In early November, two OHS students were involved in a one-car accident, landing both of them in the hospital for days and weeks, respectively.

A half-removed pancreas, a removed spleen, bruised kidney, bruised lung, broken femur, broken nose, black eye, and a sprained ankle were just some of the results to come, and that was just for one of the two students.

Seniors Tiara King and Taliyah Gross, both members of the OHS basketball and track teams, were recent victims of a car accident on CR 105 in Oxford, with King sustaining the aforementioned injuries, and Gross a broken femur.

“It was me and Taliyah,” King said. “We were leaving my house and going to a store, and we tried to dodge a car and we hit a tree right up the road.”

Both were severely dazed and injured, and most memories are spotty at best, according to the two, but Gross vaguely remembers the scene right after the crash.

“It’s hard to remember,” Gross said. “After the wreck, we both got out, and we didn’t know anything was broken. I fell down to the ground and I saw my left leg was bent so far over. I felt so much pain and I was hurt so bad. I remember seeing a lot of people, but not too much after that.”

The two were then airlifted to Memphis to await many procedures, and their friends and teammates back home immediately sprang into action to care for the injured.

“At first it was mostly shock,” senior Ragan Freeze said. “I was just in shock that it happened, especially because Tiara’s my best friend. When I found out they were being airlifted, I was devastated, because she was going through a lot, and I was one of the only ones that got to go back with her. I just saw her screaming and knew how much pain she was in, and I just wanted to switch places with her.”

As the two passed the days in the hospital, they felt comfort in the fact that they weren’t in it alone.

“I can recall they said we had three waiting rooms of people wanting to see us,” Gross said. “I was grateful to see that many people. It was a joyous thing.”

However, just before departure from the hospital, the two were dealt their most devastating news yet – doctors had declared that each of their athletic careers were over. The news rang home with both of the students, but they have each since declared to prove them wrong.

“It hurt me at first, but I guess God has different plans,” King said. “I do think I’ll be back. Maybe not this year, but I think there’s a chance.”

Gross, along with King, also has plans to get back on the track again.

No matter their futures in sports, both King and Gross know that they won’t be alone going forward.

“They’ve been with me through this whole process,” King said. “A lot of people that I didn’t know showed up and helped me. Many days I was tired in the hospital and trying to give up, but my friends and family helped me get through it.”