Sept. 14, 2009

Photo Gallery

Every week throughout the school year, the staff at GoLeopards.com will spotlight a student-athlete in a weekly Q&A segment. Today, senior women's lacrosse player Maria Drehwing talks about her summer, love of art history and more.

How did you spend your summer? Did you do any internships, travel anywhere, workout for lacrosse? This summer I had the chance to live in Manhattan in the NYU dorms while I participated in two internships. One was for Kinney and Kinsella (a PR firm) and the other was for Crossmedia (a media buying and planning company). Both were enjoyable and it was really fun to live in the city! I also spent two weeks in Martha's Vineyard in August. As for lacrosse, I played in a summer league at Stevens College in Hoboken, which was a lot of fun. I worked out a lot with my two sisters (Ana and Elizabeth) because they both play Division 1 lacrosse, as well. Ana is a first year at Lafayette and will be playing lacrosse with me, and my other sister Elizabeth plays at Sacred Heart University.

What's your major and what do you like about your major? I am a double major with Government & Law and Art History. Although they are two very different subjects I love them both. I hope to go to law school at some point after college. I really like Art History because I was lucky enough to study abroad in Europe and it is fun to learn about a lot of the amazing works of art over there.

What class are you most looking forward to this semester? I am really looking forward to this Asian Art History class I am taking. Last semester I took a GovLaw class on comparing Asian politics and that sparked my interest in that region of the world. I am excited that there is an art history class that corresponds to one of my GovLaw classes; that's not too common!

What is your role on the team? As a senior I hope to be a leader on and off the field. On the field, I hope to have a positive presence on the attack; however, I'm ready to fill whatever role is best for the team. I hope that all the underclassmen can view me as someone who they can talk to about anything, whether it is academics, athletics or social life. We are lucky to have nine seniors on the squad this year. It will be a nice change to have a lot of upperclassmen on the field, since in the past three years I've played we have never had more than two seniors. I think it will be a great year for us.

What is your earliest women's lacrosse memory? I only began to play lacrosse sophomore year of high school. I played softball freshman year, then all my friends decided to try out for lacrosse because it was a new program at our school. My earliest memory ironically was breaking my nose while trying to learn how to pass and catch with my friend the day before tryouts!

Do you model yourself after any particular player? I admire different individual aspects of my teammates' talents and characteristics. I think that everyone on my team possesses a special characteristic whether it is talent or personality that brings something to the table.

What can you take from your sport and incorporate into everyday life? It has taught me that hard work and a positive attitude always pays off. I have also gained the skill of working well with others, which is an important quality to have.

My pregame ritual is... I just listen to some music and go over the scouting report and try to relax in the locker room before we go out to games.

What does it mean to be a Lafayette Leopard? Being an athlete at Lafayette is such a privilege because I'm able to enjoy such a quality education, play a competitive sport and I can even study abroad. I'm proud to represent a school where a student-athlete is able to do that.

The sport I'm worst at is... Soccer- I have no foot/eye coordination!

Something about me that others would be surprised to hear is... I never played lacrosse till my sophomore year in high school.

Who would play you in a movie about yourself? Why? Probably my friend Julia Bateman (she's on the lacrosse team with me). We went abroad together and she knows me inside and out and I'm sure she has some great impressions of me up her sleeve. She could also probably write a book about my embarrassing life moments as well!

TV show I can't stop watching... E True Hollywood Stories...guilty pleasure!

Song I can't stop listening to... "Party in the USA" by Miley Cyrus

What is the greatest thing you can learn from a loss? After a loss it's important to look back and ask yourself if you did everything you could to help your team, and that begins with preparation for the game. If you think you could have done more, then you have to use what you've learned for next time.

What do you still wish to accomplish? I want to win a Patriot League championship and beat Lehigh!

If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go? I'd really like to go to India because a lot of my studies have included Asia recently and I find it fascinating.

You have an entire day to do whatever you want. Where do you go and what do you do? I would definitely sleep in and if it was nice out then probably go to the beach!

What's been your most interesting out-of-classroom academic experience? Studying abroad in London was a great learning experience because I was exposed to many different cultures and people that helped me to grow so much as a person and explore the world.

Word Association:

Lafayette: Great community

Lafayette Athletics: Competitive

Lacrosse: Life

Early morning practices: Metzgar

Your coaches: Devoted

Your teammates: Family

Lafayette-Lehigh rivalry: FUN

Preseason: Exhausting

Strength & Conditioning Coach(es): Motivating