A 20-year-old New Mexico State soccer player was found dead in her home earlier this week, police said Thursday.
A roommate called first responders after discovering Thalia Chaverria unresponsive at their residence in 2400 block of El Dorado Court in Las Cruces at about 7 a.m. on Monday, authorities said.
In early stages of this probe, suicide and foul play were not immediately suspected.
“There’s nothing that would make it appear to be suicide and no evidence of foul play,” police spokesman Danny Trujillo told NBC News on Thursday.
Chaverria would have been entering his junior season on the Aggies’ soccer team.
The Bakersfield, California, native was an anchor on the NMSU’s back line that, last season, won its first conference title in school history. NMSU posted three consecutive shutouts in the Western Athletic Conference Tournament to punch its ticket to postseason.
She started in 20 of 21 matches for NMSU last year and played 1,787 minutes, fourth most on the team.
“The sudden loss of Thalia has completely rocked our Aggie soccer families’ world,” NMSU coach Rob Baarts said in a statement. “T was an inspiration and rock to this team. She will be missed but not forgotten. Her spirit will be with us everyday, on and off the pitch. I will always love you T!”
Chaverria’s tragic death marked another difficult moment in 2023 for the NMSU athletic department.
Earlier this year, the school abruptly cancelled the men’s basketball season and fired its coach in the wake of hazing allegations and the shooting death of a student from rival New Mexico.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com
