Mendoza was driving a 2005 Scion hatchback west on state Route 73 near Williams Road when she lost control and drove off the right side of the road. The car returned to the roadway, when it went left of center and was struck by a 2022 Honda Passport headed the opposite way, the patrol’s Wilmington Post stated in a release.
Mendoza and Goldie were pronounced deceased at the scene.
The Honda driver, a 23-year-old woman, and her passenger, a 17-year-old girl, were taken to Kettering Health Greene Memorial for treatment of injuries that were not life-threatening.
The crash remains under investigation.
Clinton-Massie Schools Superintendent Matt Baker said in a letter to the school community that both students would be missed, and that support agencies and former employees were at the school to help grieving students and staff.
“I cannot begin to tell you the amount of loss and grief we fell for their families, our students and our staff. Both young ladies were well loved by all those around them,” Baker stated.
The students’ deaths are the fifth and sixth since Thanksgiving in the community, including a Dec. 2 crash on Interstate 75 near Vandalia that killed Clinton-Massie grad Robyn Birzer, 20, of Blanchester.
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