A former women’s volleyball player at Mercyhurst College was charged on Tuesday with homicide for allegedly suffocating her baby minutes after giving birth last month. The student, Teri Rhodes, never told anyone she was pregnant, but had searched the Internet for “herbal abortion techniques” and “what can kill a fetus,” the Times-News, a newspaper in Erie, Pa., reported.

The 18-year-old sophomore underwent a physical examination on August 10, and the doctor asked if she was pregnant, according to the newspaper. Ms. Rhodes said she didn’t think so. The doctor cleared her to play volleyball, and she practiced with the team that day.

Two days later, she gave birth to a baby girl in the bathroom of her campus apartment. She placed the infant in a plastic bag in the bathtub, news reports said. Her roommate, worried about noises coming from the bathroom, had called the assistant volleyball coach, who insisted on taking Ms. Rhodes to the hospital.

Ms. Rhodes was arraigned on multiple charges on Tuesday and could face life in prison if she is convicted.

Concern that some pregnant college athletes may feel pressure to have abortions prompted the NCAA to review its guidelines on pregnancy this year, and new guidance is in the works. Many colleges do not have policies to protect pregnant athletes, who may worry, among other things, that they could lose their scholarships.

Officials at Mercyhurst, a small Roman Catholic college in northwestern Pennsylvania, declined to comment on the case. The athletic director did not respond to calls today. In a written statement, the college said: “Never can we avert every tragedy. They are a part of life.” —Sara Lipka