ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, January 30, 1996 TAG: 9601300075
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DANIEL UTHMAN STAFF WRITER
David Charles Thompson, a lacrosse player at Washington and Lee University, died Sunday of severe head trauma following a single-car crash in Rockbridge County. He was 22 years old.
Thompson is survived by his mother, Elizabeth P. Thompson of Hunt Valley, Md.; his father, David C. Thompson of Baltimore, Md.; and a brother, James S. Thompson of Hunt Valley, Md.
Monday was Washington and Lee's first day of men's lacrosse practice.
``Practice is what David loved the most,'' said Jim Stagnitta, the Generals' coach. ``He was the most resilient kid I ever had.
``His impact, more obvious now than ever, went beyond the playing field. People here just loved him.''
A native of Baltimore, Thompson was a three-time letter-winner on the Generals' lacrosse team as a midfielder. Before coming to Lexington, he graduated from the St.Paul's School for Boys, where he played on a two-time Maryland state championship team.
A senior majoring in history, Thompson received the Washington and Lee scholar/athlete award in the fall for his 3.5 grade-point average.
Thompson was traveling north toward Lexington at 2:30 a.m. Sunday on Virginia 251, six-tenths of a mile north of Virginia 644, when his car ran off the right side of the road and into a field, where it hit a tree. Thompson was ejected from the car and suffered severe head injuries.
He was transported to Stonewall Jackson Memorial Hospital, where he was treated for two hours. Thompson then was flown via helicopter to Roanoke Memorial Hospital, where he died at approximately 6:15 a.m.
The funeral will be held at 1 p.m. Friday at Old St. Paul's Church in Baltimore. A campus memorial service will be held at a later date.
LENGTH: Short : 40 lines KEYWORDS: FATALITIESby CNB