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Stanford women's soccer captain found dead in residence hall
The captain of Stanford University's women's soccer team Katie Meyer was found dead in a campus residence, the university said Wednesday.
STANFORD, Calif. - The captain of Stanford University's women's soccer team, Katie Meyer, was found dead in a campus residence, prompting an outpouring of grief at the university.
Stanford police are not releasing Meyer's cause of death at this time, but they say there is no safety threat to those on campus.
A candlelight vigil was held at Stanford Wednesday evening and thousands filled Maloney Field, the home of Stanford Soccer, for the vigil, standing silently to remember Meyer.
Meyer, 22, was a senior majoring in International Relations, resident assistant, and team captain and goalkeeper on the women’s soccer team, the university said.
"Katie was extraordinarily committed to everything and everyone in her world," Stanford said in a statement. "Her friends describe her as a larger-than-life team player in all her pursuits, from choosing an academic discipline she said 'changed my perspective on the world and the very important challenges that we need to work together to overcome' to the passion she brought to the Cardinal women’s soccer program and to women’s sports in general."
"Katie was a bright shining light for so many on the field and in our community," the university wrote.
Meyer's sister, Samantha, posted a message on her Instagram stories Wednesday, saying, "There are no words. Thank you for all the kindness extended to my family. I'm not ready to post anything big right yet. We are broken-hearted and love Kat so much."
Samantha shared a link to a GoFundMe page collecting donations for a memorial fund for Meyer.
Meyer's fierce competitiveness helped Stanford win its third NCAA women's soccer championship in 2019.
The team tweeted "We love you, Katie," Tuesday after confirmation of her passing.
"I saw her as goalkeeper on the team and I saw how passionate she is about soccer and how big a support she is for everybody on her team.," said Luise Bachmann, a Stanford sophomore on the rowing team.
"A lot of just blank white faces, a lot of shock," said Stanford sophomore Kieran Wallace. "I’ve seen an unbelievable amount of support among student athletes. We got the chance just to write little notes to our suite mates who are on the team with her, and just showed our support for them and that we’re thinking about them."
Stanford University says it is providing support resources for students on-campus.