In the ongoing search for a Vermont college student who disappeared about a week ago, authorities have discovered a body.

Lia Smith, a 21-year-old from California, was last seen at Middlebury College on the evening of October 17. The college reported her missing on the following Sunday. Smith, a senior, is pursuing a double major in computer science and statistics and is a former athlete on the Middlebury women’s swimming and diving team.

On Thursday at approximately 1:30 p.m., Vermont State Police reported that they found a body in a field to the west of the Middlebury campus. The discovery took place in Cornwall, close to The Knoll, the college’s organic farm, according to the authorities.

The police have secured the scene and initiated an investigation into the death. They are currently awaiting autopsy results to confirm the identity of the deceased and to ascertain the cause and manner of death.

Police said they secured the area and began a death investigation. At this time, officials are awaiting an autopsy to confirm the identity of the victim and to determine the cause and manner of death.

That autopsy is scheduled to take place on Friday in Burlington, Vermont. Fox News Digital has reached out to the Vermont Department of Health for comment.

At this time, investigators said they do not believe the death is suspicious.

Sign of Middlebury College in Vermont. (Toby Talbot / AP)

Police initially said they would hold a live press update on Thursday afternoon, but canceled it shortly before it was set to begin. The Middlebury Police Department called in additional agencies, including the Vermont State Police, New York State Police and the FBI, to help after trying to find Smith using ground searches and drones for several days.

Middlebury College President Ian Baucom said in a statement on Instagram Thursday that the college is “doing all we can to support our community right now.”

“I know that this is extraordinarily difficult news to receive as we continue to hold Lia and all her family and friends tight in our hearts,” he wrote. “As ever, please care for yourselves and one another.”

Old Chapel on the campus of Middlebury College in Vermont. Middlebury College is considered a “Little Ivy”, a term for small, elite liberal arts colleges with academic reputations comparable to the Ivy League. (John Greim/Loop Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Middlebury College is a prestigious private liberal arts college, known as a “Little Ivy,” in Addison County, Vermont, located in the state’s Champlain Valley. According to the college, the campus population is about 2,800 undergraduate students.

Fox News Digital has reached out to the Middlebury Police Department and Middlebury College for comment.