Lauren Hibshman has enjoyed plenty of success playing field hockey at a number of levels throughout her playing career.

After a stellar career at Parkland that included being named to the LVC All-Conference team and a member of the PFHCA First Team All-State in her final two seasons as a Trojan, Hibshman is now in the midst of her first collegiate season at Drexel University.

As a member of the Dragons, Hibshman has started in each of their 14 games so far. She's tied for second on the team with three assists on the season for a Drexel team that is currently 10-4 overall and 3-1 in conference play.

"Freshman year in college is a big step whether you are an athlete or not," said Hibshman. "This year, I am focusing on breaking my old bad habits I have picked up throughout my career as well as adopt new and better techniques, which is much easier said than done."

While playing at the collegiate level is a great accomplishment in itself, Hibshman's success didn't stop there. After a number of months of training and preparation, she was selected to the 2012-13 U19 Junior National Field Hockey Squad, a unique feat that has Hibshman playing virtually year-round.

"Between high school season, club and all the other field hockey events that happen throughout the year, there was not much down time," said Hibshman. "While it was sometimes tough to play all year, it was a huge advantage for me because I learned so much and grew a lot as player in the past year that has helped me transition into my freshman season a lot easier."

Not many people can say they've experienced what Hibshman has during her career while playing on both the collegiate and national scenes.

"Being chosen as a member of the U19 squad has probably been the highlight of my career thus far," said Hibshman. "I always dreamed of wearing USA on my uniform and when it actually happened it was surreal.

"Getting the opportunity to play field hockey internationally is something that has been invaluable to my career because I was exposed to different styles of play and skills that I was not accustomed to playing against. It really helped me mature as a player because not only was I playing against some of the best, but I was playing beside the best players of my age in the country."

While she didn't know what to expect heading into her freshman season as a Dragon, Hibshman has transitioned from high school relatively well thanks in large part to her former Trojan family and current Drexel squad.

"I knew I would have to work hard and it would be intense, but I did not know what to expect about anything else," said Hibshman. "So far, [the] season has been awesome. My teammates are amazing, especially the freshmen who push me to do my best and are always there for me whenever I have a rough day.

"Academically, I feel that I can handle the workload in college because I am used to it from my years at Parkland when I had to manage my time carefully. Field hockey wise, my former high school coach [her mother Donna] had a similar coaching style to the one of my current coach, which has definitely helped me with the transition."

The Dragons have five games remaining in the regular season, including three against Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) foes. The CCA playoffs will begin on November 1.