Freshman forward Michelle Makasini is in her first season with the LSU women’s soccer team and comes to Baton Rouge from Euless, Texas, as one of the Top 75 recruits in the country for the Class of 2006 according to Soccer Buzz Magazine. She earned distinction as one of the nation’s premier strikers while leading her Dallas Texans club team to the U-18 USYS National Championship in July. Makasini has not disappointed with her play this year as she is currently the team’s leading scorer and ranks second in the Southeastern Conference with 10 goals and 27 points on the season.
Diary Entry
I look back on my first season here at LSU and I can’t believe it’s almost over. It literally has gone by in the blink of an eye and seems like we were just going through our preseason fitness tests and workouts during fall camp. Now we’re getting ready to play our last regular-season game tomorrow night. This is a game we definitely need to win if we want to go to the SEC Tournament in Orange Beach next week, and we’ve had a great week of practice this week as we get ready to play Arkansas. A lot has to happen for us to make it, but I have faith that if we take care of our business tomorrow night that it’ll all work out in our favor and we’ll be one of the eight teams in the tournament next week. We’re due to catch a break one of these weekends.
I really didn’t know what to expect when I came into this program during the summer. I just came in hoping for the best, and that’s exactly what I’ve got at LSU. This program is close to becoming one of the best teams in the SEC every year, and I’m happy to be a part of it. We’re a very young team right now, but we have a lot of potential and I’m excited to see exactly where we will stand in the SEC in the next three years I am here. My teammates are really one of a kind. It’s great because not only do we connect on the field, but we do off the field as well. I knew we would bond well before I even arrived at LSU because most of us have played either with each other or against each other for several years now. Just a couple months ago, most of us freshmen were playing against each other at Regionals and Nationals with our club teams, and it’s just crazy to think that we are all now teammates. I’ve had a lot of fun playing with so many great players this year.
When I moved into my apartment during the summer, I had a feeling that I would get a little homesick. But I haven’t really had that problem this semester, and my roommates are a big reason why. I live on campus in West Campus Apartments with Brittany Lowe (aka “B-Lowe”), Kat Walsh (aka “Kitty Kat”) and Rachel Yepez (aka “Yep”). Living with them has been a blast to say the least. No matter what we are doing we manage to always have fun and just laugh. We actually just got a new TV in our living room, which we are very thrilled about, and it’s a great way for us to bond even more if that’s at all possible. I’m also fortunate because I get to see my mom every other weekend, if not more. My mom and I are very close, so it makes me really happy when she gets to watch me play. She even surprised me the weekend we went to Georgia when she made that trip because I wasn’t expecting to see her. My dad came into town last weekend, and he had a blast going to the football and soccer games being the sports fanatic that he is. I also got to see my grandparents last weekend, and they all fell in love with LSU too when they got here. I guess it just runs in the family!!!
Leaving the state of Texas where I have lived my whole life really wasn’t that hard of a decision for me to make. I do miss my friends and family, but I knew that LSU was the school for me. Even on my first official visit, I knew that this school just felt like home to me. I can remember coming home from my official visit and just telling my mom that I didn’t have to visit any other schools because LSU was the right choice for me. I couldn’t have been more right with my decision. During my career here at LSU, I hope to not only accomplish great things in the classroom by making good grades and getting my degree, but I want to win an SEC Championship more than anything. This team is very capable of doing that, and this program is really close to becoming a contender year in and year out. I know we all want to leave our mark on this program by the time our careers are over, and I can’t wait to find out what the next three years will bring.