Hampton, Tenn. — Two university cyclists lost their lives and seven teammates were hurt Wednesday after a vehicle struck their group during a morning training ride in northeastern Tennessee, according to state officials.
The riders were part of Milligan University’s cycling team. The private Christian school, which enrolls roughly 1,200 students, said 11 team members were riding together near Hampton — about 11 miles from campus in the Appalachian foothills — when the crash occurred.
Authorities identified the driver as a 69-year-old man from North Carolina. District Attorney Steve Finney said he has been charged with two counts of reckless vehicular homicide and five counts of aggravated assault by vehicle involving recklessness.
University President Stephen Waers confirmed that sophomores Haylan Engdahl of Winthrop Harbor, Illinois, and Brayden Rogers of Huntsville, Alabama, died in the crash. The remaining injured athletes were taken to Johnson City Medical Center.
In a video message to the campus community, Waers called on students to support one another through what he described as burdens too heavy for any one person to bear alone, encouraging prayer for the injured riders.
As of Wednesday evening, hospital trauma director Dr. Bracken Burns reported four students in critical condition, two in stable condition still hospitalized, and one already discharged.
The crash comes months after Milligan’s men’s cycling team captured a team time trial national title at the USA Cycling Collegiate Road Nationals in Wisconsin earlier this year.
The Tennessee Highway Patrol, led by Maj. Roy Brown, continues to investigate. Officials noted the posted speed limit on the stretch of Highway 19 where the collision happened is 50 mph.