Hayden O’Dell was remembered Thursday as a fierce competitor on the pitching mound and a great teammate off it.
O’Dell, 22, was killed in a car accident earlier this week in Wisconsin, where he was training for a job in sales. A 2022 graduate of St. Paul’s Episcopal School in Mobile, O’Dell finished his college career at South Alabama this past spring.
“He was just a wonderful kid,” South Alabama baseball coach Mark Calvi said. “He fit right in. And being from Mobile, he was so proud to wear South colors and pitch for us and play for this program. And his parents were so supportive of not just him, but the team and the program, and his family was so supportive. It was a really big deal, an honor for him to be here, and it was an honor for us to have him here…