Family members were struggling to make sense of the death Wednesday of a La Roche College student found face down in Marshall Lake in North Park, officials at the Allegheny County medical examiner's office said yesterday.

The body of Shiva S. Kumar, 18, showed no signs of trauma and his wallet was on him with his money inside, said Forensic Investigator John J. Smith.

Officials believe he fell or walked into the lake and drowned. They do not suspect foul play.

Relatives told the medical examiner's office Wednesday evening that Mr. Kumar left the Shaler home, where he lived with his parents, about 10:30 that morning. His father believed he was headed to class at the college, which was his routine. The route took him fairly close to North Park.

At about 1:40 p.m., a man walking in the park spotted Mr. Kumar's clothed body floating face down in water 4 or 5 feet deep, about 10 feet from Marshall Island. The passer-by notified emergency dispatchers.

Mr. Kumar was 5-foot-8, Mr. Smith said, so under normal circumstances he should have been able to stand up in the water even if he could not swim.

Mr. Kumar's maternal grandmother, who lived in India, died recently and his mother traveled to India to help with her funeral arrangements. His father indicated that Mr. Kumar was close to his grandmother and distraught over her death.

Other family members told officials, however, that the young man was in decent spirits on Tuesday. They recalled seeing him playing with his sister.

Family members said he did not drink or use drugs. Toxicology tests were pending.

Relatives said he was studying engineering at La Roche.

Before enrolling at the college, Mr. Kumar was "a very, very good student" who excelled in "some of the most rigorous courses" at Shaler Area High School, according to the school's principal, William Suit. He said Mr. Kumar participated in the honors Spanish society. He graduated in 2004.

"He was an awfully nice young man that we are going to miss," he said. "He was kind of a quiet kid, but people have a lot of good memories of him."

The school offered crisis counseling yesterday after the news spread about Mr. Kumar's death; however, because he graduated two years ago, more staff members than students remembered him.

Relatives said Mr. Kumar was born in Tamil Nadu in southern India and had been in the United States for several years.

Funeral arrangements are being handled by Waters Funeral Home in McKeesport.