Burnsville hockey star takes first steps after rollover crash

BURNSVILLE, Minn. (KMSP) - Last August, Burnsville High School lost 17-year-old baseball standout Ty Alyea. He was killed in a rollover crash on his way back from Canyon Falls with three other friends. Cole Borchardt was critically injured in that rollover, and more than a year later, after initially cautioned he'd never walk again, he was able to take his first steps.

"We were just heading back from a fun day at Canyon Falls and a crash happened on our way home just listening to music and having a good time," said Tylan Procko, who was injured in the crash, at an event to honor Alyea at Alimagnet Baseball Diamond in May. "A lot of people remember him as a good guy, a good teammate, and a good friend and I think that's how people will always see him."

Borchardt was a star hockey player, and after being ejected from the Jeep, required emergency surgery to relieve pressure on his brain and spend months heavily sedated. He shattered both shoulders, tore his ACL, hurt his spleen and broke his wrist. Doctors cautioned he’d never walk or talk again, but on Oct. 14, his brother, Cade, tweeted a video of Borchardt walking all by himself.

h/t the Hockey News