Player’s love of softball comes through loud and clear

Riverside, Calif. (March 7, 2023) – Amanda Bricker, a freshman at California Baptist University, plays for the Lancer softball team.

During her first time at bat for CBU last month, she homered in CBU’s first game of the season against the University of North Carolina.

“It was a very surreal moment, being surrounded by my teammates,” Bricker said. “It made that moment so much more exciting and so much more enjoyable.”

She is double majoring in psychology and communication sciences and disorders and plays shortstop and second base.

Other things to know about Bricker:

• She loves horses. If she did not play softball, she would probably be in the rodeo.
• She is outdoorsy and adventurous. She used to ride motorcycles and shifter karts (a type of go kart) and likes hiking and camping.
• She is competitive (on the field and off).
• A favorite Bible verse is Psalm 46:5. “It shows how God has our backs and will pick us up, and when all is going bad, good will always come out of it.”
• She is deaf.

Her parents learned she was deaf shortly after Bricker turned 1. A few months later she had cochlear implant surgery on the right side and a year later on the left.

She had speech therapy after receiving the implants until about kindergarten. Ever since, she has excelled, Bricker said with a laugh.

Bricker is friendly and chatty, fitting in easily at CBU.

There are certain accommodations needed. She may not hear everything a professor will say, so she has a person taking notes for her in class, or the professor will give her the lecture notes before class.

On the field, the wind sounds like someone blowing into a microphone, which makes it hard to hear the other players. In that situation, she asks the players to talk louder.

“I just have to be very aware of my surroundings and the situation and who's talking or who possibly could be talking to me,” Bricker said.

Bricker’s mom and grandmother played softball, and her dad played baseball. When she started playing at 8, she “kind of hated it,” but eventually fell in love with it. As a high school senior in Oakdale, California, she was the offense player of the year.

“I like to compete. I also like being around my teammates because they are like my second family to me,” Bricker said. “That's just what kept me going — just competing, having fun and just loving the game.”

She said she gets her drive from wanting to prove people wrong.

“You shouldn't let anything hold you back if you really want it,” Bricker said. “Even though I do have a disability, I can still make my dreams come true.”

She ultimately wants to work with deaf children as a speech pathologist.

“Any child or person that's dealing with the disability, don't let that define you,” Bricker said. “Go out and do you and live up to your expectations and your dreams, and you just keep working hard until you get there.”