The early morning darkness of November 13, 2022 enveloped a modest off-campus rental house on King Road in Moscow, Idaho. Inside, the 20-year-old University of Idaho student refused to surrender quietly. While three of her housemates were attacked in their sleep, Xana remained awake, alert and determined. Newly released autopsy details from January 2026 show she sustained a staggering 67 stab wounds—far more than any other victim in the quadruple homicide that gripped the nation. Defensive injuries sliced deep into her hands, forearms and fingers, some cutting straight to the bone. Blood trails smeared along hallways, staircases and walls told a story of desperate movement and resistance. In the end her struggle left behind the single most damning piece of evidence against her killer: Bryan Kohberger’s KA-BAR knife sheath bearing his DNA, apparently lost during the frantic attack.

This brutal chapter in one of America’s most scrutinized true-crime cases has been laid bare through unsealed court documents, forensic reports and survivor recollections. The revelations do far more than recount horror; they humanize Xana as a fighter whose courage may have accelerated the investigation and ultimately helped bring her murderer to justice.

The four victims were not strangers to one another. They shared laughter, meals, late-night study sessions and the ordinary chaos of college life.

Kaylee Goncalves, 21, was days away from graduation. A senior majoring in general studies, she had secured a job in Texas and recently purchased a new Range Rover. Photos show her smiling broadly beside her best friend Madison Mogen, the two inseparable since childhood. Kaylee’s family later described her as someone who lived life to the fullest and would have fought back if given the chance. She never got it.

Madison Mogen, 21, was Kaylee’s roommate and lifelong confidante. A marketing major, she was known for her gentle nature and adventurous spirit. The pair had been out together that night, grabbing late food from a truck after visiting a downtown bar. They returned home around 1:56 a.m. and went straight to Madison’s third-floor bedroom to sleep.

Ethan Chapin, 20, was a freshman from Conway, Washington, studying recreation, sport and tourism management. He was one of a set of triplets and had a reputation for kindness and easy humor. That evening he had attended a fraternity party with his girlfriend Xana Kernodle before the couple returned to the King Road house.

Xana Kernodle, 20, was a junior marketing major from Post Falls, Idaho. Friends remember her as outgoing, loyal and quick with a smile. She worked shifts at a local Greek restaurant and was deeply in love with Ethan. The two had been dating for over a year and were frequently seen together on campus and around town.

The house itself was unremarkable: a three-story, six-bedroom rental popular among students because of its proximity to the University of Idaho campus. Sliding glass doors on the second floor provided easy access from the backyard. Two other roommates—Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke—were home that night but survived unharmed.

Investigators, aided by cellphone data, security footage, survivor statements and forensic evidence, reconstructed the sequence of events.

Around 1:45 to 2:00 a.m. Xana and Ethan returned home from a fraternity event. At 1:56 a.m. Kaylee and Madison arrived after stopping for food. Around 4:00 a.m. a DoorDash delivery arrived. Xana is believed to have accepted the order and begun eating in the kitchen area on the second floor.

Shortly after 4:00 a.m. Bryan Kohberger entered through the sliding glass door carrying a large fixed-blade knife later identified as a KA-BAR style with a serrated edge.

Kohberger moved methodically upward through the house. He first reached the third-floor bedroom shared by Kaylee and Madison. Both women were asleep in the same bed. Autopsy reports indicate they suffered rapid, overwhelming attacks: Kaylee received 38 stab wounds, Madison 28. Neither appears to have had time to stand, scream or defend themselves. Blood dripped through the floorboards onto the ceiling below.

Xana, still awake downstairs, likely heard unusual sounds—thuds, muffled cries or the creak of floorboards. She set down her half-eaten food recovered at the scene and started up the stairs. Crime-scene photographs show bloody footprints and handprints leading from the third floor downward, suggesting she reached the upper landing, saw the carnage and tried to retreat.

Kohberger followed.

The most intense struggle occurred in Xana’s second-floor bedroom, where Ethan was sleeping. Xana sustained wounds across her entire body: 23 to the head, neck and scalp; 7 to the chest; 4 to the abdomen; 3 to the back; 25 to the arms and hands; 5 to the legs. Many of the arm and hand injuries were clearly defensive—classic defense wounds where a victim attempts to block or grab the blade. Several cuts reached bone. Bruises and abrasions covered much of her torso and limbs, indicating she was knocked around, pushed or thrown during the fight.

Ethan, who awoke to the attack on his girlfriend, suffered 17 stab wounds. Forensic analysis later found mutual blood under the fingernails of both Xana and Ethan, suggesting they may have briefly clung to each other or fought side by side in the final seconds.

The commotion was loud enough that surviving roommate Dylan Mortensen woke up, opened her bedroom door and saw a tall figure in black clothing and a mask walking past. She described bushy eyebrows visible above the mask—a detail later matched to Kohberger. Mortensen locked herself in her room and did not emerge until morning.

Kohberger exited the house shortly after 4:20 a.m. In his haste—or perhaps because Xana’s resistance dislodged it—he left behind the black knife sheath on the bed next to Madison Mogen. The sheath bore the imprint KA-BAR and, crucially, contained trace amounts of DNA that would later be traced directly to Bryan Kohberger.

The unsealed documents in January 2026 brought the autopsy details into stark relief, revealing not just the physical toll but the narrative of resistance. Xana’s report described punctures to her skull’s outer shell, perforations of her jugular vein, heart, lungs and pulmonary vessels, leading to massive hemorrhage. Wounds extended into her hand bones, classic defensive injuries from grasping or blocking the knife. Blood on her feet and wiped smears on her body indicated she kept moving, fighting even as her strength waned.

In contrast, Kaylee and Madison’s autopsies showed they died in bed, their wounds concentrated on upper bodies, suggesting swift, silent kills. Ethan’s 17 wounds included stabs to his chest and extremities, but the mutual blood evidence with Xana hints at a shared struggle. Collectively the victims endured over 150 stabs, a frenzy forensic experts called overkill.

Kohberger’s defense once hired a forensic criminologist who argued the autopsies suggested two killers, citing simultaneous attacks on Ethan and Xana. Prosecutors countered with evidence pointing solely to Kohberger, including cellphone data placing him near the scene multiple times before the murders and scratches on his body noticed by classmates afterward—likely from Xana’s fight. These details, graphic yet gripping, turn a tale of victimhood into one of quiet heroism.

The investigation was a masterclass in modern forensics. Initial leads were slim: a white Hyundai Elantra seen on surveillance, the knife sheath’s DNA and Mortensen’s description. Kohberger, living just 10 miles away in Pullman, Washington, fit the profile: a criminology student fascinated by criminal minds, with a history of heroin addiction and odd behavior. His car’s movements matched video evidence, and genetic genealogy linked the sheath DNA to his father.

Arrested on December 30, 2022 in Pennsylvania, Kohberger’s stoic demeanor in court belied the monster within. The case dragged through pretrial motions, with families expressing frustration over delays and unsealed details catching them off-guard. His guilty plea in July 2025 avoided a trial, but not before defense theories of multiple killers were debunked.

The Idaho murders reshaped campus security nationwide, prompting enhanced patrols, safety apps and awareness campaigns. Families channeled grief into advocacy. Xana’s fight, in particular, symbolizes empowerment—proof that even in vulnerability one can leave an indelible mark.

As Kohberger serves life without parole, the story stimulates profound questions: What drives such evil? How do we protect the innocent? Above all, it honors Xana Kernodle, whose unyielding spirit turned a killer’s victory into his downfall. In her memory we find not just sorrow, but inspiration to fight our own battles with the same fierce heart.