Ava Jones, an Iowa basketball player, retires owing to injuries sustained in a vehicle accident that claimed her father’s life.
The forward said she will no longer be a member of the team but will be permitted to continue on scholarship in a statement issued by the Hawkeyes.
Jones’s complete quote:
“Let me begin by expressing my gratitude for being a part of the Iowa women’s basketball program. Being a part of the adventure last season was truly a blessing.
I regret to inform you that I will be resigning from collegiate basketball due to health concerns. Since the accident, my teammates, coaches, doctors, and trainers have all been incredible. I will continue to be a Hawkeye for eternity, receive a top-notch education, and be on scholarship even though I will no longer be playing women’s basketball.
“I’d like to thank my family for the never-ending support, and I am excited for the next chapter of my life.”
Although Jones was a four-star recruit and ranked No. 84 in the Class of 2023 by ESPN, her career was ruined before she even had the chance to play for Iowa.
Jones, her brother, and her parents were all hit on July 5, 2022, in Louisville, by a driver who was supposedly intoxicated and had pulled onto the sidewalk. According to ESPN, the impact killed her father, Trey, and left her mother, Amy, with 21 broken bones and a brain injury. Her younger sibling had very modest medical attention.
Jones is unlikely to ever play basketball again due to her reported traumatic brain injury, broken ligaments in both knees, and a shoulder injury. It was only two days ago that she had committed to play at Iowa.
Doctors and Lisa Bluder, the Iowa head coach at the time, were amazed that she was walking at all after her injuries that October.
According to Bluder, “I can’t believe she was walking,” The Cedar Rapids Gazette said. “I’ve never seen someone come in here with four torn ligaments in a knee and not be crying,” the doctor remarked.
A grand jury is said to have indicted Michael Hurley, the driver in question, on one count of murder, two charges of first-degree assault, one count of fourth-degree assault, and one count of driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated. As to the police report, he acknowledged taking hydrocodone before operating a vehicle.