Lewis University Swimmer Ezekiel Towner Shot and Recovering in ICU

In the early afternoon of Thursday, August 25th, Lewis University swimmer Ezekiel Towner was shot in the back of the head while driving home from a local gym in his native Chicago.

Towner, a rising junior at Lewis University, is a computer science major who joined the swim team as a walk-on his freshman year.  The shooting, which police are investigating as a drive by, left Towner in critical condition and led doctors to place him in a medically-induced coma.  Roger Karns, head coach of men’s and women’s swimming at Lewis University, has been in contact with Towner’s father and told SwimSwam that Towner regained consciousness Sunday, and though not yet able to speak, he can write out his thoughts.

Ezekiel Towner (courtesy of Matthew Brendich, Lewis University)

Speaking on Towner, Karns says “Ezekiel may not have as much natural talent as others on the team, but no one else can match his work ethic.  He motivates the rest of the team because, if he has to stay late to finish his workout, he will.  The notion of the rest of the swimmers is, ‘if Ezekiel can do it, so can I.’  He’s very dedicated to being the best student and the best athlete he can be.  He’s truly a great kid.  He has big goals for what he wants out of life, and he’s putting in the work to achieve them.”

MacKenzie Kummer, former swimmer at Lewis University and teammate to Towner, tells SwimSwam that the swim team has started a GoFundMe page for Towner, which can be found here.  Kummer also tells SwimSwam that Towner is an exceptional student; named to the Academic All-GLVC Team both his freshman and sophomore seasons and a two-time recipient of the Delahanty Award for academic excellence among student-athletes, Towner is a regular honor student.

Also injured in the shooting though in less-critical condition was an unnamed workout partner of Towner’s.  The shooting appears to be a case of mistaken identity, as Towner has no known affiliation to any of the suspected assailants.