College News: Former South Carolina Infielder Jana Johns Transfers to Oklahoma
By
@BruntjensElla
June 6, 2020
Three weeks after Extra Inning Softball reported that junior infielder Jana Johns from Calhoun, Georgia was entering the portal, it was announced that she would be headed to the Univ. of Oklahoma.
Patty Gasso
“We are thrilled to have Jana join the Sooners this upcoming season,” Sooners Head Coach Patty Gasso stated in the report posted on the Oklahoma softball website. “She brings valuable experience, athleticism and a very powerful bat. She is made with the ‘championship mindset’ that we live by and Jana will help the Sooners continue to be one of the best programs in the country.”
The release also added the following:
Johns joins Oklahoma after playing three seasons for the Gamecocks where she started every game of her career at third base. The Calhoun, Ga., product has hit 25 home runs, driven in 98 runs and holds a slash line of .301/.444/.577 in her collegiate career.
Johns helped the Gamecocks to their second super regional appearance in program history as a freshman in 2018 and to the regional finals as a sophomore in 2019. She collected All-SEC Freshman and Defensive Team honors following her first season in Columbia. As a sophomore, Johns was named to the All-SEC Second Team and collected all-region accolades.
She set numerous South Carolina program records including a tie for most home runs in a season in 2019, launching 15 roundtrippers to go with 56 hits, 50 runs and 44 RBIs. As a frosh, Johns set the fielding percentage record for a Gamecock third baseman (.978) and registered the most assists for a USC third baseman in program history with 151.
In 2020, Johns helped the team to a 17-6 record and No. 15 final ranking in both the USA Softball/ESPN.com and NFCA polls, batting .302 with four home runs and 15 RBIs and a .933 fielding percentage at the hot corner.
Johns will be a junior for OU in 2021 following the NCAA’s ruling of spring-sport student-athletes receiving an extra year of eligibility after the shortened 2020 campaign.
She plans to finish her undergraduate degree at Oklahoma in sports management with a minor in biology.
As for why Oklahoma, the school quoted the newest team member as saying:
“I am so thankful and excited to join the OU family. I chose OU because I love how the culture and values align with mine. I can’t wait to play in front of such a great fan base and for this coaching staff. Having the opportunity to join such an amazing program and compete for a national championship is something I’ve looked forward to my whole life. Boomer Sooner!”
*****
College News: South Carolina Infielder Jana Johns Entering Transfer Portal
Originally published May 15, 2020 on Extra Inning Softball
Jana Johns started every game in her three-year South Carolina career. Photo: Gamecock Softball.
Multiple sources told Extra Inning Softball this afternoon that Jana Johns, the junior infielder at the Univ. of South Carolina, is entering the transfer portal.
The durable athlete had started every game in her career at USC, 146 total, before deciding she would play her last two years elsewhere (a second year gained due to the COVID-19 extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA).
Johns played in 23 games for the Gamecocks this spring before the season ended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She hit .302 with a .443 on-base percentage and led the team with 42 total bases, was tied for second with four home runs and was third in RBIs with 15. She also led South Carolina with 11 hit-by-pitches and defensively had a .933 fielding percentage.
*** Scroll down to read more about Jana and her impressive college, club and high school accomplishments…
Join Today to Get Unlimited Access to Extra Inning Softball
