Eastern Michigan University women's basketball player dies in car crash

By Kevin Murphy (Reuters) - A member of the Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team and another university student died on Sunday in a head-on car crash near campus in Ypsilanti Township, officials said. Shannise Heady, 21, a forward with the team, was driving a car that crossed the center line and struck another vehicle shortly before 1 a.m. local time, said Derrick Jackson, a spokesman for the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office. Jordan Hopkins, 23, was also killed. Both women were pronounced dead at the scene, Jackson said. The driver of other vehicle had non-life threatening injuries, Jackson said. "We do think that speed was a factor," he said. Heady, a junior, joined the Eastern Michigan basketball team after transferring from Seton Hall University, according the Eastern Michigan website. She was majoring in healthcare administration. Hopkins, a senior, majored in psychology, the university said. "This is a tragic loss," Eastern Michigan University President Susan Martin said in a news release. "We send our thoughts and prayers to Jordan's and Shannise's families and friends at this difficult time." (Reporting by Kevin Murphy in Kansas City; Editing by Jon Herskovitz and Eric Walsh)