her mother got a heart-stopping call. >> the officer said, are you rebecca thomas and is your daughter erin thomas and i just thought, is she dead? i was just panicked. >> reporter: and shocked. often bench drinkers aren't the campus misfits. they're just as likely good girls under enormous pressure just trying to fit in. erin says she first began lying to her mother in eighth grade. >> it was about me wanting to make a decision and knowing that i wasn't going to be able to do anything unless i did it behind her back. >> reporter: you wanted control? >> yes. >> often under age bingers secretly pregame pounding stomach turning quantities of alcohol before the school dance or the big game where alcohol is strictly banned. >> getting five beers over a couple hours could be pretty common. >> little kids don't even like the taste of alcohol. >> they hate it. >> they're just chugging it. >> disgusting. >> and you're encouraging each other sitting there going, just do it, just fast. here. and telling each other tips how to drink it faster so you don't taste it. >> for girls, alcohol has the a