NCS Senior of the Year
LEAH FREEMAN, BERKELEY
When Berkeley head coach Alejandro Mendoza first saw Leah Freeman play her freshman year, he was amazed by the way she made playing goalkeeper look so easy. He knew there was something special in her.
“Once I saw her actually play, I was in awe,” Mendoza said. “I have never seen anyone move the way she did while making it look so easy.”
And anyone that has ever seen, played with or against Freeman can vouch for her talent in goal, whether it's her ball security, awareness or quick reaction time. The best show, however, is when Freeman swings her right leg, sending punts and goal kicks towering, sometimes reaching 70 yards. And while Freeman is committed to the University of Oregon for soccer, it wouldn’t surprise many if she was ever given a walk-on opportunity to kick for the Ducks football team. Yes, her leg is that strong.
That’s the raw talent spectators see. Along with Oregon, the United States Women’s National Team took notice, calling up Freeman to play with its youth teams.
If you ask anyone on this Yellowjacket squad, Freeman is the ideal player to build this program around. Luckily for them, she’s been a leader from the moment she stepped on campus.
“Her leadership is likely the most underrated aspect to her game,” said Mendoza. “She has meant everything to the program. The incredible thing is that she took that role as a freshman with no intention. She just wanted to play, but her work ethic, competitiveness and enthusiasm sparked a program that needed something to keep going. I could not be any prouder of her and hope she understands the lasting impact she has made.”
The Yellowjackets program has always been consistently solid, making brief playoff appearances. But it went to another level at the end of Freeman’s junior year.
After Berkeley got its first home playoff game in a while in the 2018-2019 season, the Jackets squared off against Liberty in the quarterfinals — an opponent that had Berkeley’s number. With just minutes left in golden goal overtime, then-freshman Madison Del Prado sent a rocket past Freeman, sending Liberty to the next round and Berkeley packing back home.
Out of the reach of Freeman, she was left heartbroken, despite having made numerous incredible saves earlier in the match.
“That was one of the hardest losses I’ve ever had,” Freeman said. “I think I cried for literally three days. It was terrible.”
In her last year dawning a Berkeley uniform, she knew history could not repeat itself. Freeman had her best season, recording 110 saves, only allowing 10 goals against and even producing offensively with two assists. She was awarded Western Alameda County Conference co-MVP, but being the team player she is, she is most proud of the historic run her team went on.
The Yellowjackets won their second consecutive WACC title and made the NCS Division 1 championship game, a post-season run which involved a quarterfinal penalty kick shootout victory over Liberty that involved Freeman making the game-winning save, and then a 17-save effort against Carondelet in the semifinals.
“Without Leah, Berkeley is not the same team, and that says much more about her than anyone else, because she is so talented and hard-working,” said Carondelet coach Amy Apodaca. “She is one of the only keepers I have seen who also impacts her team offensively, and she sacrificed herself for the success of the team all season.”
While Berkeley came short in both the NCS championship versus Monte Vista and its first round CIF regional appearance against Archbishop Mitty, it set the bar higher and gave brighter light for the future of Berkeley soccer.
“I am so proud of the growth of this program over the years,” said Freeman. “Every year the team has been a little different than the ones before but the heart every year was always constant. We took the love we had from each of the years before us and used that to push us to the end and our coach, Ale, was a huge part of that.”
Maybe most importantly, Freeman has a huge amount of love for her team.
“I am most proud of the family aspect of this program,” said Freeman. “We have the word family on the back of our warm up jerseys to remind us that we play the game for each other and I love that about this team.”
The Freeman era isn’t over yet, with Leah’s twin sisters Erin and Alex being incoming freshmen at Berkeley in the upcoming school year. Freeman takes her talent to Eugene in the fall, right where she's always wanted to be.
“I can’t wait to be a freshman at Oregon,” Freeman said. “I’m just excited to be on the team and play Pac-12 soccer which has been a dream of mine since before I can remember. I’m excited to work hard and see what the season holds for us next year.”
For her efforts this past season, we are pleased to recognize Berkeley’s Leah Freeman as the Prep2Prep North Coast Section Senior of the Year.
Other players considered for this award include Monte Vista’s Julia Leontini, Carondelet’s Ellie Ospeck, Monte Vista’s Megan Edelman and Branson’s Eliana Prosnitz.
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