About Me

My High School Experience

Hi! My name is Sydney Hernandez and I am junior at Samford University. I am in Samford's Sports Analytics Program, which means I am an economics major with concentrations in sports marketing and data analytics. I am so lucky to have this opportunity, but it would not have been possible if it were not the crazy experiences I have endured, which you can read more about here!

My sophomore year, I was really challenged. I was taking all honors, accelerated, and AP classes. I was in AP Physics 1 and I LOVED it! It was all speed, velocity, and projectile motion. I loved how I could tie it all back to baseball. In addition to my rigorous courses, it was my first year as a baseball manager. My coach knew I was into tracking stats, so he gave me a BP chart for practices and a "Kangaroo Chart" for games. I was really enjoying what I was doing and wanted to do even more.

However, my baseball stat tracking had to take a break when I took a foul ball to the face in March 2019. The baseball broke my nose, the bones underneath my eyes, between my eyebrows, chipped my teeth, and gave me a concussion.

WARNING: image of the injury ahead!

I found ways to stay positive though all of my family, friends, and teammates. I had the best support system in the world, including teachers that dedicated their spring break to catching me up in my classes. Being in AP Physics and missing a month of school is a tough combination, one I wouldn't have survived without my incredible teachers. 

I found my way back out on the field mid-April and just in time for playoffs!! Now I had to wear a softball mask in the Georgia heat. I hated that mask, but if I didn't wear it my mom would never let me go back out and I would not get to do what I love so much. This whole experience made me realize that I didn't want to be an architect, I wanted to do sports analytics!! 

Following my accident, Forsyth County put up nets in front of all of the high school dugouts to ensure this does not happen again.

In my junior year of high school, I took 5 AP classes, and I added more extracurriculars. I really learned how to manage my time to make sure I can do it all and still succeed. Yes, it was very hard, especially when you have a calc and physics test the day after a game! But, I found ways to study.. even if I was at baseball. I also took my baseball stat tracking to a whole new level, which I was exciting! Additionally, I had the incredible opportunity to attend the MIT SLOAN Sports Analytics Conference in March 2020! I learned so much from this conference and I will NEVER forget it! I have written about my experience here.

I ended up having a fairly normal senior year compared to most. I went back to school in-person from the start and never once went back to online classes. Unlike most schools in the fall of 2020, my high school still had most of our normal extracurriculars like football and in-person club meetings, prom, and most importantly, baseball! My senior year with the baseball team was definitely my favorite! We had +20 seniors on the varsity team my senior year, and even though we might not have had what looked like the most stacked roster in the region, we made it to playoffs and made it all the way to the Final Four for the first time in Forsyth Central history! A majority of our team did not have plans to continue playing baseball in college, and so for most of the guys, this was it. We kept winning because we knew when we lost, that was the last time most of them would play together. Senior year was so special, and I am so lucky to have experienced it with the team I did.