UK hockey player dies after car wreck

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By Brian Shlonsky

Taylor Vit, a senior forward on UK’s men’s hockey team, died Monday afternoon after a car wreck Sunday.

Police and the Lexington Fire Department responded at approximately 4:55 p.m. to Newtown Pike near 4th Street in reference to an injury collision between Vit’s 2007 black Nissan X-Tera and a unit 2 Lextran bus, a press release from Lexington Police said.

Jill Barnett, LexTran spokeswoman, said the bus was stopped at a marked bus stop sign directly across from Eastern State Hospital to pick up passengers, and the stop is in a non-travel lane.

Police said Vit’s SUV struck the bus in the rear, and seven of the bus’ 15 passengers were transported to area hospitals for minor injuries. The driver of the bus, Dedri Uka, 41, was not injured.

Police  also said that Vit, 22, was not wearing his seat belt, and was traveling alone.

“It’s terribly, terribly unfortunate,” Barnett said.

The Collision Reconstruction Unit is investigating the wreck. Drugs and alcohol are not suspected to be a cause.

Vit was from Villanova, Pa., and he graduated high school from the Millbrook School, a co-ed college preparatory school, located in Millbrook, N.Y., according to the school’s website.

Before attending UK, he played ice hockey for Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York, US College Hockey Online said.

-staff writer Katie Perkowski contributed to this report