Austin Cloyd

Austin Cloyd 19, a freshman and international studies major and university lifeguard, grew up in Champaign, Ill., where her father, C. Bryan Cloyd, taught accounting at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Ms. Cloyd excelled in volleyball and basketball and was active in the First United Methodist Church in Champaign, sometimes going on missions to Appalachia to help rehabilitate homes, said Terry Harter, senior pastor.

"She was outgoing, friendly, a warm kid with a good sense of humor, very caring," Mr. Harter said. "It's just horrible."

Ms. Cloyd's mother served as an administrative assistant and director of youth ministries at First United, Mr. Harter said, until the family moved to Blacksburg in 2005 when Mr. Cloyd took a position as professor of accounting and information systems at Virginia Tech.