Sarah Hatcher '21 Recruiting Profile

     My name is Sarah Hatcher. I am 14 and a freshman at Mount De Sales Academy in Macon, Georgia.  I have played softball since I can remember. As the years go by, my passion and love for this sport has grown.  Probably the biggest turning point for me was one day at a softball camp at Mercer University when I was 9 I met Kirsten Shortridge.  She explained to my parents who she was and said she would like to start teaching me how to pitch. My parents were hesitant and Kirsten told them to google her and let her know if interested.  We did just that and learned she was a former D1 standout still holding all kinds of records so we decided we wanted to work with her. I learned so much from her about both the mental and physical aspects of the game. It was during those 2 years working with her that I decided I wanted to play at the highest level possible for me.

      To say sports is in my blood may be an understatement. I come from one of the largest coaching families in Georgia and have learned so much from them. Several of my cousins and aunts and uncles are or have been D1 head coaches or assistant coaches and many are or have been high school varsity coaches and athletic directors and several cousins and and uncles have played for D1 or lower schools. Many of them talk to me about playing a team sport and the type of athlete coaches are looking for. I have really taken all their words of wisdom to heart and strive to be my best both on and off the field and always try to have a "never give up" attitude. I love softball for so many reasons. My teams are like my family and I have so many sisters and I love that. I love that this sport teaches me so many life lessons.....like when you win, stay humble.  When you lose, pick yourself back up, pick your team back up and we learn from our mistakes and become better and stronger. My dad always tells me to play to win but our losses/failures in life make us who we are.  Showing sportsman like conduct is a big deal to me. This to me is both on and off the field. I feel I represent all the teams I play for at all times and I feel that my actions reflect on those teams and coaches anywhere I may be. I am a competitive person and love playing at the highest level. Playing teams better than you are is how I know what I need to work on and can come up with my goals from this. I have learned that my coaches don't always make the right decisions but to respect their decisions no matter what. I have learned that sitting the bench isn't to be taken personally and when I am sitting the bench my role changes to cheering on my team. I have also learned that attitude is everything not just in softball but in life! These are just a few of many.

     This last season I played travel ball for a team that my parents had to turn in my grades each month. If a player fell below a certain GPA she would be penalized with playing time. They did this of course to get us ready for playing in college if that was our goal. I was a little scared at first but embraced it and made the national junior beta club last year as a result of this. That was also a great way to get me ready for 9th grade because my grades will start counting now!

     I will continue working on my personal goals both in softball and academically.  Presently I am working on increasing my speed in pitching, lowering my pop time in catching, and working on my hitting to get that extra lift on the ball so they go over the fence. I am working on keeping my grades up and asking the teacher for help the moment I need it.  I will be an asset to a college softball program and am just looking forward to the next few years to see where this sport may take me!