The man who fell 21 feet over the Clemente Wall onto the right-field warning track at PNC Park has been identified as Kavan Markwood.
Markwood, 20, remained in critical condition Thursday after falling during the Pittsburgh Pirates-Chicago Cubs game the previous night.
A South Allegheny school District official confirmed that Markwood, a 2022 graduate of South Allegheny High School, is the man who fell.
“Everyone at South Allegheny would say he is a hardworking, highly resilient young man. He’s a fighter. He’s going to need that resiliency now. But he has it,” district spokeswoman Laura Thomson told TribLive. “He’s touched a lot of lives at South Allegheny. We’re a small community. He’s a household name here. Everyone knows him.
“He has the prayers and the support of the South Allegheny community.”
Markwood’s family members could not immediately be reached for comment.
Former South Allegheny football coach Frank Cortazzo was effusive in his praise of Markwood, who was named first-team all-conference and team MVP as a senior for the Gladiators.
“Kavan is not only an outstanding athlete but an even more exceptional young man. His resilience, heart and strength are truly unmatched,” Cortazzo, now the head coach at East Allegheny, texted to TribLive. “Please keep him, his family and his friends in your thoughts and prayers as they navigate this challenging time.”
Markwood fell over a 3-foot railing in the front row of Section 142 in the bottom of the seventh inning while celebrating Andrew McCutchen’s double that drove in the go-ahead runs in the 4-3 win. The drop was 21 feet, as the height of the wall commemorates Hall of Fame right fielder Roberto Clemente and his retired jersey number.
Witnesses told TribLive that Markwood was excited the Pirates were rallying and had taken off his shirt and poured beer on himself before McCutchen’s at-bat.
The game was stopped as Pittsburgh police, EMS and Pirates and Cubs team trainers, as well as PNC Park personnel, attended to Markwood as he lay motionless on the ground. He was placed on a stabilizing board, carted off the field and transported to Allegheny General Hospital.
The Pirates said that, according to the PNC Park architect of record, the railings above the Clemente Wall measure 36 inches, exceeding the current code requirements of 26 inches.
Related:
• ‘We hope the best for him’: Pirates praying for fan who fell over Clemente Wall to pull through
Pirates chairman Bob Nutting said Thursday in a statement that the team is “deeply saddened and truly heartbroken after the terrible accident,” calling it “one of the most difficult moments many of us have ever experienced.”
“We are devastated,” Nutting said. “Pirates baseball is a community, and our fans are like family. In times like these, we must come together, support one another, and keep him and his loved ones in our prayers.”
After graduating from South Allegheny, Markwood played linebacker at Walsh University and Wheeling University.
Kevin Gorman is a TribLive reporter covering the Pirates. A Baldwin native and Penn State graduate, he joined the Trib in 1999 and has covered high school sports, Pitt football and basketball and was a sports columnist for 10 years. He can be reached at [email protected].
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