Sad news... Courtney Hubert, last year's Gatorade girls soccer Player of the Year for Mississippi from Warren Central and the starting goalkeeper at Mississippi State this spring, died Tuesday afternoon in an automobile accident two miles west of Vicksburg on I-20. She was 19. Her 12-year-old sister, Erin, also died in the accident. The girls died at the scene when their 1997 Honda Civic ran into the rear of a large truck after another accident further up the interstate slowed down traffic, Mississippi Highway Patrol Spokesman Warren Strain said. Strain said Wednesday the highway patrol was still investigating the accident. "Courtney's death brings a cloud of sadness over our program and players, and in light of such tragic news, the game of soccer pales into insignificance," MSU soccer coach Neil McGuire said in a statement released by the school. "Courtney was a wonderful young lady who had the potential to be whatever she wanted to be in life. Soccer is what brought Courtney to Mississippi State, and she loved being a Bulldog, and was respected and loved by her teammates and coaches. She will be remembered for her ever-present smile, hard work, and most of all, her class and dedication to her goals." "Courtney was our MVP for three years," Warren Central soccer coach Holly Lane said. "She was a great athlete, a great person and wonderful leader. She was the team's motivator and there were a lot of people who looked up to her." Hubert also played softball her senior year at Warren Central. "Normally I wouldn't keep a player who wants to come out as a senior, but Courtney was special," Warren Central softball coach Lucy Young said. "She had a bubbly personality and I knew she would be an asset to our team. Even though she played on the junior varsity as a senior, she worked hard. "I also watched her grow up playing soccer (Young used to coach soccer at Warren Central) and she was a tremendous athlete." Hubert was more than an athlete, said Young. "Courtney was the whole package," Young said. "She was a good student, well liked by her teachers and peers and involved in all sorts of things around school." Visitation for Courtney and Erin Hubert is scheduled for today from 5-8 p.m. at Fisher Funeral Home in Vicksburg with the funeral Friday at 11 a.m. at the Vicksburg Convention Center. "The family wanted to move the funeral to the convention center because they are expecting a bigger crowd than our chapel could hold," Fisher Funeral Home director Billy Dumas said.
that's my hometown and she apparently played for the same club as me (I'm several years older, she must have just been starting when I was finishing high school). I don't think I knew Courtney, but I recognize several of the names of her pallbearers. very sad news.