Sione Maumau, a former Valor Christian football player, was found dead Wednesday in a residence hall at Baker University in Kansas.
Maumau, a sophomore at Baker in Baldwin City, Kan., was discovered dead in Irvin Hall, where he was a resident assistant, according to police, who were dispatched at 6:28 p.m. local time and arrived a few minutes later.
“It is with deep sadness that I inform the campus community of the untimely passing,” Baker president Lynn Murray wrote in an email to the school’s faculty and staff.
Sgt. Mike Underwood of the Baldwin City police department, who is leading the investigation, told The Denver Post that foul play was not believed to be a factor and said the death of a student on campus was “very rare.” He declined to comment further, citing the ongoing investigation. An autopsy to officially determine the cause of death is expected to take between a few weeks and several months to complete.
“He was a very well-liked student,” Underwood said.
Maumau was one of the few Valor Christian Eagles who played on all four state championship teams. He was a two-way player on the defensive line for Valor as a senior.
“He was one of the best kids I’ve coached in all of my years,” said Brent Vieselmeyer, his former coach, now an assistant at Houston Baptist University in Texas told The Post. “He’s from a spectacular family. I’m just heartbroken over this.
“I mean, he was the most-opportunistic kid, friends with everybody and had great talent. He wasn’t as big as what the colleges wanted, but you don’t get better people. The kids (who knew him) are crushed, just shocked.”
Murray, the school president, canceled her scheduled inauguration as president on Thursday after Maumau’s death. A prayer service will be held Friday at 11 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Baldwin City.
The 5-foot-11, 235-pound Maumau was a defensive lineman for the Wildcats. He was a Denver Post 5A honorable mention as a senior at Valor in 2012, helping the Eagles to their first 5A state football title. During his high school career, he was a part of four championship teams.
Maumau, who was born in Boulder and grew up in Highlands Ranch, is survived by Viliami and Michele Maumau and three siblings. His father played defensive tackle in the NFL.
Joe Nguyen: jnguyen@denverpost.com or
