COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State’s men’s soccer coach says one of his players drowned while swimming with some of his teammates at a lake outside Columbus.
Nineteen-year-old Fikayo Idowu died Friday. He was from Madison, Mississippi, and had been on the Ohio State soccer team since 2014.
He was a defender and majoring in health and rehabilitation sciences, He wanted to attend medical school. He also was a two-time Ohio State scholar-athlete award winner.
The OSU Department of Athletics released a statement about the player’s death, CBS affiliate WBNS reported.
“We learned last night of the tragic death of Fikayo Idowu, an outstanding young man who touched the lives of so many,” the statement read. “Fikayo was a part of the men’s soccer program the last two years and was loved by his teammates and coaches. His family and loved ones are in our hearts and in our prayers during this time of grief.”
Soccer coach John Bluem tells The Columbus Dispatch that the drowning happened at Apple Valley Lake in Knox County, about 40 miles northeast of the campus.
Friends and teammates gathered Saturday night to remember Idowu at the university’s soccer stadium.
The official fan page for the Ohio State Buckeyes also posted a statement to Facebook:
