We first told you about the death of Danielle Cogswell Monday. She was found dead in her off-campus apartment in Louisville Sunday. We’ve been working all day on the strange circumstances of her death. Police say it appears there wasn't foul play. We talked to the Louisville Police Department, who said a toxicology report is weeks away.
The people who loved her are puzzled. They're holding a vigil for the Skyline High School graduate at Alki Beach at 8:30 p.m, but first they talked to us about how hard it is not knowing.
"She was a fierce competitor, the fiercest competitor. She was an amazing tumbler,” her friend Julia Brusselback said. We met Julia and group of girls Dani used to coach at a gym in Marysville.
Julia and the rest of her cheer family in Washington are trying to come to terms with the fact they don't know how she died.
"Instantly I went on Facebook and my news feed lit up with things like, ‘Prayers going out to Dani,’ then it really hit me that it was true and it's just so hard to believe that she's gone," Julia said. She cheered with Dani on a Kent all-star team, then they coached together.
"She was really nice and she was really inspirational,” said Kira Sohappy, one of the girls Dani mentored.
It's hard to explain to kids that their role model is gone, so they're not focusing on how Dani died; they're focusing on how she lived by doing it. At the gym Tuesday they’re stunting, tumbling and sending balloons with her name on them flying, just like Dani did.
"Fly high Dani, we love you,” the group said as they released the balloons outside the gym.
Dani had just transferred from Arizona State University to Louisville last year. It's one of the best cheerleading programs in the country.
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