Notre Dame's Satchell inks with LSU

CROWLEY – As a sophomore, Notre Dame’s Taylor Satchell wasn’t a big LSU fan.
She actually wasn’t a fan at all.
That all changed  in 2012 when she made an unofficial visit to Baton Rouge.
From there, Satchell was hooked; so much so that she gave the Lady Tigers a verbal commitment after the visit.
Then, last Tuesday, she made it official by signing a National Letter of Intent to play softball at LSU beginning in the fall.
“Going into my visit, I actually didn’t want to go there (LSU) at all. I mean that was the one school that I didn’t put on my list and I didn’t want to go to,” said Satchell. “Once I went on the visit and met coach Beth (Torina) and the team and saw the new softball facility, I just fell in love with it. The coaches were really nice and it was just great.”
Satchell will join a group of five other players who signed with the Tigers’ Tuesday, including Brusly outfielder Akiya Thymes and St. Joseph’s infielder Elyse Thornhill. Also signing with LSU were infielders Shemiah Sanchez of Georgia and Amber Serrett of Texas and pitcher Sydney Smith of Minnesota.
Torina led the Lady Tigers to their 16th NCAA Regional Tournament appearance last season were they fell just short of a Super Regional with a loss to Arizona in the regional finals.
“Taylor is a gritty player, that you just love to watch play; she understands the game and plays hard all the time,” Torina said. “She’s a true utility player that will help us in a multitude of areas.”
With three infielders in this year’s signing class joining a group of returning starters, Satchell, is unsure what her role will be in the fall. That, however, doesn’t seem to bother her.
“I play a lot of infield and I can catch also. And if need be, if it’s a starting position, I will play outfield,” said Satchell, who also plays with the Wichita Mustangs travel club. “Honestly, I’m just looking to start; so where ever that is, I’ll play.”
Satchell is entering her senior season at Notre Dame after a stellar junior campaign that saw her hit .462 with a team-leading nine home runs and 46 RBI. She also racked up 10 doubles, eight triples and 32 runs scored while striking out just eight times in 99 plate appearances.
Those numbers were more than enough to earn her first-team accolades on both the Louisiana Sports Writer’s Association and the Louisiana Softball Coaches Association All-State teams. She was also an All-District and All-Acadia Parish selection as well.
Taylor is the daughter of Michael and Tracey Satchell of Rayne.