The status of the Penn State student who was stabbed early Sunday morning was upgraded to fair condition yesterday at Geisinger Medical Center in Danville.

The State College Police Department did not comment further on the incident, but court documents gave several witnesses' accounts of what precipitated the stabbing.

According to the documents, police were dispatched at about 2 a.m. to the area of The Deli Restaurant, 113 Hiester St., where officers observed Brad M. Hawkins with a single wound in his upper right chest area. Hawkins suffered from a collapsed lung and internal bleeding.

Hawkins had been walking east on Calder Way with five other students, including his girlfriend, Katie Palmer, and two of her roommates.

The group walked past two men the documents allege were Izaac Rodriguez, 23, of Las Cruces, N.M., and Jacob T. Parker. Neither of them are Penn State students.

One of the men grabbed the buttocks of a woman in Hawkins' group, the documents said. The woman and one of Palmer's roommates, Jessica Ramm, yelled at the two men.

Ramm said in a telephone interview that the man who had grabbed one of the women in the group attacked them.

"It wasn't a fight. We were attacked," she said. "Nothing came out of Brad's mouth at all except, 'I don't want any trouble.' "

Court documents said the two men began arguing with the women, and the group walked away. The men followed the group, and Rodriguez allegedly removed his shirt before throwing punches at several members of the group.

He struck Hawkins, making a gash in his chest with what police believe was a small instrument that was either edged or pointed. Police did not find a weapon in Rodriguez's possession after arresting him.

Police found a man matching the witnesses' descriptions of the assailant at the ramps of the McAllister Street parking deck without a shirt on and identified him as Rodriguez. Police then located Parker on the ground level of the parking deck.

Rodriguez told police he was involved in a fight and admitted to striking and kicking several people. He said he did not stab Hawkins and that he did not have any weapons.

An employee of The Saloon, 101 Hiester St., told police he heard Rodriguez say to Parker, "Let's go get the gun," while the two men were following the group.

Rodriguez was charged with one count each of attempted homicide, aggravated assault and reckless endangerment, as well as three counts each of simple assault and disorderly conduct. He was arraigned before District Justice Allen Sinclair and placed in Centre County Prison in lieu of $100,000 bail. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Dec. 3 at Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte.

Keith Hawkins, who is at the hospital with his son, said Brad Hawkins is resting but is still in some pain. His son seems to be getting stronger, he added.

Keith Hawkins said witnesses at the scene were very helpful in aiding his son.

"The family's grateful for all the help the bystanders gave," he said.