Former Cal Softball Player Sues School, Former Head Coach Chelsea Spencer

A former UC Berkeley softball player has filed a lawsuit alleging that the school's former head coach coerced her into a sexual relationship and prematurely ended her softball career.

Cal head coach Chelsea Spencer. | UC Berkeley Athletics

The University of California, Berkeley, and former softball head coach Chelsea Spencer are facing a lawsuit from a former softball player, alleging the coach pressured her into a sexual relationship.

Felicia Mello of Berkleyside was first to report lawsuit.

The former player, identified in documents as Jane Doe, says the university failed to protect her when Spencer reduced playing opportunities when the player attempted to end the relationship.

A little 2025 timeline:
2/12: AD Jim Knowlton extends Softball HC Chelsea Spencer’s contract.
6/16: Jim Knowlton announces his retirement effective 7/1
6/24: Spencer resigns as head coach “in order to prioritize her mental health.”https://t.co/b0QzXupIZw

— Sean “Yoda” Rouse @seanyodarouse@mastodon.social (@seanyodarouse) September 1, 2026

“Spencer progressively eroded the professional boundary between Head Coach and student-athlete and conditioned [the player] to understand that compliance brought rewards while resistance brought consequences,” the complaint said.

The suit described that the advances began as soon as she stepped on campus in the fall of 2023. The anonymous player received text messages and calls nearly every day. She also received cash gifts and compliments like "You're so pretty" and "Your girlfriend is so lucky."

Jane Doe's playing time directly correlated with how quickly she responded to Spencer's advances.

If she responded promptly, she'd get ample playing time, but if her responses were delayed, her time on the diamond was cut.

In 2024, the relationship became sexual and lasted for about a year. The player alleges that the coach would visit her hotel room on away trips. The complaint outlines the sexual relationship as "mutual," but acknowledges the unfair power dynamic between the two.

The player claimed Spencer instructed her to delete messages and keep the relationship a secret from everyone, including her teammates.

As the relationship deepened during the softball season, the player decided to end the relationship before a game against Florida State in April 2025. According to the complaint, the player expressed that she would never speak to Spencer again, and Spencer responded, "You're not pitching."

UC Berkeley’s policy on conflicts of interest in consensual relationships is clear. If campus authority figures enter a relationship with someone they “supervise, direct, instruct, oversee, evaluate, advise, coach, mentor, tutor," they must immediately recuse themselves from making decisions about the individual to ensure that there are no conflicts of interest. The individual in authority must also notify their supervisors and human resources to address any potential conflicts.

According to the complaint, the player went to Associate Athletics Director Gordon Bayne in May 2025 to tell the truth about the relationship. Following the meeting, the player was removed from the team, causing her to miss out on her senior season and forfeit any dreams of playing professional softball.

Outside of softball, experience caused the player anxiety, and she finished her senior year online, away from campus.

“Student athletes at our institutions, they shouldn’t have to choose between resisting a coach or someone else with a large power imbalance over them, and on the other hand protecting their own athletic and educational future,” said Michael Carney, a managing partner at the law firm Slater Slater Schulman, which is representing the player. “And that’s the position she was put in.”

The suit cites emotional distress and the loss of her softball career. The player is seeking economic damages from the UC Regents and Spencer herself. The documents accuse Berkeley of failing to follow its own policy and name multiple employees within the athletic department who knew of the relationship.

Spencer was a Cal shortstop who won the 2002 NCAA Championship. She became head coach in 2020 and ushered the team to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances.