A two-sport athlete at Emerson College who suffered irreparable brain damage from an off-campus fight has died, university officials and his relatives announced.
Daniel Hollis, a sophomore who played lacrosse and ice hockey at the private university in Boston, passed away Wednesday, four days after police found him unresponsive and bleeding from his head after a confrontation early Saturday with a group of college students, according to his mother and police.
“True to his caring and giving nature, Daniel chose to be an organ donor,” Hollis’ family posted Wednesday on a website that tracked his recovery. “We pray that his gifts will prevent other families from experiencing the heartbreak we are currently experiencing.”
Hollis had “extensive and unrepairable” damage to his brain after an altercation in Boston’s Allston section, where the marketing major and his friends were confronted by another group of “college-aged” boys, his parents and sister wrote on CaringBridge.org.
“Words were exchanged, pushing/shoving started, and in the scuffle, we believe Dan was hit and subsequently hit his head on cement/bricks as he fell,” the site reads. “He was brought to a local Boston hospital and was diagnosed with a blood clot on his brain requiring immediate surgery.”
Hollis, who was set to graduate in 2022, was placed in a medically induced coma and was not expected to regain consciousness due to the severity of his injuries — even with life support systems, his relatives said Monday.
No arrests had been made as of early Thursday in connection with the incident, which was reported as an assault and battery, a Boston police spokesman told The Post.
Hollis, who played goalie on Emerson’s lacrosse team, was remembered as an infectious personality known for his love of “music, lacrosse, ice hockey, and most importantly, his friends and family,” Emerson College president Lee Pelton wrote in an email to students.
Hollis, at 6 feet 4, was an imposing goalie who held a state record for most lacrosse saves in a season by a high school athlete, despite hailing from a small high school in Mendon. A vigil will be held for him on campus Thursday, Pelton said.
“He loved life and life loved him,” the email continued. “He was a young man maturing into the fullness of the person he was meant to be.”