Don Freeman’s Hall of Fame baseball coaching career is coming back to where it began: Prairie High School.
The 66-year-old Battle Ground resident is returning to coach the Falcons’ baseball program beginning this spring, athletic director Jason Castro said Thursday. The hiring is pending school board approval Sept. 11.
“The accolades speak for themselves,” Castro said of Freeman. “To get an opportunity to get a guy like Freeman and what he stands for … it’s a no-brainer.”
Those accolades are stacked with victories, state titles and world championships at all levels.
Freeman first led Prairie’s baseball program from 1979 to 2004, winning state titles in 1986 and ‘89. He also coached at Heritage for three seasons (2008-10) and led the rebirth of Clark College’s baseball program in 2011. Freeman also has worked with USA Baseball, coaching two national under-16 teams to world titles, and currently is coaching baseball in Germany.
Freeman replaces Mark Ripley, who stepped down after 15 seasons in Prairie’s baseball program, the past 10 as head coach. Ripley will remain on staff as a volunteer coach, Castro said.
“We loved having Mark,” Castro said. “He did a great job for us. It’s unbelievable all the stuff people don’t see that Coach Ripley has given to the baseball program.”
In June, Freeman was selected to the 2017 Washington Interscholastic Activities Association’s Hall of Fame. Freeman also is in the Hall of Fame at Prairie, the Washington State Baseball Coaches Association and Washington State Gymnastics Coaches Association. This winter, Freeman begins his second season as a volunteer gymnastics coach at Prairie.
