Pregnant lacrosse coach, driver die in team bus crash

USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Pregnant coach, driver die in Pa. bus crash A road trip by a college women's lacrosse team ended in tragedy when the team bus veered off the Pennsylvania Turnpike, crashed into a tree, killing a pregnant coach, her unborn child, and the driver, authorities said. (March 16)

The driver and one passenger were killed

The cause of the crash is still unclear

Environmental officials are investigating diesel spill

A pregnant coach for a women's lacrosse team and a bus driver died Saturday morning when a charter bus crashed near Carlisle, Pa.

The Seton Hill University team was on its way to an NCAA-II match in Millersville University, Pa., when the crash happened at about 9 a.m., according to school spokeswoman Kary Coleman.

The school posted a statement to its website Saturday afternoon mourning the death of head coach Kristina Quigley and her unborn son. Quigley, survived by her husband, Glenn Quigley, and young son Gavin, had just begun her second season at the school.

The bus driver died at the scene, according to Bill Capone, spokesman for the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

Quigley and two others were flown by helicopter to Penn State Hershey Medical Center in Hershey, Pa., according to hospital spokesman Danielle Ran. Quigley died after arriving, Ran said.

Seton Hill, not to be confused with Seton Hall University in New Jersey, is a small Catholic school of 2,500 in Greensburg, Pa., east of Pittsburgh.

The accident in central Pennsylvania marked the third crash involving a college sports team since Feb. 27.

Nineteen others with minor injuries were taken to Carlisle Regional Medical Center, Harrisburg Hospital and Holy Spirit Hospital in Camp Hill, Pa., according to a Seton Hill statement.

The bus reportedly went off the road and crashed into a tree, according to Pennsylvania Turnpike spokeswoman Renee Colborn.

The driver and 22 passengers were on board, according to Capone of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Authorities were still trying to figure out what happened, he said.

"This occurred on probably the straightest stretch of turnpike anywhere in our system," Capone said. "There were no other vehicles involved. The suspicion is that something happened to the driver — either he dozed off or there was a medical emergency."

Photos from the scene show the bus upright on the side of the road, part of its left side shorn off, though it's not clear whether that was from impact or emergency workers attempting to reach people inside the bus. At least one person was wheeled away in a stretcher.

State police were investigating the crash, said Megan Silverstram of the Cumberland County public safety department, and state environmental officials were also sent to the scene because of a diesel fuel spill from the bus.

The bus operator, Mlaker Charter & Tours, of Davidsville, Pa., sent investigators to the scene, company dispatcher Kelly Hay said. The company had no information yet from the investigators and could not comment, she said.

On Tuesday, a bus carrying 34 lacrosse players, three coaches and a driver from St. Michael's College in Colchester, Vt., was hit by a sports car that spun out of control on a wet highway in Lifton Park, N.Y. A passenger in the car died, four players suffered minor injuries and the driver suffered critical injuries. The team was on its way to a game in Westchester County, N.Y.

On Feb. 27, a bus carrying the women's basketball team from the University of Maine ran off a highway north of Boston, seriously injuring the driver, leaving a player with a broken hand and the coach with minor facial cuts. The bus crossed a median when, police believe, the driver had a medical episode.

Seton Hill said on its website that it would hold a Mass for Quigley and the bus driver at 7 p.m. Sunday at Saint Joseph Chapel on campus.

Quigley led the team to 11 victories in its first season. She came to Seton Hill from Erskine College in Due West, S.C.

Seton Hill says it used texts, e-mails and phone calls to notify students about the crash. The associate dean of students was headed to the scene of the crash to help students and their families.

The school said in its statement that counseling would be available for students and members of the university community.

Contributing: Tom O'Toole, USA TODAY; the Associated Press