CSU Pitcher Bryan Kilgore Shot and Killed

COLUMBUS, Ga. -- Columbus State University, its athletic program, and the entire Columbus community were shocked on Friday night when Cougar right-hander Bryan Kilgore was shot and killed in his vehicle. The shooting took place near an apartment complex off Steam Mill Road in Columbus. High school friend Randy Newton was also murdered in the incident.

Kilgore, a sophomore graduate of Hardaway High School in Columbus, was an integral part of the Cougars' pitching staff in 2007, a season in which CSU made a great run to the Division II title game. Kilgore last pitched for CSU on May 30, pitching four strong innings in a 9-2 win over Cal State - Los Angeles in Montgomery. He pitched in 17 games with eight starts in 2007, compiling a 3-2 record with a 3.38 ERA.

"This is just a tragedy for us at CSU and for the community," said CSU coach Greg Appleton. "Brian was a charismatic guy with a lot of friends. This is just a sad day for us all."

CSU and its athletic program has still not fully recovered from losing star basketball player Jed Bedford to a heart attack on the practice floor in 2003, and now must deal with another tragic loss of a young life. This death, however, spurs even more emotion because of the senselessness of a murder of a vibrant, 20-year-old athlete.

"You have to understand that these players are really an extension of my family and our family at CSU. We care very deeply about what happens to them. We follow them the rest of their lives no matter what happens to them and we care about them," Appleton said.

The Peach Belt Conference and its 10 other member institutions join with our family in Columbus in mourning the loss of Bryan Kilgore. Funeral arrangements were announced by the Kilgore family on Sunday. Visitation will take place on Monday at McMullen Funeral Home on Gentian Boulevard from 6 to 8 PM. The funeral will be held at Cascade Hills Baptist Church on Tuesday afternoon at 4 PM.

A special gathering for Kilgore's baseball teammates, CSU athletes, and friends of the CSU program will take place on Monday at 4 PM at the Lumpkin Center in the President's Suite.

The family has asked that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Bryan Kilgore Memorial Scholarship Fund at CSU.