An interesting start to the HBCU wrestling season. The Delaware State University women’s wrestling team’s inaugural season already has its most unforgettable moment. And it didn’t happen on the mat. In the early morning hours of November 3, the Lady Hornets became real-life heroes when they stopped to rescue a woman stranded in a disabled vehicle on Interstate 95.
HBCU Athletes Answer the Call
Returning from their first-ever competition at the East Stroudsburg University Open in Pennsylvania around 2 a.m. Most of the 13 Delaware State wrestlers and Head Coach Kenya “Chris” Sloan were asleep in their 15-passenger van when Assistant Coach Brock Budesheim spotted a BMW stopped sideways across two lanes near the Del. 1 exit.
While countless motorists passed by, Budesheim made the split-second decision to stop.
“We were all asleep, and Brock could have gone past the disabled car like everyone else,” Coach Sloan was quoted on the Delaware State University Website.
Delaware State Wrestlers Provide Critical Care
The vehicle’s front end and rear window were smashed after the driver apparently fell asleep at the wheel while driving home to Delaware from a New York City airport. Her car struck the median and spun across the highway.
The HBCU wrestling team sprang into action immediately. Athletic Trainer Roger Pfister, who also serves as a volunteer firefighter, joined the coaches in assessing the situation while the Delaware State wrestlers provided comfort and care.
Team Captain Sumayyah Kemp and Coach Sloan stayed with the woman, keeping her warm and calm until emergency services arrived.
“If someone had hit her car while she was in it, I don’t think she would have survived,” Coach Sloan said.
Divine Timing for Delaware State’s HBCU Heroes
The coaches believe providence played a role in their life-saving intervention. A 15-hour tournament and a failed food order forced a late-night Wawa stop. Putting them at that exact stretch of I-95 at the perfect time.
Had dinner been delivered as planned, the Delaware State HBCU team would have already passed the crash site.
“Because of that, a young woman got to go home,” Coach Sloan said.
Historic Season for Delaware State Women’s Wrestling
The heroic rescue caps a historic moment for HBCU athletics. Delaware State became the first historically Black college or university to launch a Division I women’s wrestling program, supported by a $1.25 million gift from the HBCU Wrestling Initiative.
The Lady Hornets are now competing in their inaugural 2024-25 season, making history both on and off the mat. Their performance at East Stroudsburg produced two medalists, but their most meaningful win came on a darkened stretch of I-95 where courage and compassion defined what it means to represent Delaware State University.