A small cross-country community north of Dallas is grieving after a car crash killed two Sanger athletes and seriously injured a third on the night of Thursday, May 28.
Sam Musgrave, 19, a 2025 Sanger High School graduate who went on to run cross country and track at the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, died at the scene. The Denton Record-Chronicle later reported that Sanger High junior Daniel Martinez also died from injuries tied to the crash. A third Sanger runner, Angel “A.Z.” Zepeda, spent time in intensive care and has since been released, according to a GoFundMe set up by his family.
All three were cross-country teammates, the Sanger Independent School District confirmed in a public statement on its Facebook page. Superintendent Tommy Hunter called the loss a “heartbreaking tragedy” that had “impacted our entire school community,” and said counselors would be available for students and staff.
Who was Sam Musgrave
Musgrave had just finished basic training with the Texas Army National Guard and wrapped up his first semester at UIW, where he was running on what his family described to Fox 4 KDFW as a full collegiate track and cross-country scholarship.
His uncle, Evan Vasquez, spoke to Fox 4 about the kind of person his nephew had been at home. “He was on the right track,” Vasquez said. “He had a strong community here in Sanger. He was loved by everybody. Anybody he came in contact with, he made friends with.“
Vasquez told the station that Musgrave had bigger plans too. “He had big dreams to run cross-country, own his own business, serve his country, serve his family, protect his family and protect his country,” he said. “Unfortunately, that was taken from us.”
The UIW track and cross-country program posted a tribute on Instagram. “Words cannot adequately describe our heartbreak,” the program wrote, saying his smile “lit up every room you entered” and that he had made “a remarkable difference” in their lives. Teammates filled the comments. One called him “absolutely one of the best humans I’ve known.” Another remembered Musgrave keeping him company through an entire basketball game when no one else was around.
Daniel Martinez and Angel Zepeda
A GoFundMe organized for Martinez’s family described him as “a huge light in everyone’s life” who especially loved running cross country and track. The page also said Martinez would be donating his organs “to help others in need,” which his family called his “final act of kindness.”
A separate fundraiser for Zepeda, described him as “a State-level runner, a loyal teammate, and a kid who brings heart to everything he does.” A third GoFundMe set up for Musgrave’s family had passed $18,000 by June 1, surpassing its $15,000 goal, according to People, and was approaching $20,000 days later. Donations are going toward funeral costs, memorial expenses, and family support.
Still waiting for answers
Authorities have not publicly released what caused the crash, and the Sanger Police Department had not responded to requests for additional information from People as of this week. For Musgrave’s family, that silence has been hard to sit with.
“We don’t really know what’s happened,” Vasquez told Fox 4. “We’ve tried to get answers. We’ve tried to get closure. I think it’s just been grief that’s been added by the lack of answers and the lack of information.“
Sanger ISD said counseling support would remain in place for students and staff as the school community processes the loss of two teammates and supports a third through recovery.
