Evan Murray was the Blue Streaks' Superman. He was also family.
Several cards were placed among the flowers at a memorial at Warren Hills’ football stadium – one branded with a large Superman emblem.
It was clear on Saturday morning that Evan Murray was a superhero, and more, to the Warren County community.
The high school senior died on Friday night after being injured during a home football game against Summit.
Faculty, students, friends and family gathered at Warren Hills to mourn and remember the teenager who’d touched so many people.
“Everyone honored him, and they should because he deserves it,” said Anthony Veneziano, a classmate of Murray, as he left the stadium. “They should continue to honor him forever.”
The specific circumstances of Murray’s death weren’t revealed by school district administrators on Saturday. The Blue Streaks community, in the meantime, is grieving.
“It was complete shock,” said Veneziano, who attended Friday night’s game and was on the basketball and baseball teams with Murray. “He’s one of the greatest kids in this whole community. It’s unbelievable. I still don’t believe it.”
Tragedy at Warren Hills: Full coverage of Evan Murray's death
Murray was a three-sport performer, gifted with versatile athleticism. It was his character, however, that drew peers toward the senior.
“There’s a lot of things that I’m going to remember about Evan, mostly his leadership and the young gentleman that he was,” baseball coach Mike Quinto said, “not just an athlete, but the person he was.”
“He was one of the best leaders,” said Veneziano, who noted that Murray was honest and levelheaded. “He believed in us. He got the job done in all three sports.”
The teenager was also dedicated, filling his free time with football, basketball or baseball, according Quinto.
“That’s just the way he was, and he would lead others to do the same, and that’s why we love him,” he said.
Quinto, who also coaches boys soccer at the school, said the Warren Hills students are devastated. It’s another blow to a community that has been hard-hit by tragedy of late.
Colin Matthew Cudworth Jr., a 17-year-old Warren Hills student, died in an auto accident in July. Kinsey Fredericks-Bishow, a 2012 Warren Hills graduate, died after contracting bacterial meningitis while studying abroad in Paris over the summer.
“The (students) that I met with here today are having a tough time,” Quinto said. “The baseball players that I spoke with, I just told them to please stick together; that we’ll get through this. We’ve dealt with some tragedy throughout the last year and we’ll get through this one, too.”
“They lost a leader and they lost somebody that … a lot of kids look up to, and a lot of staff and teachers look up to,” Quinto said.
The Blue Streaks have lost their Superman, but more importantly, they’ve lost part of their family.
“He was a brother to us,” Veneziano said. “We’re all brothers. We’re going to be brothers forever.”
Kyle Craig may be reached at kcraig@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KyleCraigSports.