The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Former Softball standout Jefferson earns WPF Player of the Year
08.10.2023 | Softball
Jefferson, Texas Smoke organization pick up multiple major Women’s Professional Fastpitch awards at postseason banquet
AUSTIN, TX – A four-time All-American standout at The University of Texas, Janae Jefferson was selected as the Women's Professional Fastpitch (WPF) Player of the Year following a successful first season with the Austin-based Texas Smoke organization, the league announced at its annual awards banquet on Tuesday night.
Jefferson, who was also selected to the All-WPF team as an infielder, hit .438 on the season with a .523 slugging percentage and a .580 on-base percentage while being credited with 49 hits en route to guiding the Smoke to the league's regular season championship. The organization, which finished with a league-best 22 wins and a plus-48 run differential, also picked up the league's Coaching Staff of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year (Morgan Howe, Arizona State) and Pitcher of the Year (Autumn Pease, Minnesota).
The Texas Smoke was originally set to begin the WPF playoffs, which are being held at Choccolocco Park in Oxford, Ala., against the fourth-seeded Sis Vipers on Wednesday, August 9, but weather forced the two teams to play a doubleheader on Thursday, August 10 beginning at 2:30 p.m. CT with the second game slated for 5:00 p.m. CT.
Jefferson concluded her five-year collegiate softball career on the Forty Acres following a 2022 season that saw the Longhorns finish as the Women's College World Series (WCWS) runners up. She also capped her collegiate career by becoming the Longhorns' career leader in total hits (362) and batting average (.424). She became the fourth freshman Texas softball student-athlete and 12th overall to earn NFCA All-American honors after being selected to the second team following the 2018 campaign.
Jefferson also went 11-for-11 at the 2016 Junior Olympic Cup and was a 2017 PGF First Team All-American prior to her time at Texas.
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