Freeman Joins Softball Staff
BERKELEY – California softball head coach Chelsea Spencer announced the addition of pitching coach Amber Freeman to the Golden Bear staff on Monday heading into the 2023 season.
Freeman has spent the last three years as the head softball coach at Vanguard University, compiling an 82-36 record with the Lions, beginning with the 2020 COVID-19 shortened season.
"I am excited to announce that Coach Freeman will be the next pitching coach for the Golden Bear program," Spencer said. "She was an All-American, Pac-12 Player of the Year and Team USA standout as a player, while handling and calling games for some of the most respected pitchers in the country. Freeman has set herself apart as a successful head coach at Vanguard University while simultaneously developing her own youth travel ball organization. She is well connected with renowned travel organizations, making her a national recruiting asset. Her dedication to academics, player development and leadership skills makes her an excellent choice for this program and I can't wait to get out on the field with her this fall. Go Bears!"
Freeman, a native of Lakewood, California, and a Mater Dei High School product went on to a multi-year standout career as a catcher at Arizona State University. She became a three-time NFCA All-American and garnered 2013 Pac-12 Player of the Year honors. Freeman stands fourth in ASU history with 56 career home runs and fifth in RBI, totaling 197. She is also fifth in Sun Devil history with 46 career doubles.
"I am so excited to be joining the Golden Bear staff and this new era of California softball under Coach Spencer's leadership," Freeman said. "My goal is to make a direct impact and to do whatever it takes to help this program excel. The future of the program is very bright and I am so grateful to be a part of it. Go Bears!"
Freeman's 2015 batting average of .436 is fifth in single-season history for those tallying at least 75 at-bats. She became just the third player in ASU history to earn both First-Team All-American and First-Team Academic All-American designations.
Throughout her junior and senior seasons, she tallied a .422 batting average in 115 games played and only recorded one error in over 400 chances. She posted a career slugging percentage of .718 and an on-base percentage of .498.
Freeman also earned Pac-12 Scholar Athlete of the Year recognition in 2015 after holding a 3.6 GPA in the classroom. A two-time Academic All-American, Freeman received her Master of Arts in Elementary Education in 2017, earning a 3.7 GPA while teaching third grade at Conchos Elementary School in Phoenix, Arizona.
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