Arik Mack played baseball for BYU during the 2014 season. Mack died March 24, 2015, in a car accident. (Riana Bruce-Goodsky/Marcos Escalona)
A former BYU baseball player was killed in a car accident in Spanish Fork Canyon Tuesday, March 23, 2015.
Pitcher Arik Mack, 19, from Springville, hit a semitrailer truck head on after crossing the center line on U.S. Route 6. Mack was thrown from his seat and died at the crash scene. The driver and passenger in the semi and the passenger in Mack's car were injured.
Mack was a freshman at BYU who had graduated from Mapleton Mountain High School, where he was the Player of the Year in 2012 and 2013. Mack threw a no-hitter against Salem Hills in the state championships. He made the USA's Mountain West team in 2011 and 2012 and was the Utah strikeout leader in 2012 and 2013.
Mack played one game with the Cougars on Feb. 21, 2014, when BYU suffered a 10-0 loss against TCU. Mack transferred to Salt Lake Community College at the end of the season to play with the Bruins.
“Arik is one of the premier left-handed pitchers in the state. We watched him pitch very well against the best competition in the country last summer and look forward to him bringing that experience to our staff,' BYU baseball coach Mike Littlewood said in a 2012 news release.