The Cornerstone University community is mourning the loss of Joshua Darst, a senior baseball player who died Monday night in a tragic accident while interning at the Cincinnati Open.
Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images
Police say Darst, 21, fell from a motorized cart near the loading dock area of the Lindner Family Tennis Center around 11 p.m. He was rushed to West Chester Hospital but did not survive his injuries. The accident remains under investigation.
Darst, a Grand Rapids, Michigan native, was on a baseball scholarship at Cornerstone, a private Christian university. His longtime pastor, Brian McManus of Tri-County Baptist Church in West Chester, remembered him as an “incredible young man” whose kindness left a mark on everyone he met, per WLWT and the New York Post.
“I met Josh when we first came here about 14 and a half years ago. He came up and stuck his little hand out — he was about seven years old — and introduced himself,” McManus said. “He was the very first person I ever baptized here.”
McManus added that Darst had an “empathetic streak a mile wide,” recalling how even during his short time working at the Cincinnati Open, he made a profound impact on colleagues. “It was a heartbreak — it’s been a heartbreak to everybody in our church family,” McManus said.
Cornerstone University released a statement on Facebook expressing grief over the loss. “Our community is deeply saddened by the loss of Joshua Darst, a senior and cherished member of our baseball team,” the university wrote. The school plans to honor him during its first chapel service of the academic year.
Darst’s parents also intend to establish a baseball scholarship in their son’s name at Cornerstone.
The Cincinnati Open offered condolences as well, saying, “This loss is deeply felt by our entire organization. Our hearts, thoughts and deepest sympathies are with his family, friends and all who knew and loved him.”
Darst was preparing to begin his senior year. Instead, his teammates, family, and friends are left to remember a young man known for his faith, his compassion, and his love of baseball.