UIC sprinter killed in wrong-way crash on way to Mother's Day visit: 'The finish line came too soon'

AURORA, Ill. (WLS) -- Sariyah Watson lived life at full speed and always seemed to have the wind at her back.

"She lived life basically the way she would finish a race, with extreme determination and grit," said her father, Antonio Watson. "And it's just so tragic that, you know, the finish line came too soon for her."

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Sariyah, a 21-year-old sprinter on the University of Illinois Chicago track team, died Sunday morning on Interstate 88 in Aurora.

Illinois State Police say she was struck head-on by a wrong-way driver, who was also killed.

"No script can be written that will allow you to accept this type of tragic loss," her father said.

A friend in Sariyah's vehicle also lost her life. Relatives say Sariyah was on her way to DeKalb to visit her mom for Mother's Day.

"I'm angry, but at this time, I'm choosing to focus on the joy that Sariyah brought our family," said Teresa Jordan, Sariyah's great aunt.

In a statement, the UIC athletic director said, "Our hearts are broken by this tragic loss."

Relatives say Sariyah, who was a junior, was majoring in sports management and worked with at-risk youth in a program last summer in Seattle. She was planning to return this summer.

"Children just loved her. Her passion just showed immensely in every life that she touched," her great aunt said.

"She was definitely my champion and always will be," her father said.

The Kane County coroner has not yet released the name of Sariyah's passenger and that of the other driver who was traveling in the wrong direction. Illinois State Police continue to investigate the crash.