A Penn State student is in critical condition and expected to remain in an intensive care unit for at least a month after she was hit Saturday by a driver in downtown State College.
Sophia Ruscillo — a 20-year-old pursuing a career in public relations and social media, according to her LinkedIn page — is on life support at Geisinger Medical Center in Danville, her older sister Julia Ruscillo said on the fundraising platform GoFundMe.
She is being treated for a collapsed lung, skull fracture and brain bleed. Her family said they hope she can eventually be transferred closer to her New York home as her condition improves.
“Each day is a new day, and each step is progress in her recovery,” the elder Ruscillo wrote. “My family is absolutely devastated. Our hearts are broken. She is only 20 years old.”
Nearly $30,000 was raised from more than 430 people as of 6 p.m. Tuesday.
Sophia Ruscillo was injured in the hit-and-run crash about 2:30 a.m. Saturday at the intersection of East Beaver Avenue and South Garner Street, borough police said in a press release.
A 33-year-old driver left the scene and was later arrested on suspicion of DUI, Capt. Greg Brauser said Tuesday in a text message to the Centre Daily Times. The man is not in custody and Brauser said formal charges are pending further investigation and lab results.
“If you know Sophia, you know she is full of life, courageous, strong, and a fighter. God is by her side, guiding her through this,” Julia Ruscillo wrote. “Her support system is strong and she is loved by so many. We ask for your thoughts and prayers for our little girl as my family navigates this terrible nightmare.”