RAYNE — For many people, softball is just a sport to play but for Maci Bergeron, it's a family tradition.
"I found a love for it when I was really young," Bergeron said.
Bergeron plays the game almost year-round. Between playing for powerhouse Notre Dame and travel ball, the senior catcher is always booked up.
"I think softball is more of the way it makes me feel in like big games and the adrenaline rush,” Bergeron said. “I just get a rush from playing.”
Bergeron's talent is no secret around the state. In 2020, she hit a state single-season record of 30 home runs and earned Louisiana’s Softball Gatorade Player of the Year. She did that while helping lead the Pioneers to their third consecutive state title. Now, she's preparing to play for the USA Softball Junior National team in November.
"I was really excited because it's always been a dream of mine to represent my country,” Bergeron said. “I think not many people are given the opportunity to do that. I'm very grateful that I'm given the opportunity to do it."
USA Softball selected the MaxPreps top-ranked prospect as one of its 16 players. Not to mention, Bergeron committed to play for LSU as an eighth-grader.
"It was a very tough thing for me to decide at such a young age,” Bergeron said. “I just knew that I belonged at LSU. I think it's the culture and the fans. I just love Louisiana, and I want to represent my state."
With another busy season being pitched her, Bergeron is ready to knock it out of the park.
"I hope people say that I worked my hardest, that I gave it my all, that I was a good teammate, and that I never gave up," Bergeron said.
The team will play in the Junior Pan American Games in Columbia from November 25 to December 4 and in the U-18 World Cup in Peru from December 5 to December 12.
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