Lauren Bernett: Member of JMU's improbable run at the 2021 Women's College World Series dead at 20

By David Close, CNN

Updated 1216 GMT (2016 HKT) April 27, 2022

Bernett is seen during a NCAA softball game in May last year.

(CNN)James Madison University has announced the death of softball athlete Lauren Bernett — one of the key players of the 2021 Women's College World Series. Bernett was 20 years old.

The cause of her death nor any other details were announced.A co-statement posted by JMU president Jonathan Alger and director of athletics Jeff Bourne said: «Our hearts are aching, hearing the news of the loss of one of our student-athletes. Lauren Bernett was a high-achieving member of our softball team and a great ambassador of JMU and our athletics program. She was a key member of our 2021 Women's College World Series team as a freshman catcher last year.»Tuesday's statement included contact information for school resources, including the phone number for the school crisis center and a weblink to a mental health and wellness provider.A sophomore catcher, Bernett was just named «Player of the Week» on Monday by the Colonial Athletic Association. Read MoreShe went seven-for-nine in a three-game weekend sweep over Drexel University — hitting .788 with a home run, seven RBIs and four runs scored.The team's scheduled doubleheader on Wednesday against Longwood University was canceled. The athletics department tweeted it had set up a flower drop and memorial outside the softball team's Veterans Memorial Park entrance.According to her JMU bio, Bernett was a member of the National Honor Society and planned on majoring in biology with a minor in pre-vet.Visit CNN.com/sport for more news, videos and featuresLast season, Bernett and her teammates made national headlines with the Dukes' unexpected, first-ever run to the Women's