Ex-Batavia football champ injured in fall from balcony

Batavians are showing support for a former state champion football player who was injured in a fall Saturday in Mankato, Minnesota.

Anthony Thielk, a linebacker on Batavia's 2013 Class 6A team, fell from a balcony on the 200 block of Bunting Lane around 9:30 p.m., Mankato Police Cmdr. Daniel Schisel said.

He was taken to a Mayo Clinic Health Systems hospital in Mankato and then transferred to a facility in Rochester. Schisel did not know his condition.

There were about 20 people on the scene when police arrived, Schisel said, and a witness told police Thielk may have been climbing from one balcony to another when he fell.

"Alcohol could be a contributing factor," Schisel said, but police have not received results of toxicology tests.

Thielk turned 23 Saturday.

He was on Minnesota State's football team in 2014 and 2015.

A GoFundMe page called "Anthony's Angels" had raised more than $14,000 as of mid-Tuesday afternoon, with donations from 278 people. The page stated Thielk suffered "life-threatening" injuries, including skull fractures.

"We know that this is not going to deter his future, his grit and determination wouldn't allow it. His supportive family and close-knit group of friends have rallied behind him and will be with him every step of the way," wrote organizer Stephane Jenkins.

At Batavia, Thielk was co-captain of the football team his senior year. He broke a school record that year for solo tackles, notching 107, including nine quarterback sacks.