Four members of the national champion Gustavus Adolphus College women’s hockey team were injured, one fatally, in a two-vehicle collision at an intersection in west-central Minnesota, officials said.
The crash occurred about 12:40 p.m. Sunday about 20 miles west of Willmar on Hwy. 40 at the intersection with Hwy. 29 in Grace Township, the State Patrol said.
The women’s SUV was heading east on Hwy. 40 and collided with the minivan as it headed south, the patrol said.
One of the drivers failed to obey a stop sign, but the patrol did not specify which one.
All four women were taken by emergency responders to Montevideo Hospital. Jori Lynn Jones, 19, of Little Canada, did not survive her injuries, the patrol said.
The SUV occupants who suffered noncritical injuries, were identified by the patrol as driver Gianna K. Gasparini, 19, of Lakeville; Kayla M. Bluhm, 20, of Chisago City; and Lily K. Mortenson, 19, of Champlin.
All four women were freshmen on the Gustavus Adolphus hockey team, which won the NCAA Division III championship in March 2023.
Before joining Gustavus Adolphus, Jones played high school hockey for Roseville, Gasparini for Lakeville North, Mortenson for Benilde-St. Margaret and Bluhm for Chisago Lakes.
Also surviving the collision was the minivan’s driver, Brandi K. Rasmussen, 28, of Benson, Minn.