By Rick Pedone
Sports Editor

Breann Vanderzyl is her name, but at Harmony High almost no one uses it.

“Breezy” is what she’s called around the Lady Longhorns dugout.

Why?

Maybe it’s because she can blow a fastball by a hitter as easily as she can launch one over the fence during her next at-bat.

Vanderzyl, a rising junior, may be the most versatile softball player in Osceola County, and one of the most talented. That’s why she is the Osceola News-Gazette Softball Player of the Year, an honor she shares with Osceola’s Alexa Ballard.

Vanderzyl led Harmony, the Orange Belt Conference champion, in innings pitched (78.1), strikeouts (79) and wins (7-6), compiling a 2.28 ERA.

She contributed at the plate with a .362 batting average, 16 RBIs and two home runs.

“It was a good season, but I probably could have pitched a little better,” Vanderzyl said.

In just two seasons at Harmony, Vanderzyl evolved into a team leader. She goes to the mound in all the games of significance. Harmony was eliminated in the regional quarterfinal round by eventual state champion Dunnellon, the same team that bumped off the Lady Longhorns in the regional finals last season when the Tigers won their first state championship.

Vanderzyl said she welcomes the pressure of big games.

“It’s a lot more exciting,” she said. “Everyone gets up for those games, that’s what makes it fun.”

Coach Ralph King said Vanderzyl is a good teammate.

“She is a wonderful, unselfish player who will do anything to help the team succeed,” King said. “She always encourages and has a smile on her face and a positive attitude.”

Harmony, 13-10, had difficulty finding momentum during the season because of frequent rainouts, Vanderzyl said.

“It was real hard because we lost so many games (to the weather),” she said. “We were able to do OK, maybe not so great at the tournaments, but we had a hard time getting things going the way we wanted to. It was frustrating.”

Vanderzyl is among a core of good young players that should help the team continue its recent success under Coach King. Rising sophomore Lauren Harris batted .333 and led the team with 17 RBIs and four home runs.

Shortstop Brittany Bruns, along with Harris, was selected to the Miracle Sports Class 4A All-State team.

“We’ve got a lot of great players coming back and some freshmen coming in who are going to help us,” Vanderzyl said. “It’s great competition for us that will make us better.”

Vanderzyl said the team will miss graduated standouts like first baseman Emily Lanier, a first-team all-stater who pounded the ball at a .575 clip despite missing several games due to injuries, and third baseman Christina Brown, a three-year varsity starter.

“They are such a huge part of what we’ve done here; it’s going to be hard to go on without them,” Vanderzyl said.

She is playing travel ball with the Central Florida Sting, comprised of players throughout Orange, Seminole and Brevard counties, she said.

“Our schedule is full, we’re playing just about every weekend,” Vanderzyl said. “I’m going to work on my pitching. I’d like to get more power on my fastball, and I’m going to work on tightening my spin pitches. I know that when you play in college, you have to have movement on the ball because those hitters are so good. They’ll just kill the fastball.”

King said Vanderzyl will remain a key component of the Longhorns lineup for the next two seasons.

“Her record could have been more impressive due to some close losses we had this year, but she never lost her focus,” King said. “She shines in the big games, and she really picked it up on the offensive side with clutch hits. She just loves playing this game.”

All County Softball

Players of the Year: Breann Vanderzyl (Soph., HHS)

All-county team: Harmony: Emily Lanier (Sr.), Lauren Harris (Fr.), Brittany Bruns (Jr.), Christina Brown (Sr.). Liberty: Nelly Otero (Jr.). Osceola: Kaley Crapo (Sr.), Bianca Torres (Sr.), Nicole Osterman (Jr.), Carmen Nadal (Jr.). Kenya Pereira (Fr.). Celebration: Jessica Kraus (Sr.), Shelby West (Sr.). St. Cloud: Sam Gale (Jr.), Chelsea Womack (Sr.). Gateway: Jaqueline Gomez (Fr.).
Honorable mention: Harmony: Tiffany Endreson (Jr.), Madison Nichols (Fr.). Liberty: Natalie Galieno (Sr.). Osceola: Haley Wright (Sr.), Morgan Crapo (Fr.), Jessica Callahan (Fr.), Kaley Brosious (Soph.). Celebration: Kylie Jansing (Fr.), Ileamar Figueroa (Sr.). St. Cloud: Nikki Benge (Jr.), Briana Benge (Fr.), Amanda Ligon (Sr.), Ashley Gonzalez (Soph.). Gateway: Aida Piedra (Sr.), Alejandro Abreu (Sr.).