DJ Sanders didn’t have an ordinary summer.
Instead of relaxing after a standout freshman season at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Sanders took an important step in her softball career as a member of the United States Junior Women’s National Team. Sanders had such a good time that she recently thought about contacting her new friends and teammates about the possibility of having a reunion.
At the time, the thought of getting together somewhere in the middle of the country seemed to be wonderful idea because Sanders didn’t think there were any USA National Team events scheduled, so everyone would be free.
Sanders better check her calendar because that reunion is going to come a little sooner than expected.
Last week, the former New Hope High School standout learned in an email that she was one of two ULL players who had been invited to attend the USA Softball Women’s National Team Selection Camp on Jan. 2-8, 2016 at Bill Barber Park in Irvine, California.
“I knew playing on the Junior National Team would put my name in the pool of players (who would be considered for the national team), but I didn’t think it would be so soon,” Sanders said. “I was thinking it would be next year. Then I forgot that the tryouts were in January.
“It was still all a surprise. I was silently really excited (when she read the email informing her she had been invited).”
Sanders said she opened the email at the library and couldn’t make a lot of noise. She did say, though, that if people had seen her reading the email they might have thought she was having a seizure because she was so excited.
ULL’s Lexie Elkins and 41 other invitees will join Sanders at the tryout for the USA Softball Women’s National Team. Seventeen players will be selected to compete at the World Cup of Softball XI, the XV World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Women’s World Championship, and the Japan Cup.
Sanders attracted plenty of attention in the summer as a first-time member of the USA Junior Women’s National Team. She hit .583 (14-for-24) with a home run, three doubles, and eight RBIs to help her team win a gold medal at the Junior Women’s World Championship in Oklahoma City.
This is the first invitation to the national team selection camp for Sanders.
Sanders expects this experience to be different. First, she said the coaches told the players at the Junior Women’s National Team event what positions they were trying out for. She also said it will be adjustment knowing she is competing for a spot with great players like former Tennessee pitcher Monica Abbott.
But Sanders said she won’t be fazed competing against so many of the nation’s best players because her versatility allows her to play a lot of positions. She went to the Junior Women’s National Team Camp as a shortstop but wound up playing in the outfield and at first base.
Sanders said she is trying not to dwell on the fact that her invitation is “kind of a big deal” and that it shows her dream of playing on the USA Women’s National Team and in the Olympics is alive and well.
“This is it. This is what I have been working for,” Sanders said. “I don’t expect to make it my first year, but the fact they considered me for this means that they are trying to keep me in the circle.
“This is a huge deal. I was reading the list of names and Monica Abbott is the first name on the list. That they’re putting us on the same level, that is insane to me. It is like, ‘Do you know who this woman is?’ This is really cool.”
Louisiana-Lafayette softball coach Michael Lotief wasn’t surprised Sanders was invited to the national team training camp. He said the opportunity the coaches had in the summer to be around Sanders every day and to see her skills, her competitive attitude, and her work ethic helped seal the deal.
“She is a winner, as evidenced by her contributions and, ultimately, winning a gold medal,” Lotief said. “She is a team player and always puts the team first and possesses values becoming of wearing USA across her chest and representing Mississippi and the Ragin’ Cajuns with class and respect.”
Lotief said the Ken Eriksen, the head coach of the United States’ National Team, and two USA Softball administrators selected the players to be invited to the training camp.
Sanders’ ultimate goal is to be selected for the USA Women’s National Team and to represent her country in the Olympics. It remains to be seen if softball will gain a spot back in the Olympics, but Sanders feels she has time to reach her potential before that decision is made. She hopes her next opportunity with some of the nation’s best players helps her take another step toward realizing that dream.
“I just keep thinking about where I am right now and the level I am playing at and how much better it could be because I don’t feel like I have reached as good as I could be,” Sanders said. “When I get my swing down I am going to be on it. This is giving me a little more motivation — not like I needed more — but a little push to keep going and not be satisfied.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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