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How Isabel Freeman became Marion County’s latest two sport signee

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6 months ago

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How Isabel Freeman became Marion County’s latest two sport signee

As St. John Lutheran High School’s basketball senior night ended, tears fell from Isabel Freeman’s eyes. With 16 indoor and beach volleyball offers combined, you’d think she’d be ecstatic, knowing she’d continue her athletic career, but it also marked the end of her high school basketball career.

Freeman, a standout on the girl’s basketball, indoor, and beach volleyball teams, had coaches believing in her volleyball talents since the early days of her high school career. But her first love was basketball. Knowing she’d miss the game that sparked her athletic career, she called her coach, Adam Boomhower, to help her get recruited.

“I didn’t want to play college basketball to begin with, but during senior night, I was like, I’m going to miss this,” Freeman said. “I worked a lot this year for my team, and I can’t let that go to waste.”

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As Boomhower gauged interest, Freeman, with the help of her mom, Laurie Rich, widdled her options down to Maryville College. As much as the volleyball coaching staff loved her, another program saw her talents on the basketball court.

After Maryville’s head women’s basketball coach, Darrin Travillian, watched a film of Freeman pulling down a career-high 15.8 rebounds per game, a top-ten mark in the state during her senior season. Travillian found the missing piece to his latest recruiting class. Freeman found where she’d continue her athletic career in her favorite sports.

As a kindergartener playing on an all boys team full of first graders, Freeman stood out as one of the top athletes. Her natural instincts allowed her to take the lead in the offense.

She impressed her coach so much that she requested she play for his team before the league’s draft began. The same year, she shot a basketball commercial for Disney’s NBA Experience.

“I’ve always loved basketball; I grew up watching it because of my dad,” Freeman said. “It’s always had my heart.”

Carlton Freeman, a former Divison II standout at Central Missouri State University in the 80s, passed on his athleticism and love for the game to Freeman. It made his daughter a natural at several sports.

“Basketball was more her thing and always has been,” Isabel’s sister and volleyball coach Shelby Freeman said. “It came really naturally for her. She gravitated towards volleyball when I started playing, and it was definitely something she had to work on.”

Freeman may not have experienced the immediate success she did in basketball, but it wasn’t long before coaches saw her potential on the center line. While transferring schools in middle school, the multi-sport athlete narrowed her focus to volleyball. As her star ascended in volleyball, a call from the sidelines sparked her return to basketball.

A change of heart has shaped Freeman’s athletic career in several ways. If she doesn’t pivot to volleyball in middle school, who knows if she has the opportunity to continue her education? There’s no guarantee when switching sports, but Freeman found a way to reach lofty goals in both.

Like most younger siblings, Freeman forged her path with a unique flair that can only be learned by watching the people before you. Freeman combined Carlton’s love for basketball and Shelby’s love for volleyball to become a part of a small class of athletes who play two sports at the collegiate level.

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