WEST POINT, N.Y.—A Franklin native attending the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y., died Thursday during a training exercise.

Jacob D. Bower, 18, of Fairmont, W. Va., was found unresponsive by fellow cadets following a navigation exercise.

Jacob’s father, former Western Tidewater resident Dean Bower, said Friday the cause of death is unknown, but he noted that it was 96 degrees there on Thursday.

“Jacob was a very unique individual, and he was first in everything he did,” Bower said. “When cadets got back they asked, ‘Where’s Jacob?’ He pushed himself too hard and it killed him.”

Jacob Bower was born at Southampton Memorial Hospital.

His mother, Ginger Bower, was an industrial engineer at Union Camp Corp., and his father was a nurse in Suffolk during the five years the family lived on Camp Pond Road.

Dean Bower said his son played sports from the time he was 4 up through high school. Jacob Bower was a three-sport athlete at East Fairmont High School and graduated this year.

Dean Bower said his son had recovered fully from surgery to remove a bone cyst on his pelvis last year, and there were no health concerns remaining from the procedure.

It was Jacob Bower’s dream to attend West Point.

“He was excited beyond belief,” Dean Bower said. “He wanted to be at West Point his whole life.”

Jacob Bower had completed the first part of cadet basic training in good standing and was a highly qualified applicant, according to a statement from the U.S. Military Academy.

Jacob Bower had arrived for training on June 27, said Theresa Brinkerhoff, a spokeswoman for the academy. He not yet been inducted into the corps of cadets. That happens after six weeks of training.