coworker grabbed their gear, jumped in a cart, sped to the field and hit the ground running. By the time they arrived, the athlete (whose name is being withheld for privacy reasons) was in sudden cardiac arrest—unresponsive and without a pulse. ​​Vignola immediately began performing CPR and, with the help of the other trainer, administering defibrillation. By the time emergency services arrived, he had successfully revived and stabilized the player.

“The fact that we were able to act fast and work so well as a team really made the difference,” Vignola said.

It’s a story with a happy ending. The player is back in class, and Vignola and his team have used the experience to refine response time and protocols to be even more prepared for the future.

Moments after the medical episode, Vignola found himself thinking about the education he received at Sacred Heart University and the difference it made in a tense moment. “The experiences I had in the classroom had a big impact on how I understand real-world emergency response,” he said. “I still think back to some of the simulations we ran, like ‘Operation Chaos,’ where we had to stay focused while managing multiple responsibilities at once. Those scenarios helped me to build that muscle memory to stay calm and confident when it came time to act during this emergency.”

Recently, Vignola returned to SHU’s Center for Healthcare Education to speak with students in the Master of Science in athletic training program about the dramatic moment. Two years earlier, he had been sitting where they sat. When professionals visited the classroom, they helped him see the real-life applications of the scenarios and case reviews he was studying. He was grateful to have the opportunity to do the same for current students.

“Unfortunately, something like this can happen every single day you are on the job, and you have to prepare yourself for the possibility,” he said. He also told the students that his studies at SHU and the expertise of staff and guest lecturers played a large part in preparing him to be effective in that high-stakes moment.

Vignola credited athletic training professors Julie Nolan, Shawn McNamara and Stephanie “Stevie” Clines (who is also the program director), as well as program supporters, including Mike Papale, founder of the nonprofit In A Heartbeat, and Leigh Goodman, a longtime ​paramedic and ​emergency medical services ​coordinator​, with having a major influence on his emergency response and preparedness training.

Nolan, one of the first people Vignola called following the lifesaving experience, said she was proud and happy that Vignola’s quick thinking and actions had made the difference. “To have the confidence and composure to quickly jump into action and holistically manage the situation in such an effective way is really unique and, in this particular case, likely the most important factor that led to a successful outcome,” Nolan said.

Sacred Heart’s MS in athletic training program continually reassesses student coursework to ensure graduates are competent and skilled clinicians, as capable at handling routine situations as they are emergency care events, Nolan said. Students experience true-to-life, mock-emergency scenarios during their lab work and through extracurricular activities. “We do this to not only promote skill acquisition, but to also promote confidence in managing these high-stress and high-stakes situations,” she said.

Papale and Goodman regularly work with students in the program, providing general information about sudden cardiac arrests and training in first aid/CPR and EKG testing.

“Emergency care requires repetition and realism, so we build in opportunities for students to practice under pressure,” Clines said, adding that the students eventually work up to a simulated scenario with local EMS so they can experience managing a full-scale emergency response. “These are the skills every athletic trainer is trained to have but hopes they’ll never need to use.”

Nolan and Clines said the outcome of this emergency reaffirmed that SHU’s athletic training program equips students with the competence and confidence needed for these moments.

“It was truly special to hear from Anthony,” Clines said. “The fact that he reached out to us after such a significant and emotional incident speaks volumes. It means a great deal to know that he thought of us and felt the connection back to where his training began.”

Vignola, who is from Cheshire, has been working at Choate since he graduated from the AT program in 2024. He earned his bachelor’s degree from SHU in 2022, majoring in health sciences with a focus on public health.

“I always wanted to have a career in sports,” he said, noting that his time playing hockey and baseball naturally steered him in that direction. He also had a longtime interest in sports medicine, specifically athletic training. A defining moment during his senior year while playing for Cheshire Youth Baseball sealed the deal.

“A teammate lost sight of a pop-up in the sun and was struck in the back of the head by the ball,” he said. “My teammate dropped to the ground and, without thinking, I ran from the pitcher’s mound out to center field to check on them. Fortunately, the player was okay. From that moment on, I knew I needed to pursue a career in athletic training.”