A shooting near a school in Hayward late Thursday sent a 17-year-old boy to the hospital and struck fear in the students and parents who were nearby.
At about 6:15 p.m., Hayward police received a report of a shooting at Sorensdale Park, at 275 Goodwin St., police said. When officers arrived, they found a male suffering from a single gunshot wound near the park's restrooms.
One woman said her son was at football practice at adjacent Tennyson High School and heard the shot ring out. The school's cheerleading squad also was practicing, she said.
"We heard a gunshot and looked; girls were screaming," parent Adelaida Caballero said.
Her son Nolan was just getting ready to take the field for Pop Warner football practice.
"We were practicing and the coaches just told us to get on the ground, hide," Nolan said.
Caballero said there were about 30 kids in the park at the time.
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The kids were talking about how they didn't want to go to practice any more because they're scared, she said.
The victim was taken to Eden Hospital and was in stable condition, police said.
Several witnesses reported seeing three males running away from the bathroom area just after hearing the shot, police said.
There doesn't appear to be any safety concerns for the surrounding community, police said.
The football coaches sent a letter to parents later Thursday saying practice would be suspended for a week, and when it resumes, it will be on a different field.
Anyone with information about the shooting should contact police through the dispatch center at 510-293-7000.
