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By Fred Guarino

The Lowndes Signal

A two-vehicle accident in Hayneville Thursday afternoon left four Lowndes Academy football players injured, one critically, and led the Alabama Independent School Association (AISA) to cancel Friday’s Lowndes Academy home football game against Macon-East.
According to Hayneville Assistant Police Chief Earl Marsh Jr., who worked the accident, the most seriously injured of the four football players was air lifted to Children’s Hospital in Birmingham.
Marsh said the accident occurred at about 4:45 p.m. Thursday at the intersection of Lafayette and Pine Street in Hayneville when a delivery vehicle ran a stop sign and struck the vehicle carrying the four teenagers, who he said “had the right-of-way.”
He said the teens were returning to the Lowndes Academy football field for practice when the accident occurred.
According to Marsh, a DHL delivery vehicle “T-boned” the vehicle driven by the teenagers “causing causing two of the young men to be ejected.”
Marsh said two of the teens were treated and released at Baptist South in Montgomery with minor injuries, a third was being held at Baptist South for observation, and the teen who sustained the most serious injury was air lifted to Children’s Hospital in Birmingham.
He said one of the injured was transported by ambulance and two were transported to the hospital by private vehicle.
While Marsh said he could not release the names of those involved in the accident at this time, he said the driver of the vehicle carrying the football players was 18 with the passengers being ages 15,14 and 13.
He said the driver of the delivery vehicle was not injured.
Lowndes Academy head football coach Bob Taylor identified Trevor Johnson as being the injured football player in critical condition at Children’s Hospital with the most severe injuries from the accident.
“He said, “We just need to continue to lift up prayers and continue the churches to do their prayers because he is still very critical with a head injury.”
He said Christian Barkley and Wesley Barber have been released. He could not name the fourth football player injured at this time.
The Alabama Independent School Association posted on its facebook page Thursday night, “Please join us in prayer for the four student-athletes from Lowndes Academy injured in a car accident this afternoon and we also ask that you keep the family and friends of these young men in your prayers as well.”
It also announced that the Lowndes v Macon-East football game scheduled for Friday, Aug 19 was canceled.
Taylor said that game will not be made up.