Former IMG student, college volleyball player dies of rare blood disorder at 20: 'A beautiful soul'
Athlete passes away from rare blood disorder
The family of a college volleyball player is deep in mourning after Amanda Mack, 20, died of a rare blood disorder in Tampa. FOX 13's Evan Axelbank reports.
BRADENTON, Fla. - The family of a college volleyball player is deep in mourning after Amanda Mack, 20, died of a rare blood disorder in Tampa.
IMG alum, college volleyball player death
What we know:
Amanda Mack had trained at IMG Academy in Bradenton and was getting ready for her junior year at Holy Cross in Massachusetts.
"Anything she did, she would always see it to the end," said her mother, Tanya Mack.
Amanda started playing at age 6 and was heavily recruited to play in college.
Courtesy: Eastern Kentucky University
"We were constantly traveling, watching her play volleyball, doing what she loved," Tanya Mack said. "And she was good at it."
Amanda Mack’s final year at high school was spent at IMG, where she sharpened her skills during the first year of their program.
"You want somebody that's got strong character, great student, somebody that's, you know, going to be kind of the founding members of that program," Brian Nash, IMG Academy's athletic director, said.
After playing at Cincinnati and Eastern Kentucky, Amanda was set to play this year at Holy Cross in Massachusetts.
Severe aplastic anemia diagnosis
Dig deeper:
But on July 13, Amanda posted on Instagram, "A few weeks ago I woke up not feeling well."
It was diagnosed as severe aplastic anemia, which is diagnosed under a thousand times in the U.S. each year. It prevents bone marrow from producing healthy blood cells.
"They actually thought she had leukemia when we first went in," Tanya Mack said. "I had never heard about this disorder."
Amanda Mack was scheduled for a bone marrow transplant on Aug. 11 but wasn't well enough.
On Aug. 14, Amanda posted on Instagram that she was waiting for her body to fix her immune system.
"She was really looking forward to getting out of the hospital and going back to school, and playing volleyball," Tanya Mack said.
On Sept. 10, after surgery, Amanda went into heart failure.
By Sept.16, she passed away.
What we don't know:
Amanda Mack’s family is left to wonder how it all crashed down so quickly.
Lakewood Ranch celebration of life
What's next:
"We want people just to remember how much of a beautiful soul she was inside and out," Tanya Mack said.
A celebration of life is planned for Oct. 10 at 4 p.m. at Robert Toale & Sons Celebration of Life Center, 4310 Solutions Lane in Lakewood Ranch.
Amanda Mack’s family has set up a GoFundMe online here.
The Source: