Virginia HS track star bashes the head of his opponent with baton during race

A viral video captured the moment one high school event became a contact sport and left an athlete in “disbelief” accompanied by a concussion and a possible skull fracture.

(Video Credit: WSET)

On Tuesday at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, high school athletes gathered for the second day of the Virginia High School League Class 3 State Indoor Championships. It was there that Brookville High School junior Kaelen Tucker’s leg of the 4×200 meter relay final came to an abrupt end when she suffered a blow to the head from another competitor’s baton.

“I still can’t believe it; I’m in shock,” the young athlete told WSET during an interview beside her mother, Tamarrow Tucker. “I’m still trying to take it all in, I can’t believe it happened.”

A video of the incident showed Tucker and I.C. Norcom High School senior Alaila Everett rounding a corner and passing the latter on the inside track. A moment after Everett’s baton could be seen striking her competitor, Tucker could be seen veering off course, holding her head while her own baton clattered to the ground.

“Why did you do it, and why haven’t you apologized?” asked Tucker of Everett as the Norcom athlete was immediately disqualified over the “contact interference” foul, and she was “just in disbelief.”

Speaking with WAVY, the accused told a different story as she insisted her actions were unintentional and reactions to the viral incident had left her experiencing her own distress.

“Everybody has feelings, so you’re physically hurt, but you’re not thinking of my mental, right?” Everett said to the outlet.

(Video Credit: WAVY)

“It’s like they are going off of one angle,” she added while detailing her side of the story. “After a couple of times of hitting her, my baton got stuck behind her back like this, and it rolled up her back. I lost my balance when I pumped my arms again. She got hit.”

Meanwhile, Tucker’s mother recalled her reaction upon seeing her daughter injured as she rushed to her side with medical staff while members of the other team seemingly showed no interest in what had happened.

“No apologies. No coaches. No athlete. No anything. Even if it was an accident, which I don’t believe it was…nothing,” she told WSET.

With her daughter being treated for a concussion and a possible skull fracture, the mother, who’d received apologies on Everett’s behalf from the girl’s mother and team, was asked about the potential of criminal charges.

“Of course, everybody gives their own opinion on what they think you should do, but that’s also somebody else’s child,” she expressed. “I want to take that into account as well. Yes, she definitely struck my daughter more than once, but she is somebody else’s child as well.”

The league issued its own statement on the incident through VHSL Director of Communication Mike McCall, who said, “We don’t comment on individuals or disciplinary actions. I can tell you that the actions taken by the meet director were appropriate and correct. We are still reviewing the situation, but that’s all I have for you right now. It’s a serious issue, especially when it involves the safety of athletes in competitions.”

Social media had plenty more to say as the incident garnered millions of views, with calls for charges to be filed.

I ran track and could never imagined this happening.

— Derrick Evans (@DerrickEvans4WV) March 9, 2025

Really hope the victim files charges. People need to realize the consequences of their actions

— smokescreen (@smokescr_n) March 9, 2025

It’s not up to them to file the charges. Criminal charges against an individual can only be filed by the state prosecutor. The case would be the state vs defendant. The victim would be a witness in the case.

— The Truth (@The_x_Truth) March 9, 2025

Hopefully, she is criminally charged as an adult for an obvious, intentional physical assault on another girl, causing a potentially lifelong injury.

The girl doesn’t need to file charges in most jurisdictions; the crime was recorded on video, and police were likely present.

— TS Waters (@TSWatersWriting) March 10, 2025

Staff Writer

Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn’t researching current events and their impacts, you’ll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.

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