GRANT COUNTY, Ind. -- A Grant County teenager was killed Tuesday morning when his truck slid into the path of an oncoming train, police said.

Titus Justus, 17, a senior at Mississinewa High School, died at Marion General Hospital after the crash at E. 4th and N. Sycamore streets in Fairmount.

Images: Teen Killed In Crash With Train

Police said Justus tried to stop at the crossing, but his truck hit an icy patch and collided with a freight train.

Classes at the high school had been canceled on Tuesday due to snowy conditions.

Justus was a starting tight end on the football team and played on the varsity basketball team.

"(He was) energetic, passionate, strong-willed," said basketball coach Chanse Young. "Just a kid that you really saw mature and grow as a person and really had a lot of great things ahead of him."

Many of Titus' teammates gathered at Young's house after they learned of Justus' death, including Brandon Cragun, who awoke to the news after his mother got a phone call.

"She just hugged me and said, 'Titus is gone,' and I said, 'No, he's not,' and I pushed my mom off me and walked back in my room and shut my door," Cragun said. "She came in and was crying and I just lost it and called everybody."

Justus wrote on his baseball team's Web site that he hoped to join the Marines after graduation.