Morgan Cook
LSU softball junior infielder Danieca Coffey (13) dances after reaching first base Saturday, May 20, 2023, during LSU’s 4-0 win against ULL at Tiger Park in Baton Rouge, La.
LSU softball’s redshirt senior third baseman, Danieca Coffey has been hot since her freshman year. At the Judi Garman Classic, she had an off weekend, but she has since reignited in the LSU Round Robin.
The championship mindset is deep in Coffey’s blood because of the adversity she has faced in her career.
Everyone in the country expected her to stay hot during the weekend in California, but that wasn’t the case. Coffey batted .286 on the weekend in the Judi Garman Classic, dropping her batting average nearly 100 points.
Since, Coffey has been named SEC Player of the Week, making twice in the last three weeks. Coffey leads the team with a .561 batting average, and she is second on the team in RBIs with 26, behind Tori Edwards.
So how has Coffey’s career impacted her ability to handle adversity?
Due to the loaded roster in 2021, Coffey came in and made waves in what fans assumed to be an established lineup.
During preseason scrimmages before her freshman year, head coach Beth Torina said the Tigers defense simply couldn’t get her out. A large statement considering the 2021 team was known for their defensive prowess.
As a freshman, she started 41 games, taking a secure second base spot from sophomore Taylor Tidwell. Coffey caused some good problems for Torina and her staff. Coffey and Tidwell were thrown back and forth in position and second base or as designated players, because both were solid defensively and offensively.
Despite Torina giving Coffey high praise, as a freshman she only batted .226 with an on base percentage of .247. But Torina was not done with pushing Coffey as an athlete.
Coffey became a fixture in the lineup, batting .379 across all 57 games of the season from the leadoff spot predominantly. She suffered her lowest fielding percentage in her career as a sophomore at third base with .892.
Her junior season was truly her breakout season. She batted nearly .400, while maintaining a fielding percentage 100 points higher than the year prior. As a leadoff batter Coffey was seemingly unstoppable. With fellow junior Ciara Briggs following behind her in the lineup, LSU was golden.
Coffey showed her ability to handle adversity after her senior season. In 2024, she was having what was easily her best year yet defensively and offensively. Nobody argued that LSU had one of the best third base and leadoff combinations in the country.
But it all came to a screeching halt on March 2, 2024, when she collided with the catcher and tore her ACL.
Although she had experienced setbacks several times in her career, this one was definitely the biggest. LSU was lost without a leader after her injury in the 2024 season. Nobody Torina moved to the leadoff spot was as electric as Coffey.
In 2025, she seems to be all gas in her final year of eligibility. She is playing freer and knows that it can all change in a moment.
“I think the difference between last year and this year is, I know the sport can be different for me at any given moment,” Coffey said. “I used to settle and now it’s like, every single at-bat, there’s an intention behind every single swing, and there’s not a chance of letting up, because I know what could happen if I don’t take one step without intention.”
Coffey’s first at-bat after getting injured in 2024 was a leadoff single versus Charlotte on Feb. 7 in the season opener.
The mindset she has instilled in herself that the younger players have soaked up so far this season will continue to allow LSU softball to move up the ranks higher and faster than ever.
“You can take all the swings you want [in the cage], but if you don’t have competitiveness out there in the game, it doesn’t matter how good you can swing,” Coffey said.
Even though softball is just a game, Coffey says LSU is always on the field to handle business. This veteran softball player is a strong athlete that many young girls look up to, and for the right reason.
“I think the biggest [thing she is teaching the freshman] is understanding that [away games] are a business trip,” Coffey says. “That’s what Coach always says, like, we’re there to do business. Yeah, you’re also there to have a good time, but just understanding you’re there to do a job and be grateful that LSU is giving us a private fly and all those things like our clothes and our place to stay in food all the time.”