USC student one of two killed in crash day after her birthday, officials say
One of the two people who was recently killed in a head-on crash was a University of South Carolina student, according to the Laurens County Coroner’s Office.
Adriana Torres-Lopez, a 20-year-old Simpsonville resident, died in the Dec. 11 wreck, the coroner’s office said. Torres-Lopez was a junior majoring in psychology and art at USC’s Columbia campus, university spokesman Jeff Stensland told The State Monday.
Torres-Lopez died a day after celebrating her birthday, according to an obituary posted by the Cremation Society of South Carolina.
Michael Cutshaw — a 66-year-old Marion, North Carolina resident — was the other driver who died in the two-vehicle crash, according to the coroner’s office.
The collision happened at about 10:15 p.m. Dec. 11, said Lance Cpl. Brittany Glover of the South Carolina Highway Patrol.
Torres-Lopez was driving a 2024 Subaru south on I-385, according to Glover. At the 9-mile marker, the Subaru was involved in a head-on collision with a 2005 Nissan that was driving north in the southbound lane, Glover said.
Both drivers, who were the only people in their respective vehicles, died at the scene, according to the corner’s office.
No other injuries were reported.
There was no word if either Torres-Lopez or Cutshaw were wearing a seatbelt.
Information about why the Nissan was driving toward oncoming traffic was not available, but the corner’s office said that both it and the Highway Patrol are investigating the crash.
“Our deepest sympathies are with (Torres-Lopez’s) family and friends during this difficult time,” University spokesperson Collyn Taylor said in a statement shared by the Daily Gamecock. “We encourage any member of our community who may need help coping to contact our counseling center.”
Torres-Lopez is survived by her parents and sister Ale, “with whom she shared a birthday and an unbreakable bond,” among other family members, according to her obituary.
Torrez-Lopez died just two weeks before Christmas, a holiday that her family said she loved for the way “it brought them together and allowed her to create traditions that will be carried on forever,” the obituary said. “She had an intelligent and gentle way of understanding, comforting and loving people, and anyone who knew her can attest to that.”
Through Dec. 7, at least 822 people had died on South Carolina roads in 2025, according to the state Department of Public Safety. Last year, 948 people died in crashes in South Carolina, DPS reported.
At least 19 people have died in Laurens County crashes in 2025, according to DPS data. There were 15 deaths in the county in 2024, DPS reported.
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This story was originally published December 15, 2025 at 10:46 AM.
