BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Buffalo native Sydney Berzon is in her second year on LSU's softball team, quickly transforming into a force for the Tigers on the mound.
"It was nerve-racking obviously entering D1 softball, entering the SEC. You're facing some of the best competition there can be," said Sydney.
Sydney embraced all of the challenges, as she was recently named to the 2024 SEC All-Tournament team. In addition, she walked away from the tournament setting an SEC record of 14 innings pitched against Alabama.
"I caught a second wind around the 11th-12th inning. It was very hot out, but I caught a second wind. They started playing one of my favorite songs," said Sydney.
According to her parents, her determination and commitment to the game developed at a young age.
"'Do you want to give this up to play softball or practice more?' She'd be like, 'Yeah, I'll give that up," said her father, Michael Berzon. "Over the years, the other sports kind of fell by the wayside."
It didn't take long to catch the attention of other coaches, and she eventually landed at Baylor, one of the top boarding schools in the country.
Her parents made a tough decision to allow their daughter to move to Tennessee and develop her skills at just 14 years old.
"It was the hardest decision I ever had to make, and it was to allow her to follow her dreams," said Hilary Berzon.
Sydney says she has so much she wants to achieve with her team, including winning a World Series.
"Be the best teammate I can, to help take all these girls as far as they want because this is everyone's dream. This is why we play at this level," said Sydney.
