A college athlete from Tennessee was killed and two of his teammates were injured when they were hit by a driver while running in Virginia on Thursday night, school officials said.
Milligan University sophomore Eli Cramer, a member of the Christian school’s track and field team, died in the accident at an intersection in Lightfoot, Virginia, shortly after 6 p.m., according to reports and the university.
Seniors Alex Mortimer and Eli Baldy were also injured in the incident, which the school said happened on the eve of a track meet in the area.
Baldy, a mechanical engineering student, was treated and discharged from Sentara Williamsburg Regional Medical Center.
Mortimer has had surgery and is in stable condition. According to a video on the university’s Facebook page, he said he suffered a broken leg and a dislocated shoulder.
“I want to exhort and thank you all for praying for me, for the Milligan team, and for the university and institution,” Mortimer, a department major, said from his hospital bed. “I want to say that moments like this make you realize what is important in your life and what is not.”
According to WTKR, the victims were among the five members of the team who were jogging at the time of the fatal accident.
Alex Mortimer (left) and Eli Baldy were injured in the tragic incident. Milligan University
The driver initially fled the scene of the crime, but was arrested a short time later after he got into a median.
“We ask for your prayers at this difficult time, especially for the Cramer family,” the university wrote.
Milligan University is a private Christian school near Johnson City, Tennessee. About 1,300 students are currently enrolled in the classes, according to the school’s website.
The university stopped teaching on Friday after the tragedy.