Spc. Luke S. Runyan, 21, of Spring Grove, Pa., was killed in Diyala province when his patrol was ambushed. Runyan's death was announced a day after the Pentagon identified another soldier who died in the same attack, Spc. Chad Groebber, 21, of Kingsley, Iowa.

Both men served with the 2nd Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 4th Stryker Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division from Fort Lewis. The 4,000-member brigade was deployed to Iraq in April several months earlier than expected as part of President Bush's escalation of U.S. forces in Iraq a year ago to combat increased insurgent violence.

So she was skeptical when Luke Runyan, several years her junior, contacted her out of the blue about three years ago.

"I was just minding my own business, and he sent me a message telling me how pretty I was," she said on Tuesday. "We talked for a couple weeks. Finally I just called him and said come pick me up. I knew it -- love at first sight."

April 9 would have been the couple's two-year wedding anniversary, she said.

It wasn't to be.

Mourning: Courtney Runyan is mourning the loss of her husband. U.S. Army Spc. Luke Runyan, a Spring Grove Area High School graduate, died Sunday after being ambushed in Iraq.

He is at least the 16th member of the military with ties to York County to have died in either Afghanistan or Iraq.

Courtney Runyan, 24, said she didn't want to get out of bed when someone started banging at the door about 6:30 a.m. Sunday.

When she saw two men in uniform, she knew what had happened.

"As soon as I got down there I just wanted to slam the door in their face and say it's not mine, it must be somebody else's," she said. "I guess it sounds kind of morbid, I just knew we wouldn't see the end of his deployment. I kind of always expected to get that visit from those men. I don't know how, I knew it would happen."

She said she was told Luke died while trying to pursue insurgents in the Diyala province. He and other soldiers had been dropped off by helicopter and had assaulted a house.

The soldiers were told some armed insurgents were running away from the area. Some of the soldiers, including Luke, began chasing them before Luke and a few other soldiers were ambushed.

The U.S. Department of Defense said Tuesday that Luke Runyan and Spc. Chad D. Groepper, 21, of Kingsley, Iowa, were killed by small arms fire when enemy forces attacked their dismounted patrol.

They were assigned to 2nd Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division out of Fort Lewis in Washington state.

Friends and family said Luke was a risk-taker who enjoyed snowboarding, hiking, surfing, off-roading and riding his motorcycle.

Father, husband: He was also a wonderful father and caring husband, Courtney Runyan said.

That was never clearer than after her difficult pregnancy, which culminated in a Caesarean section, she said.

She became bedridden after a related infection. Luke, then 20, was forced to bathe her, change the dressing on her wound twice a day, cook, clean and take care of the baby.

Comrade: U.S. Army Sgt. Peter Resetarits, 21, met Luke Runyan during basic training at Fort Benning, on the Georgia-Alabama border.

Their friendship began while doing push-ups and getting yelled at by a drill sergeant, Resetarits said.

Resetarits said he was thinking how stupid the whole situation was when the two -- who didn't know each other -- made eye contact.

"I look over at him and he had this sparkle in his eye," Resetarits said. "He started laughing and I started laughing. Of course it was worse from there on out for us as far as the punishments go."

Punished: For their conduct, the two got a private hour-long punishment session after the rest of the platoon had finished, Resetarits said.

The two were bunk-mates for the four months of basic training, he said, and developed a strong friendship.

"He was the kind of dude, when we'd hang out he was always doing things 100 mph," Resetarits said. "He just loved to laugh and he loved to live. He just knew how to make the most out of every situation. Now that he's gone, you wonder if that was why he lived like that."

Chris Runyan, Luke's brother, was at their father's house when they were informed about Luke's death.

Like others, Chris Runyan described Luke as outgoing. He was the type of guy who had the courage to take risks when others were hesitant, Chris Runyan said.

Luke's family tried to persuade him not to join the Army, but he wouldn't have any of it, Chris Runyan said.

"When he gets an idea in his mind, he's going to do it," Chris Runyan said. "You can't really persuade him not to do something."

The two used to go on hunting trips and sometimes went to New Jersey beaches, where Luke would go surfing, Chris Runyan said.

Marc Runyan of West Manchester Township, his father, said he last saw him around the New Year. He and his other son, Chris Runyan, flew out to Seattle to visit.

There, Luke Runyan had plenty to draw him. He'd recently married Courtney, a young woman he'd met when he was stationed in Fort Lewis, Washington.

Their daughter, Brynn, wasn't quite a year old, and he was proud of her.

Yet Luke Runyan's thoughts were still in Iraq, his father said. He'd recently become a squad leader. He knew his men were going into a dangerous situation.

"He had a hard time leaving his men behind," Marc Runyan said.

On Sunday, Marc Runyan got a call from his daughter-in-law informing him of the fatal ambush. Luke Runyan was 21.

Marc Runyan said that his son was posthumously made a corporal. On Monday, he said, an Army colonel had come by to explain to him the particulars of that ambush.

On Monday night, he wasn't sure exactly what the mission was. It had been in the Dialya Province, northeast of Baghdad.

Apparently, the soldiers had been in vehicles when al Qaida operatives had fired on them. From what Marc Runyan understands, they had fired high over their heads, a tactic that al Qaida uses to draw opponents in closer for an ambush.

The combatants fired on Luke Runyan's squad, killing him and another soldier.

Marc Runyan said his son had known the risks of his assignment. He'd seen his men get killed up close, including a close friend killed by a sniper in April.

"Luke saw a lot of death," Marc Runyan said. "He handled it very well."

Luke Runyan had signed up for the Army after graduating high school. Chris Runyan, 25, is also in the military -- the U.S. Army National Guard.

Marc Runyan said he'd been reluctant to see his sons join the military during a war. But he had to admit that Luke Runyan really took to it.

Hairline fractures in his legs sidelined his Ranger training, although he hoped to get back into it eventually. He won a marksmanship award and excelled in a medic course. Luke Runyan talked about eventually going into police work, although he'd recently signed up for another three-year tour of duty in the Army.

When Marc Runyan saw him in January, he told a story about saving an Iraqi child's life. It was a boy who'd been hit by a stray bullet. Luke Runyan insisted on pulling the boy out of the line of fire and bandaging him.

His son liked to joke around, Marc Runyan said. When the talk turned to the military, however, he'd become very serious.

Marc Runyan has a good idea of why his son re-enlisted.

"The camaraderie," he said. "His war buddies were his family."

Runyan, an avid hunter who also enjoyed riding his motorcycle, enlisted in the Army while he was a senior at Spring Grove Area Senior High School. Late last year, he re-enlisted for another three years.

He deployed to Iraq last spring.

“He had no fear of combat and I guess that was part of his training,” Marc Runyan said. “He once told me you go out on a mission and if you get hit, you get hit. If you don’t, you don’t. It’s as simple as that. He did feel very strongly they were doing an excellent job freeing the Iraqi people from al-Qaida.”

A date for Luke Runyan's funeral at Arlington National Cemetery has not yet been set, according to Courtney Runyan. It is expected to occur sometime in March.

A service will also take place in Washington state, where she and Luke lived, she said.

His family in York County is also considering having some type of service within the next week, said brother Chris Runyan.