The last thing Hunter Metcalf expected as he cheered on his teammates at a high school track meet was to watch his twin brother, Austin, die in his arms. But on April 2, that nightmare became reality when a dispute over seating turned fatal.
Authorities say Austin, 17, was stabbed in the chest by another student, Karmelo Anthony, after asking him to move from a reserved area. The attack happened so fast that bystanders barely had time to react. Hunter, who was steps away, rushed to his brother’s side, applying pressure to the wound as he pleaded for help.
“It was senseless,” Hunter later told reporters, his voice breaking. “He was just trying to do the right thing.”
Austin, a standout football player and beloved classmate, was pronounced dead at the scene. His father, Jeff Metcalf, struggled to comprehend the loss, calling it “unfathomable” that a minor disagreement could end in such violence.
As the community rallies around the grieving family, questions linger about how a weapon made its way onto school grounds—and how a life full of promise could be cut so tragically short.
