HANOVER, Ind. — A Hanover College student-athlete unexpectedly died this week.
Lexi Riggles, a senior on the Hanover women’s basketball team, died Sunday.
“I think the word I’ve used a lot is ‘numb,'” said John Jones, the head coach of the women’s basketball team. “There’s not a manual for this, obviously. They don’t train you in school on how to deal with this. I’ve been coaching since 1991. This is the first tragic accident that’s been this close to a team that I’ve dealt with. I’m just trying to be strong for the players, the (Riggles) family, and my family as well, as they were all close to Lexi.”
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“Everybody loved her,” Jones said. “She was there for everybody else. She wanted to make sure that she was there if somebody needed something at any time of day or night.”
Riggles was from Danville, Indiana, and was a 2018 graduate of Danville High School, and a member of their basketball team. The Danville student section tweeted this week that they will honor Riggles at their football game this Friday night by having a “hippie night” theme.
“I laughed so hard at that,” Jones said. “She was a free spirit, she loved her different types of music, she had an artistic touch. So, I think that’s a great way to honor her on Friday night.”
Jones said Riggles loved spending time in the gym, and dedicated her life to the court. Riggles, a business and communications major, was also involved in campus organizations and was an active member of Chi Omega sorority.
“The beautiful thing about Hanover is that we’re a small community and we’re a family community,” Jones said. “I think when something like this happens, that’s what makes it so hard and so difficult, because everybody knows Lexi Riggles here at Hanover.”
He said other athletic teams at Hanover are planning to honor Riggles, like the football team putting stickers on their helmets this weekend. Jones said the women’s basketball team plans on honoring her throughout this entire season, and believes other teams in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference will as well.
Visitation and the funeral for Lexi Riggles will be held at Danville High School on Sunday afternoon.
A cause of death has not been announced.
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