Four people, including former Louisville volleyball star, killed in crash near St. Louis

Four Kentucky residents, including a former University of Louisville volleyball star, were killed in a three-vehicle crash Friday morning outside St. Louis, authorities said.

Carrie McCaw, 44, Kacey McCaw, 12, Lesley Drury Prather, 44, and Rhyan Prather, 12, all of Louisville, died after a pickup truck crossed a median and struck their minivan in Lake Saint Louis, WLKY reported.

According to Missouri Highway Patrol Trooper Dallas Thompson, the pickup truck was towing a generator when the driver lost control of the vehicle and crashed through a median barrier, WDRB reported. The pickup slammed into the minivan, which then hit an SUV, Thompson said.

The crash occurred at 10:38 a.m. on Interstate 64 as the McCaws and Prathers were headed to a volleyball tournament in Kansas City, The Courier-Journal reported.

Lesley Prather was a former Louisville firefighter who lettered in volleyball at the University of Louisville from lettered from 1998 to 2001, according to the school’s website. She led Louisville to three conference championships, four NCAA appearances and a Sweet Sixteen appearance. She was named All-Conference USA twice and was named to the AVCA All-Region team, according to the website.

Carrie McCaw was a well-known coach, the Courier-Journal reported. Their daughters were volleyball players.

The Rev. Shayne Duvall, pastor at St. Raphael Catholic Church, said he knew the McCaw family well.

“They were always smiling. They were always together. You couldn’t separate them,” Duvall told WHAS.

Duvall said he also knew Lesley Prather, as they worked at the University of Louisville together.

“She was just a barrel of laughs. Leslie and Carrie both were just a beam of light," Duvall told WHAS. “They were always, always smiling.”

Assumption High School, where Carrie McCaw graduated from in 1994, paid tribute on Facebook.

Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer paid tribute to the families on his Twitter account.

“Holding them in our hearts today,” Fischer tweeted.

The volleyball tournament went on as scheduled Saturday, and a moment of silence was observed, WDRB reported. Ron Kordes, president and director of the Kentucky Indiana Volleyball Association — said his mind was focused on returning to Louisville.

“You know, it’s one of those things you try to carry on and all of a sudden, you try to get distracted and forget about it, but it comes right back at you constantly,” Kordes told the television station.

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