Amber Serrett has become a mainstay at shortstop.
LSU coach Beth Torina knew from the beginning of the season that the sophomore infielder would be a permanent fixture in the field for the Tigers.
Last season, Serrett appeared in nine games at left field before becoming the starter at shortstop when All-American Bianka Bell was shifted to third base.
But for Torina, it was always the plan for Serrett to play shortstop.
“She belongs at shortstop,” Torina said. “We had a first team All-American shortstop last year in Bianka Bell so those things don’t just happen overnight, they have to work themselves out. But yeah she’s a shortstop, she was not an outfielder.”
Serrett has shown that she belongs in the starting lineup. She is nearly perfect in the field, with only one error this season.
She’s not only making the routine plays that she’s expected to, but other stunning, high caliber plays. Though she has had multiple show-stopping performances, a bare-handed grab to end the inning against Florida Atlantic appeared at No. 7 on SportsCenter’s Top Ten Plays on March 3, 2017.
“The one play was ridiculous, it was stupid,” Torina described it.
Serrett describes appearing on SportsCenter as a “dream come true,” but she is more focused on working hard and making the plays she needs to make.
LSU’s defense is solid to begin with, but Serrett’s consistency in the field provides stability and energy for the team both in the field and at the plate.
In a game like softball, the mood throughout the team is everything to its success. Making those major inning-ending plays contributes to the overall atmosphere in the dugout.
“It sets the tone because that was the third out of the inning and then we go in and score runs,” junior pitcher Carley Hoover said. “She’s great. And she’s a leader, too.”
With Serrett at the center, the defense does well to back up one of the top pitching staffs in the country, and making them comfortable in the circle. Serrett said the team’s chemistry on the field allows for everyone to do their part to help the team improve.
Serrett is just as consistent at the plate as she is in the field.
Through 22 games, she is batting .300, with 15 hits and two home runs. With only two home runs in all of last season, she said she finds it funny.
“I think of myself as more as just a gap to gap hitter,” Serrett said. “Just to get things done, get jobs done. I think the home runs came with two strikes and my mentality was just try to find something to hit hard and stay alive.”
Senior right fielder Bailey Landry said that even when she struggled with her batting early in the season, she worked hard and made the appropriate adjustments in order to get the results that she wanted. Serrett watches the film on her swing to tweak and fix small things that help her at bat.
One thing Torina preaches to her team is being productive at the plate and consistent through all areas of the game. Serrett has done both of those things since she arrived at LSU.
“She’s just capable of great things and just so solid and consistent,” Torina said. “That’s something we talked about, just trying to be consistent on all facets and I think she’s the picture of that for us.”

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Kelly McDuff

LSU sophomore infielder Amber Serrett (17) runs to home base during the Tigers’ 10-2 victory over ISU on Friday, March 3, 2017, at Tiger Park.