UNIVERSITY CENTER -- Saginaw Valley State University Director of Athletics John Decker has announced the hiring of Christie Ambrosi as the new head coach of the Cardinal Softball program. Ambrosi comes to SVSU from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Arizona, where she was the head softball coach since July, 2018.
"We are extremely pleased to welcome Coach Christie Ambrosi to our Cardinal Athletics family," stated Decker. "To say that Christie's achievements as a player are simply exceptional is basically an understatement. Add to this her knowledge of, and enthusiasm for, the game of college softball and we could not be more optimistic about the future of our SVSU Softball program. Christie also understands and has demonstrated successfully at the collegiate level the importance of academic achievement for her players. Our players who met Christie during the interview process are excited about the coming season and getting to work on winning championships for SVSU. We can't wait for our student-athletes to have the benefit of Christie's experience and expertise and we look forward to an exciting new season for our Cardinal fans and supporters."
During her time leading Embry-Riddle, Ambrosi led the Eagles to their first postseason appearance in program history and the team registered its best-ever conference record as well. Five players earned all-conference selections, including the Cal Pac Freshman of the Year, under Ambrosi's tutelage. The Eagles excelled in the classroom as well, as five student-athletes were named NAIA Daktronics Scholar-Athletes for both the 2019 and 2020 seasons.
"I want to first thank Jamie Long, Athletic Director at Embry-Riddle, for giving me the opportunity to begin my collegiate coaching career," said Ambrosi. "I am proud of what we were able to accomplish with the softball program over the last two years and I wish the new coach the best of luck! I will miss the players and staff but know they will do great things going forward. I couldn't be more excited and honored to be leading the future of the SVSU softball program! I want to thank John Decker and Angela Pohl and the entire search committee for this opportunity. I'm looking forward to building this program and taking it to the next level!"
A native of the Overland Park, Kansas, Ambrosi had a decorated playing career at both the collegiate and international levels. In 2000 she was a member of the U.S. Olympic squad that won a gold medal at the Sydney, Australia games. Ambrosi has six other gold medals from international competitions, including the Pan-American Games and Junior World Championships.
A 2000 graduate of UCLA with a BA in History, Ambrosi was a two-time All-American outfielder for the Bruins, winning a national championship in 1999. A three-time All-Pac 10 selection, she finished her career at UCLA with a .367 batting average. In the team's 1999 championship season, Ambrosi was named to the All-College World Series Team as well.
Ambrosi owned a pair of softball clinics in the Kansas City area before beginning her collegiate coaching career. She was the head of the Kansas City Softball Academy and the Christie Ambrosi Clinics, helping solidify her foundation of 20-plus years of softball coaching experience by providing fastpitch instruction to players of all ages and skill levels. Christie also made numerous appearances as a motivational speaker for various community organizations.