When a Woodward Career Technical High School student was shot at a nearby apartment complex, he hurried back to school for help. It was the quick reaction of two fellow students who that likely saved the teen's life.

Jaileyana Fraley, 18, and 17-year-old Lagena Johnson were there on Feb. 23 when the student came rushing back into the school building. He fell to the ground as soon as he came through the door and there was blood everywhere, Johnson said.

Fraley and Johnson had the victim's brother remove the boy's shirt and they immediately began tending to his wound, Fraley said. "It was scary," she said. "This is somebody who needs some serious help."

The shooting happened on the last day of the school's seventh annual "Sticks 4 Kicks" program. Fraley and Johnson were part of that program, which provides students receiving healthcare training with real-life experience in a simulated clinical setting.

Police arrived at the scene shortly before dismissal and Woodward was placed on lockdown as a precaution, officials said. School staff immediately called 911 and secured the building.

The boy was taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center with serious injuries, police said.

Johnson said her aunt is close with the boy's family, adding that she and Fraley have visited him at the hospital and talked with him over the phone since the shooting. She said he was sent home a couple of weeks ago and that he's now doing fine.

Fraley and Johnson received an award for their bravery from Hamilton County Juvenile Court Judge Kari Bloom during a graduation ceremony for several dozen Woodward students Thursday evening.

The shooting near Woodward in February wasn't the last. A little more than a month later, two students, ages 16 and 17, were hospitalized after a shooting at a bus stop near Seymour and Reading roads. Three other juveniles were arrested in connection with the shooting.

The year's first quarter is one of the worst on record in Cincinnati for youth gun violence. The spate of shootings has left three teens dead and another 14 wounded by April 5. That compares to just three teen shooting victims during the same period last year

More: Avondale fends off youth gun violence. Could it be a model for the rest of Cincinnati?

Fraley and Johnson are hopeful things will improve now that people are starting to pay attention. The pair said they, along with several other students, recently met with Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval at Woodward to discuss ways to end the violence.

Students and community members also gathered at the school a bit over a week after the April 4 shooting to brainstorm ways to overcome the problem.

Since the most recent shooting, Johnson said, there's been a greater police presence at bus stops and the school feels like a safer environment.

"These are not incidents that we want to keep occurring," Fraley said.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Woodward seniors recall quick reaction to aid student shot near school