LYNNWOOD — Monday was supposed to be a time of celebration at Lynnwood High School, with an assembly scheduled for the newly crowned Washington state 3A girls basketball champions.
Instead, during first period, there was a solemn announcement about the death of a classmate followed by a moment of silence.
Brandon Doyle, 17, was a senior at Lynnwood High who also attended Edmonds Community College.
He was killed in a one-car crash early Saturday morning
in the 2700 block of Seattle Hill Road. His westbound Acura Integra left the roadway and hit a tree nearly head-on on the north side of the road,
Mill Creek police Sgt. Sean Conner said. He died at the scene.
A friend, who was following Doyle in another car, witnessed the crash and called police.
The cause of the accident is under investigation, Conner said. Drugs and alcohol are not believed to be factors.
On Monday, counselors from the school and across the Edmonds School District were available for students both in classrooms and small groups.
The basketball team was consulted after Saturday’s title game and chose to postpone the assembly. It’s now scheduled for Friday.
Doyle was taking just one class, photography, at the high school during his final semester.
In a letter for families Sunday, Lynnwood High Principal David Golden said Doyle was well-liked by staff and students: “Those who knew Brandon knew him as a friendly, respectful young man who was devoted to his academics.”
Doyle loved cars and worked part time at Discount Tires, Golden said Monday.
He participated in football and track his first two years of high school. Doyle enrolled at Edmonds Community College his junior year. Since then, he split time between Lynnwood High and the college.
In his letter, Golden told parents that grief is a process with no timetable.
“We encourage you to be especially vigilant in providing a safe and nurturing support system so that your student knows that he or she can come to you at any time,” he wrote.
English and yearbook teacher Sara Hall had Doyle in a class when he was a sophomore. He’d occasionally pop into her classroom afterward to ask questions and she always enjoyed the visits.
“He was a wonderful young man,” she said.
Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446, stevick@heraldnet.com.
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