Thursday Dickinson Softball Update

((HT: KFYR-TV/Bismarck Tribune))

Teammates and family members threw roses and softballs Wednesday into the farm pond where three North Dakota college softball players were found dead inside their sunken sport utility vehicle.

Senior softball player Jody Lantz of St. Walburg, Saskatchewan, said she and fellow students came to the pond Wednesday "to understand it a little more, wrap our heads around it.''

"It's going to be weird going onto the field and knowing that they're never going to be there,'' Lantz said.

Stark County Sheriff Clarence Tuhy said the women's SUV was found resting on its wheels Tuesday in about 10 feet of water with the doors and windows closed.

"When you're not familiar with an area like that it would have been very easy to drive into'' the pond, Tuhy said.

The sheriff said the students were on private property. He stopped short of saying they were trespassing.

Dickinson State University President Richard McCallum said classes were canceled Wednesday and a memorial service was scheduled on the 2,700-student campus Thursday. The Dickinson State staff distributed ribbons in school colors - dark blue and silver - in memory of the three students.

Here's KFYR-TV's coverage from Retha Colclasure on site with the team...

Dickinson State Softballers Found Dead

((HT: KFYR-TV/Bismarck, ESPN))

Police say three missing North Dakota college softball players have been found dead in their vehicle, which was pulled from a pond northwest of Dickinson.

Police Lt. Rod Banyai said Tuesday night that police are "still investigating" the cause of the deaths.

Authorities have been searching since Sunday night for Kyrstin Gemar, 22, of San Diego; Afton Williamson, 20, of Lake Elsinore, Calif.; and Ashley Neufeld, 21, of Brandon, Manitoba.

The Dickinson State University students were said to be in a white 1997 Jeep Cherokee with California plates when they were last heard from in calls made to two friends on cell phones before the lines went dead.

Here's how the news broke on NBC5
Andrew Keller was on the telephone with the studio...


Police described the first as a "very scratchy" call for help in which one of the women said they were near a lake and water.

Students at Dickinson State, where the women were stars on the school's softball team, led a prayer service Monday night that drew more than 300 people. Another service was scheduled at the 2,700-student school for Tuesday night.

"We are very deeply saddened by this turn of events and we are going to mobilize all of our resources to work with the families and the students on campus," Dickinson State spokeswoman Constance Walter said. "They will be greatly missed by their teammates and others."

The college lists Gemar as a senior business major who played third base on the softball team. Neufeld is a senior outfielder who was working on a degree in psychology, and Williamson, a junior, was a pitcher majoring in psychology with a minor in coaching.

Gov. John Hoeven issued a statement extending sympathy to the families and appreciation to those who participated in the search, "which ended in a way we all prayed it wouldn't."

Gemar's father spoke to KFYR after a Tuesday morning news conference...