Victims of upstate NY plane crash ID’d as 2022 NCAA woman of the year and family members heading to birthday, Passover

A family of doctors and high-achieving student athletes were among six people killed when a small plane crashed in a muddy field in upstate New York over the weekend.

The Groff family – neuroscientist father Michael Groff, urologist mother Joy Saini, their MIT-grad daughter Karenna and her boyfriend James Sontoro – were all killed Saturday when the private Mitsubishi MU-2B they were travelling in smashed into the ground in Copake, not far from the Massachusetts border, Sontoro’s father confirmed.

Son Jared Groff, along with his partner Alexia Couyutas Duarte, also died, according to the Times Union. 

A third child of the Massachusetts doctor couple, daughter Anika, was not on the plane. 

The Groffs were headed to the Catskills aboard Michael’s private jet for a birthday and Passover celebration when the tragedy struck.

“They were a wonderful family,” John Sontoro said. “The world lost a lot of very good people who were going to do a lot of good for the world if they had the opportunity. We’re all personally devastated.”

His son was also an MIT graduate and worked in finance, while Karenna was studying medicine at New York University after being named the NCAA woman of the year in 2022 for her soccer and academic achievements at MIT.

“Really, this recognition is a testament to my MIT women’s soccer family and all of the guidance, support, and friendship they have provided for me over the years,” she said in an interview after earning the prestigious sports award.

Dr. Groff was an associate professor at Harvard Medical School and also served as the executive director of neuroscience at Rochester Regional Health, the Times Union reported. He was also an experienced pilot. 

“We are devastated by the loss of our beloved family members,” a statement from the surviving family read. “We will remember them as the six brilliant, dynamic, and loving people that they were.”

The family departed from a White Plains airport Saturday morning and was due to land at the Columbia County Airport around noon.

But the plane’s pilot alerted air traffic controllers that they’d missed their approach and were requesting directions for a second attempt – when the tower indicated a “low altitude alert” and then lost all contact with the plane.

Within moments, the small plane crashed in the field, National Transportation Safety Board investigator Albert Nixon said at a press conference Sunday.

The federal agency is continuing to investigate the accident.

With Post wires.