Gustine High football player takes the field after daughter, grandparents killed in crash

Friday, October 20, 2023
GUSTINE, Calif. (KFSN) -- A small community rallied around their own Friday night after a tragic crash in Merced County last week.

On Friday night, Gustine High senior Zander Leyva walked the field arm in arm with loved ones.
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Not in attendance were his grandparents, Nicholas and Maria Leyva, and his infant daughter, Celeste.

The three were killed in a head-on crash involving a suspected DUI driver last Friday in the area of Highway 140 and Kniebes Road.

The California Highway Patrol says 40-year-old Robert Pimentel crossed into the opposite lane of traffic and crashed into the Leyva family's vehicle.

Four others in their SUV were injured including the baby's mother.
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Family members say Nicholas and Maria were pillars of the community and they never missed a Gustine High School football game.



The bleachers where the couple always sat for games were sectioned off for Friday's game.

A GoFundMe has been set up to help the Leyva family.
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