EMMETT TOWNSHIP, MI (WNWN/WTVB) – A Trine University basketball player from Detroit was killed on Wednesday night in a crash on westbound I-94 near the 104 mile marker. Trine University confirmed on Thursday that 22-year-old Fred Garland lost his life in the crash.
Garland was a Trine University student and a member of last season’s NCAA Division Three men’s basketball national championship team. He was majoring in sport management at Trine.
Michigan State Police at Marshall say the crash was reported just after 10:00 p.m.. Garland was pronounced dead at the scene. He was the lone occupant of the vehicle. State Police say he was not wearing a seatbelt.
Trine Men’s Basketball Coach Brooks Miller says, “Fred had an incredible work ethic on and off the court, and that propelled him to success as a person, student and basketball player. His winning smile brightened everyone’s day whenever he was around. There is a huge hole in the heart of Thunder basketball today. We are thinking of and praying for the whole Garland family.”
Garland was a First Team all-conference player in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association last season, the second season he had been named to an All-MIAA team.
University President Doctor Earl D. Brooks II said, “It is unspeakably tragic when this happens to someone in the prime of life. My heart goes out to Fred’s family, to the Thunder men’s basketball team and coaching staff and to everyone here on Trine’s campus who knew and cared for Fred. The thoughts and prayers of the entire university go out to each one who was impacted, but especially to Fred’s family during this time.”
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