It’s that time of year again. Even with football season in full swing the women’s basketball season is right around the corner. To kick off our 2020-2021 coverage of the women’s team, we will preview each player on Northwestern’s roster. Next up is sophomore guard Lauryn Satterwhite.

Who she is

Redshirt junior; 5-foot-7; Avondale, AZ

Stats

5.3 minutes per game; 0.7 points per game; 0.7 rebounds per game; 0.6 assists per game; .227 FG%, .167 3PT%, .333 FT%

2019-2020 review

After sitting out her freshman year from a lower-body injury, Satterwhite has only grown in her contributions on the court over her last two healthy seasons. The standout line-up and depth of talent Northwestern had last season at guard made it hard for Satterwhite to find a lot of minutes, but each game her number was called, she proved to be ready.

Satterwhite had two points and an assist in the win over Loyola Maryland and only went up from there. She collected two crucial assists in only four minutes of an overtime victory over Marquette and dominated on defense with a season-high five rebounds, four assists, and three steals in a victory over Colgate. She also contributed through scoring and rebounding against Dartmouth, Illinois, and Michigan State.

Northwestern Athletics

Strengths

Satterwhite is the definition of a true team player — someone who does everything they can to help her team win whether on the bench or on the court. While she may not be someone you see in the mix at all times when she is on the court, she is always looking to set her teammates up for success with her assists. As for the defense side, she does not let her height limit her by going for every rebound she can when in the game.

When she did enter the game in her past two seasons, Satterwhite often brought a necessary boost of energy off the bench and provided solid minutes to reliever her fellow guards Lindsey Pulliam, Veronica Burton and Syndey Wood. And year after year, her teammates praise not only her leadership but her infectious personality that motivates them to play their best.

Weaknesses

The biggest weakness is not looking to score enough on her own. While creating a shot for others is important, she needs to capitalize on creating her own shot at times as well, especially in this deep guard group that she’s competing for time in. While she brings the energy, her statistical performance has not been up to par with those of Pulliam, Wood, Burton or Jordan Hamilton, often leaving Satterwhite on the bench longer than the others.

Especially as teams start to limit her fellow guards, Satterwhite will need to become a more reliable scorer and creator off the bench to step up when her number is called.

Expectations

Entering the preseason, Satterwhite’s name has been mentioned must more than before by her coaches and teammates as a player who has pleasantly surprised them during preseason practices. Last season, she proved she had what it took to compete with any team she was given minutes against and will only look to add to that, as she will be expected to contribute more minutes this season with the loss of vital players from last year’s squad.

While Northwestern did not lose any of its starting guards and return four players in that group all capable of starting, the team is expected to run a shorter lineup with four guards and a center to account for the loss of Abi Scheid and Abbie Wolf in the post. This means that Satterwhite will have even more of an opportunity to play this year and must be ready to come off the bench and contribute.