Chelsea Spencer has been named the head coach at Cal, the school announced late Wednesday.
Spencer most recently spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach at Texas under Mike White, helping lead the Longhorns to the #9 national seed in the 2019 NCAA tournament.
“I am absolutely thrilled that Chelsea will be coming home to Berkeley to be the next head coach of our softball program,” Cal athletic director Jim Knowlton said in a statement. “As a player at Cal, she helped us to the very top of collegiate softball, and in the years since her graduation, she has continued to build for this opportunity to lead our team. Chelsea’s passion and enthusiasm for Cal and Cal softball continues to shine through. She brings a well thought-out, data driven approach to the game and has a clear vision for the future of the program. I can’t wait for her to get started.”
Prior to her tenure on the Forty Acres in Austin, Spencer spent six years with the Oregon Ducks, all during White’s tenure as head coach in Eugene. With the Ducks, Spencer was primarily in charge of the team’s defense and helped tutor a squad that averaged more than fifty wins a season and reached the Women’s College World Series four times, most recently in the 2018 campaign.
Spencer tutored several all-American infielders during her time in Eugene, including two-time honorees Nikki Udria and Jenna Lilley, as well as 2014 all-American Courtney Ceo. Prior to her tenure at Oregon, Spencer served as a high school and community college head coach, as well as an assistant coach at Michigan State.
As a player, Spencer was part of the 2002 national championship-winning Cal squad. The Golden Bears reached the Women’s College World Series four times during her career and she was named an all-American in 2004. She would go on to a six-year career in the National Pro Fastpitch league.
