2019 Cal women’s basketball commit Lauren Fields out of Shawnee High School in Shawnee, Oklahoma took her official visit to Cal earlier this fall. Even though she’s been committed to Cal since August of 2017, Fields walked away from her visit with a perspective of Cal that she didn’t previously have. Fields shared the highlights of her visit with GoldenBearReport.com, explaining why she’s so excited to join the Cal program next season.

“My official visit was so amazing that I became even more certain about how much I wanted to continue my education at Cal and play for Coach Gottlieb,” Fields said with excitement. “My overall experience in one word would be ‘eye-opening.’ I met with various Cal staff members over the course of my visit regarding my college classes. It gave me a glimpse of what my days will look like when I get on campus.

“What stood out most to me, is how basketball is not the only thing the coaches are concerned about. Yes, of course they place great emphasis on winning and player development, but they’re big on relationships outside of practice and workouts. The Cal women’s basketball program has a true family connection. The coaches also talk about life after basketball and the larger picture which shows that they care for you as a person and not just your ability to play basketball.”

While Fields is getting along well with all of her future teammates, two in particular stand out, namely freshman McKenzie Forbes and sophomore Kianna Smith. Fields sees both of them as people she can lean on for advice and guidance.

“I had a good relationship with Kenzie before I went on my official visit, but I definitely built onto that relationship as well,” Fields said. “Also, I built a great relationship with Kianna as well. Kianna and Kenzie are both people who I can reach out to if I have a question about something or need advice.”

In addition to her coaches and teammates, Lauren Fields truly connects with the entire Berkeley experience. She admires the diversity of its community and its rich history.

“Cal is the home of freedom of speech so there’s a lot of opportunities to learn from different people,” Fields said. “Also player development is one thing the Cal women’s basketball program is tremendous at. They have made un-ranked players, coming out of their high school years, into professional basketball players. I can’t wait to learn as much as I can from different people as well as my coaches regarding basketball.”

When looking ahead to her time at Cal, what Fields hopes to bring is an all-around winning attitude. She wants to be a player that works really hard and builds up those around her.

“I’m hoping to bring energy, enthusiasm, and effort to the program,” Fields said. “I want to bring the same kind of high energy that I was highly recruited for during my previous years of basketball. My love and passion for the game of basketball will hopefully be contagious towards my teammates. Lastly, I’ve been taught that great effort will always go a long way. I pride myself on working hard on both ends of the court.”

On the academic side, Fields has an interest in engineering and also business. While she isn’t yet certain of what direction she’ll go, Fields walked away from her visit with a better feel for her options after sitting down with an academic advisor.

“I was thinking about majoring in Engineering,” Fields said. “On my visit I had the opportunity to meet with The Director of Recruiting & Eligibility, Abby Bradbury. She was very helpful in providing me information about the engineering program and the different types of engineering. I’m also considering business and marketing. I’ve heard nothing but great things about The Haas School of Business.”

At this point, the main focus for Lauren Fields is to finish her senior year strong and prepare herself for her freshman year at Cal. She’s really focusing on leadership and diversifying her game:

“Of course I want to win a gold ball at the end of the season, but as an individual goal for my senior year I would like to work on my leadership skills. Being a leader is a major necessity I will need to partake in order to win state. As far as development for Pac-12 ball, I’ve constantly been working on getting better at my pull up jump shot and change of speed (slow to fast, fast to slow).”