Clarkston grad Grace Nolan, OU medical student and elite runner, remembered after fatal Walled Lake crash
Nolan, 25, died after a crash on Decker Road in Walled Lake on Saturday evening, Oct. 17, the night before she was to lead the women's elite field at the Detroit Free Press Marathon. A celebration of life is set for Oct. 31 at Oakland University.
By OCJ Staff
Grace Nolan, a 25-year-old Oakland University medical student and record-setting distance runner who graduated from Clarkston High School, died after a crash in Walled Lake on Saturday evening, Oct. 17, the night before she was set to lead the women's elite field at the Detroit Free Press Marathon, FOX 2 Detroit reported. MLive reported that she died Sunday, Oct. 18.
The crash happened on Decker Road just south of North Pontiac Trail, FOX 2 reported. Nolan's boyfriend, who was with her in the car, was seriously injured but is expected to survive, according to a family post cited by FOX 2. Authorities have not said what caused the crash.
Update, 4:40 p.m.: Patch reported Wednesday afternoon that it was a single-vehicle crash just before 5:30 p.m., in which the SUV Nolan was riding in as a passenger struck a tree on Decker Road between North Pontiac Trail and West Maple Road. The Detroit News reported that both occupants were trapped and were taken to Henry Ford Providence Hospital in Novi. Walled Lake Police Chief Paul Shakinas confirmed the location but declined to give other details, citing the ongoing investigation, USA TODAY Sports reported. No cause has been released, and no charges have been reported.
Nolan was a second-year student at the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, according to FOX 2 and MLive. FOX 2 reported she was a three-time All-Horizon League first-team cross country runner who, in her final college season, won the Horizon League 10,000-meter title in a championship-record time and was the league's 2025 NCAA Woman of the Year nominee. Sunday's race would have been her second marathon, FOX 2 said.
The marathon thanked Nolan on social media for the light she brought to its races and wrote that she "will always be part of this race," according to FOX 2.
'A coach's dream'
Kevin Breen, her track and field coach at Clarkston High School, wrote in a letter shared by her mother that Nolan "was a coach's dream," MLive reported in a story carried by The Oakland Press. He recalled her as a wobbly freshman on the junior varsity cross country team with a tenacious drive to improve, and said she understood that being on a team is about more than running fast.
Her father, Jason Nolan, wrote on Facebook that she was "truly extraordinary," MLive reported. She also volunteered as a phlebotomist at free clinics and with Girls on the Run, according to the marathon's post as cited by MLive.
A celebration of life is planned for Saturday, Oct. 31, at Oakland University, with details to come, according to her family and obituary.
Sources: FOX 2 Detroit, "Grace Nolan, elite runner, killed night before leading Freep marathon" (Oct. 21, 2026), based on posts by the Nolan family, the Detroit Free Press Marathon and Oakland University; MLive (Roberto Acosta) via The Oakland Press, "Elite runner, Oakland University medical student Grace Nolan remembered for kind spirit, determination" (Oct. 21, 2026). Update: Patch Novi (Oct. 21, 2026); The Detroit News via Yahoo (Oct. 21, 2026); USA TODAY Sports via Yahoo (Oct. 21, 2026).