Outpouring support for late Mansfield Lake Ridge soccer player who touched so many lives

Condolences and support continued through Wednesday for Mansfield Lake Ridge soccer player Cydni Morris, 18, who died in a single-vehicle accident in Arlington on Friday, just five weeks after she graduated from high school.

Family and friends remembered her as a talented student-athlete, who finished with a 3.8 GPA, but also someone with a smile that could light up any room.

“As parents, we can say how great your child is, but seeing the comments and posts from friends, you could tell how many lives Cydni touched,” Cydni’s father Brad Morris said. “It’s beyond anything I could imagine. It’s been an outpouring of love and thank yous. Seeing people write messages and what she meant to them means more to me than anything else.”

A candlelight vigil will take place at the school’s front parking lot at 8 p.m. Friday.

Morris played for Lake Ridge all four years as a defender and forward. She was on the varsity team during the past two seasons. She scored a goal during a win over Waxahachie in January.

Lake Ridge made the playoffs the last two years and reached the regional final in 2021, just one win from a state appearance. Morris was a member of the district all-academic team.

Morris was set to join the soccer program at Sam Houston State University and major in communications with a minor in sports media. During the club season, Morris played for the Dallas Texans and Revolution Soccer Club, and helped Revolution to the 2019 Austin Labor Day Cup Champion Award.

Growing up

The only child of Brad and Pamela Morris, Cydni Morris was born in New Jersey before the family moved to Denver. The family moved to the area when Morris was in first grade.

“She was my only child. We wanted to provide for her and give as much as possible to her,” Brad Morris said. “She was my world. She was my focus. From the moment I woke up in the morning, everything was for her.”

Morris grew up around several NBA children as her father worked with players in sports management.

One of those players was Keyon Martin, who graduated from Dallas Bryan Adams and played 15 seasons in the NBA.

Brad said Cydni and Keyon’s daughter, Cierra, were best friends.

“There has been outpouring support from that community as well,” Brad Morris said. “Former NBA players, executives, they all have reached out. They remember her. She stood out to them.

“It’s not like they’re just sending flowers. No, they’re flying here to show their support and to be here for Cydni and for us. That’s how much they felt about her.”

The family said in lieu of flowers, a Cydni Lawson Morris Memorial Fund will be created.

Soccer life

Morris didn’t start off as a soccer player. She was into dance and did ballet at an early age. However, she started playing recreational soccer at 10 and pretty soon, it was her favorite thing to do.

She got serious about soccer and told her parents it was her No. 1 thing.

“People started to see her natural talent,” Brad Morris said. “Once she decided to play soccer full-time, we supported her through rec, club and high school. You could see something special in her.”

But Morris had a natural gift, on and off the field.

Brad Morris recalls a visit to Sam Houston State where Cydni and the family met the athletic director. After talking about her plans to major in communications and minor in sports broadcasting, the AD told Cydni, ‘you can see it in your smile. It’s incredible. It lights up the room. It’s in your future.’

“That was two seconds of meeting Cydni,” Brad Morris said. “That’s the kind of person she was. She gave off that feeling to others and we knew she was destined for greatness.”