Riley Strain's parents emotionally accept his University of Missouri diploma to a standing ovation two months after his mystery death

Riley Strain's parents broke down in tears as they accepted his University of Missouri diploma two months after his mystery death.

Strain, 22, vanished during a bar crawl with his friends in Nashville on March 8 and was found dead in a river two weeks later after a huge manhunt. 

Police said they did not suspect foul play, but his family are still searching for answers as to how he died after chilling footage emerged of the student stumbling through the city hours before his death.

On Saturday, his heartbroken parents bravely walked onto stage at the University of Missouri and accepted Strain's diploma from the Mizzou College of Arts and Science. 

His mother wept and held his diploma up to the sky as students stood and cheered in a standing ovation in his honor.

Riley Strain, 22, vanished during a bar crawl with his friends in Nashville and was found dead two weeks later. His parents accepted his diploma from the University of Missouri in his honor

Riley's name was the first to be read out at the ceremony. 

As his parents and their partners accept the diploma on his behalf, they were met with fierce applause from the fellow students, staff and attendees.  

His mother, Michelle, wiped away tears and held the diploma aloft in a tribute to her son. 

The crowd of students and parents then got to their feet and applauded and cheered as the family comforted each other on stage. 

Riley was majoring in business and financial planning before his death.

The Delta Chi fraternity member went missing in Nashville on a trip for his frat's annual spring formal when he was kicked out of Luke's Bridge Food + Drink just after 9.30pm.

Strain had told his friends that he would meet them back at their hotel, but was nowhere to be seen when the group returned from their night out. 

His friends tried contacting him, but received no response and they reported Strain as missing as they failed to locate him via his Snapchat location.

A two week search for Strain ended when workers found his body in the Cumberland River eight miles away from where he vanished

Surveillance footage collected by police later from Downtown Smoke & Vape Shop on Church Street showed Strain near the intersection of 2nd Avenue and Church Street. 

The seemingly intoxicated student took a tumble, then quickly got back up and continued down the street.

Another camera caught near the intersection of Gay Street and 1st Avenue North just before 10pm taking large strides with his head down as he stumbled through the streets.

A massive searched was launched with police and residents scouring miles of city, river and countryside. 

The two week search ended when workers found his body in the Cumberland River eight miles away from where he vanished. 

An autopsy concluded that his death was 'accidental' with no indications of foul play. 

It is not yet clear what the exact cause of his death was, or why Strain was in the river.

The student had reportedly FaceTimed his mom Michelle Whiteid that evening, and she said nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

His parents previously said cops butchered the investigation into his disappearance, as more clues seemed to have come from the public than officers. 

The parents' criticism of the cops comes after TikTokers found a crucial piece of evidence that investigators failed to discover over a week after Strain went missing. 

Anna Clemdening and Brandy Baenen, had been rummaging through trash along the riverbank when they located Strain's bank card.

'My stomach dropped,' Clendening said, describing the moment she turned over the card to reveal Strain's name. 'My innate reaction was to be like, 'Let's keep looking.'

Strain's family, who had traveled from Missouri to Nashville for the search shared the news he had been found. 

His mother, Michelle, said: 'I just ask that you mommas out there, hug your babies tight tonight please.'

Michelle Strain Whiteid, Riley Strain's heartbroken mother broke her silence in a press conference just hours after her 22-year-old son was found dead in a river eight miles from where he vanished in Nashville 

She echoed the words of her husband Chris, Riley's stepfather, and the 22-year-old's father Ryan Gilbert of how much they appreciated the support from across the country.

Despite the family previously criticizing the police, Gilbert thanked the Metro Nashville Police Department for their efforts, as well as the volunteer United Cajun Navy. 

'It's just unbelievable what they've done for us,' Gilbert said. 

Stepfather Chris thanked the entire Nashville community for their help in trying to find Riley.

'It's been an emotional rollercoaster. We're quite thankful for everything that you've done for our family. The grace that you've given us, it means a lot, more than you'll ever know.' 

'To the people of Nashville, I can't thank you enough for the support, the love, the encouragement that you've shown myself and my wife,' Chris said.