BLACKSBURG, Va. – Virginia Tech officials confirmed late Wednesday night that the body of junior Darren Hankins was pulled from a Montgomery County quarry around 7:30 that night.
Hankins was a junior from Chesapeake and was swimming with friends, according to WDBJ in Roanoke.
He was pronounced dead at the scene. He was 21 years old.
“Darren Hankins was very special to our wrestling program and our entire athletic department,” head coach Kevin Dresser said. “As a father and as his coach, this is something that we would hope no family would have to go through. Our hearts and prayers go out to the Hankins family at this time. Darren was a wonderful young man. Virginia Tech Wrestling was a better place because of Darren Hankins.”
“The Virginia Tech Athletics family suffered a great tragedy this evening,” Athletic Director Whit Babcock said in a statement. “Darren was a wonderful representative of the wrestling team and of this university. Our hearts go out to his family, our Virginia Tech family, and his countless friends during this difficult time.”
Hankins, a philosophy major, competed on the varsity squad for two seasons, but sat out the 2013-14 season due to injury.
