Greenville, SC—Now in the midst of the 23-24 season, the Swamp Rabbits have finally named their captain and alternate captains. Today, the Greenville club announced that forward Ben Freeman will wear a “C” on his jersey, while Max Martin and Anthony Beauchamp will wear an “A” at home, with Mark Louis and Tanner Eberle wearing the A’s on the road. The announcement just comes after the new year as the Swamp Rabbits continue to stand strong in the standings with a 26-10-1 record.
About the captain: Freeman, 28, is a 6’5, 205 pound left-wing center, who has played 35 games and has tallied up seven goals and nine assists for the Rabbits this season. This will be his third season for the Greenville team, as he’s played 162 games as of late, tallying up 80 points. He’s played 13 games in two postseasons for the Swamp Rabbits, and recorded six goals and six assists. This will be Freeman’s second season in the leadership capacity under Andrew Lord, but leadership is no unfamiliar role for him, though. During the 2019-20 season, Freeman was captain for the NCAA UConn Huskies, and was awarded the 2020 Len Celgarski Award. He started playing for UConn in the 2016-2017 season; In the 2018-2019 season, he was named alternate captain. After playing 135 games in four seasons for the Huskies, Freeman wrapped up 77 points from 25 goals and 52 assists.
His pro career would start in Wheeling, as he would play just seven games before getting released to the SPHL to play 15 games for the Pensacola Ice Flyers – tallying up one goal and eight assists there. After that season and Covid shutdown, Freeman would sign with the Swamp Rabbits and play 62 games during the 2021-22 season, and accumulated 32 points from 10 goals and 22 assists. And then he would see his first pro playoff season, as he played six games against the Florida Everblades. The following season, Freeman would receive the alternate captain role for the team, and would play nearly a full season of 65 games – recording 13 goals and 19 assists; then would play six games during the Kelly Cup Playoffs against the Jacksonville Icemen, and tallied up four goals and two assists. For this season, Freeman is a skilled shooter and passer, along with being the defensive-forward on the PK. He can win most of the faceoffs presented to him, while he can also tip the puck into the net in a close-to-crease situation, and score from far distances in the o-zone. With his skill, comes obvious leadership. The current Greenville team has so many leaders from the players. Freeman stated in an interview back in December that “it’s pretty easy when the team is full of leaders – everyone is chipping in as far as leadership. But I think everyone in the locker room brings some sort of leadership and a lot of passion.” Freeman’s dedication and commitment to the Swamp Rabbits team, on and off the ice, can easily be seen during practice and games, and it’s clear why Andrew Lord selected him to be the captain. The last captain to lead for the Swamp Rabbits was Joey Haddad of the 2020-21 season.
The Swamp Rabbits will cap off this week with three games, starting with one game in Charleston, and two back-to-back at home against Jacksonville.
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