Recruit severely hurt in July crash inks Iowa LOI

NICKERSON, Kan. -- Just implicit 4 months aft she was severely injured and her begetter was killed aft being struck by a car, Ava Jones signed a nationalist missive of intent for the Iowa women's hoops squad Wednesday.

Jones, 17, suffered a traumatic encephalon injury, torn ligaments successful some knees and a enarthrosis wounded erstwhile an impaired operator deed her and her household connected a Louisville sidewalk connected July 5, portion determination for an AAU tournament. Her father, Trey Jones, died a fewer days aboriginal and her mother, Amy Jones, suffered a encephalon wounded and 21 breached bones. Her younger brother, Creek, escaped superior injury.

The driver, Michael Hurley, was indicted by a expansive assemblage successful August and charged with 1 number of murder, 2 counts of first-degree assault, 1 number of battle successful the 4th grade and 1 number of operating a centrifugal conveyance nether the influence. According to the constabulary report, Hurley said helium had taken the opioid Hydrocodone earlier driving.

Jones, a 6-foot-2 guardant who was ranked 83rd by ESPN HoopGurlz for the Class of 2023, primitively committed to Arizona State but past decommitted successful March aft manager Charli Turner Thorne retired. Jones reopened her recruiting and announced her committedness to Iowa connected July 3, 2 days earlier the crash.

Both Jones and her parent had extended infirmary stays successful Louisville. Jones returned to Nickerson High successful October for her elder year. In mean circumstances, she would person played volleyball this fall, and her past play of precocious schoolhouse hoops would commencement adjacent week.

She said Wednesday's signing has been thing to look guardant to with the difficulties she and her household person faced.

"It felt truly bully to person signed; it really feels much real," Jones said. "I privation to play hoops again. Hopefully, I'll beryllium capable to, but I don't know. But adjacent if I'm not capable to, I volition inactive beryllium astir the team. I emotion the Iowa squad and the coaches.

"The enactment I've gotten from everyone has fixed maine adjacent much momentum to get better. I consciousness similar my dada was with maine today, due to the fact that this was his dream, too. This was our extremity together."

Jones is capable to walk, and her code has greatly improved arsenic she has worked with a therapist. Over the adjacent respective months, she volition person country connected some knees and connected her shoulder.

Amy Jones has undergone aggregate surgeries and is capable to locomotion with the assistance of a walker.

The Jones' extended family, friends, teammates, coaches, students and teachers were astatine the Nickerson High cafeteria for the signing. Trey Jones had been a teacher and a way manager astatine the school.

"The magnitude of radical who came retired to enactment Ava is truthful special, arsenic is everything the assemblage has done for us," said Amy Jones, who can't thrust yet but has been capable to instrumentality to enactment remotely arsenic adjunct superintendent successful the Nickerson schoolhouse district. "It's bully to spot her blessed and fulfilling a dream. She's been determination for me, due to the fact that erstwhile I commencement getting down, she volition say, 'OK, Mom, we tin bash this. We're gonna support going.' She is conscionable truthful determined and driven."

Iowa adjunct manager Jan Jensen said that determination was nary hesitation from the assemblage oregon caput manager Lisa Bluder that Jones' assistance would beryllium honored.

"Coach Bluder said, 'She's a Hawk, she's ours, she's family. She's going to beryllium with us,'" Jensen said by telephone Wednesday.

"Once she is here, we'll person her doing each portion of the squad worldly that she tin perchance do. When we're learning the offense, she'll beryllium learning it. We privation her to beryllium included successful everything."

Jensen said that she has been amazed astatine Jones' progress

"Ava and I speech each mates days," Jensen said. "As her encephalon started to heal, it was a precise bully thing, but besides a hard happening erstwhile she began to afloat recognize the nonaccomplishment of her father. I knew determination would beryllium this large void that Trey wasn't determination today. But successful talking with her, she knew this infinitesimal was thing they had each been moving for.

"I would not stake against her aft what that family's been through, with that resoluteness they person shown. There person been lumps successful our throats contiguous with this signing; we're beyond thrilled."

On Nov. 17, the No. 4 Hawkeyes volition play Nov. 17 astatine Kansas State successful Manhattan, which is astir a two-hour thrust from Nickerson. Jones plans to beryllium determination to watch.

"I could springiness up, but I'm truly conscionable not that benignant of person," Jones said. "And my dada was not that way, either. I don't cognize immoderate different mode but to support going. So possibly it's conscionable successful my DNA."