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VIA FOSTERS NEWS

Andrew Nicol, an Army Ranger who grew up in Kensington and graduated from Exeter High School was killed in Afghanistan Sunday.

Sgt. Andrew Nicol, 23, died when insurgents attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device, according to the Department of Defense.

Nicol was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment. He earned a Bronze Star for his part in a 2008 raid in Iraq that killed a high-ranking al-Qaeda leader.

Gov. John Lynch called him a ‘decorated hero.’

‘On behalf of the citizens of New Hampshire, our deepest sympathies go out to the entire Nicol family,’ Lynch said in a statement.

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Nicol graduated from Exeter High in 2006. He was an accomplished wrestler. As a junior, he placed sixth in the state in the 130-pound weight class during the Division 1 championships.

‘He was a tough competitor,’ said Roy Morrisette, one of his coaches. ‘It didn’t surprise me that he went on to be a Ranger.’

Morrisette said Nicol considered a firefighting career before joining the military.

Nicol was awarded the Bronze Star during a ceremony last year at his unit’s base in Fort Benning, Ga.

During a raid in northern Iraq, Nicol and his comrades were responsible for killing six insurgents and capturing 30 more, according to the 75th Ranger Regiment Public Affairs office.