BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Today we continue a new series called Student-Athlete Spotlight, presented by Coca-Cola, that will highlight Samford's outstanding student-athletes. Today's 11^th episode featured softball fifth-year senior pitcher Taylor DeCelles.
 
DeCelles pitched the complete game in the softball team's 10-2 win over Bryant on March 12, the final event prior to the quarantine due to the COVID-19 pandemic. DeCelles and her teammates went into the game not knowing what would happen, and she talked about how they found out about the possibility of the season being canceled.


 
"Before the game, I honestly wasn't really expecting it," DeCelles said of the shutdown. "When I first came into the locker room, I had a really good mindset, I was ready to play. And then probably an hour and a half before the game started, we got a notification that the SEC had just canceled their season. I think that's kind of when it really set in. So, Coach Mandy (Burford-Johnson) gathered the team for a team meeting right before, and she looked at all of us seniors and said, 'this could possibly be your last game, so every single one of you is going to play every inning.' And she said, 'Taylor, you're going to pitch every of this game.' And I just lost it. I was so overwhelmed with emotions, thinking that this could be the last game of my career."
 
DeCelles said once the game started, she just tried to enjoy what was possibly her last game in a Samford uniform.
 
"During the game, I tried to have a really good mindset about it, just enjoying my time with my friends and just kind of soaking it all in," DeCelles said. "And then after the game, that was probably the weirdest part, because they had come out with a notification about the season probably being canceled. I didn't know what to feel and I honestly just hoped for the best, that I could have at least one more game with my girls."
 
The NCAA later came out with a decision that student-athletes on spring sports teams would not lose a year of eligibility, meaning DeCelles and her fellow seniors could come back for another year. She said she immediately thought she wanted to return for another season at Samford.
 
"When I actually found out, I was at dinner with my family," DeCelles said. "The first thing that popped into my head was, 'I've got to go back, I've got to go back.' So, I actually called Whitney (Hinton) and I said, 'we've got to do this, I have to come back, there's no way I can't come back.' And she said, 'I am on board with you, T, let's do this.' But, for weeks after that, I thought, is this really what I need to do, should I spend another year away from my family? But, every single one of them was so encouraging and so on board with me going back, because they know it's what I love and that I would completely regret it if I didn't come back for another year."