Megan Boken, 23, was a graduate of St. Louis University and was there for an alumni volleyball game when she was killed.
Police in St. Louis are hoping surveillence video will help them find the killer.
A $21,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to the arrest of Boken's alleged killer. Nearly half of that money was raised by the young woman's friends. The rest is a CrimeStoppers reward announced by St. Louis police.
Boken was on the phone with her mother right before the shooting. Boken's father says they knew something was wrong when the call went static.
Monday, the volleyball standout is being remembered for more than her athletics.
"Megan was all about volleball," said Paul Boken, Megan's father. "She had come back to play with her friends. These people were very special to her."
A 2011 graduate, Boken had returned to Missouri to hang out with her friends and play in a St. Louis University alumni volleyball game. But the Wheaton native never made it to the game. She was shot twice in her car in what police are calling an attempted robbery.
"She was at my apartment, staying with me this weekend, and we walked to our seperate cars at a 2 o'clock and we will never see her again," said Sarah Entzeroth, Megan's best friend.
Back in the Chicago area, from one suburban volleyball court to another, Boken was a player and personality her former coaches will never forget.
"She always had a smile on her face, a little twinkle in her eye, sometimes mischevious," said St. Francis High School volleyball coach Peg Kopel.
Boken graduated from Wheaton's St. Francis High School. She led the varsity volleyball team to two state championships.
At the same time, Boken was an elite player for the Sports Performance Volleyball Club in Aurora. Boken led that team to a national championship.
"She was a fiery player," said Sports Performance Volleyball Club's Rick Butler. "When you would watch her, when something good happened, she would love to compete."
Anne Kordes spent almost two years trying to recruit Boken to St. Louis University. Kordes says Boken had the rare combination of being a supurb athlete with a great sense of humor.
"She had a deep, horsey laugh," said Kordes. "It made everybody crack up. It is sickening we are not going to hear it again."
"Megan is a big person to miss, but we are a strong family," said Paul Boken. "Megan is our example."
Boken was a starting volleyball player all four years at St. Louis University.
A Wednesday visitation is planned at St. Francis High School.
Boken's funeral is scheduled for Thursday at St. Michael Catholic Church in Wheaton.
Boken is survived by her parents, a brother and two sisters.
