Lauren Jones has been an influential factor in the Greater Latrobe School District’s Field Hockey team, contributing for all four years of her high school career. Lauren has achieved a vast number of accomplishments, whether it be gaining the title of a WPIAL finalist for two years, the top scorer for Latrobe’s field hockey team for three years, or attaining the top scorer from her club team TGT in Pittsburgh for two years. Jones additionally inspired others on her team, being voted as one of the team captains for two consecutive years.

Pushing her passion beyond Latrobe’s Field Hockey Team, Lauren exerted herself to get involved into her club team, Team Golden Triangle, in which she traveled every weekend in the winter to play in tournaments. Lauren Jones has achieved the opportunity to participate in tournaments in a variety of states, including Florida and Kentucky. Lauren continued to push herself, attending a clinic hosted by Olympic Field Hockey Players which allowed her to expand her skills. 

Lauren Jones explain the start of her passion, expressing,  “I first got into field hockey through a friend who played the sport. We were involved in the same club team, YWCA, when I was in first grade.” 

Practicing during the fall and participating in an indoor winter season, Lauren began to attend twice a week. Influencing her career to continue beyond first grade, her biggest influences would include her sister as well as her mom. 

During her high school career, the coach of the Greater Latrobe Field hockey team, Jeff Giordan, began to be an influential factor in pushing Lauren’s success. Lauren mentioned, “I would definitely say that my coaches pushed me, because I didn’t have motivation all the time so having them to continue to assure me why I’m there, what I do and love, and why it’s so important to me is what continued to make me better as an athlete.” 

Lauren began to realize her love for field hockey was to continue beyond high school. Lauren’s sister, Libby Jones, is a 2018 graduate who is continuing to fulfill her position as goalie of the field hockey team at Mercyhurst University. Looking up to her older sister who plays field hockey in college allowed her to see her success and happiness, recognizing what she wanted to take from her experiences and how to find a perfect fit for a college team. 

Lauren began her search in finding an ideal college team, looking for a team that had a really strong bond between all of the players and the coaches. Lauren indicated, “Throughout my search, I encountered Stevens Institute of Technology where I really just fell in love with the campus, fell in love with the players and coach, and everything kind of lined up.” Lauren has been talking with the coach from Stevens Institute of Technology, which is a division III school in Hoboken, New Jersey. 

Lauren is most excited to experience a new environment in college, in which she will have the chance to meet new people and develop a strong relationship with the team. Lauren said, “ I think there’s a variety of things that are unpredictable that come your way to really change your life for the better. I believe that being on a sports team will help you through the good and bad and I’m really excited to see what happens in my career.” 

Jones has overcome many challenges, however, she said, “I think the challenge will be adapting to the new environment at first. Time management will be a big thing, especially on a sports team.” 

Lauren is excited to push herself further, anticipating to gain the sense of a team and leadership skills. Being a big part of several field hockey teams throughout her life will help her in the future with social situations and different ways to handle every personality on the team. The leadership Lauren Jones has had through being a team captain for two years and leading the team by being a top scorer will not only allow her to be successful in the future, but also allow her to commit to a loving sports team.