Photo by d3photography.com

Guard - Heather Johns
Whitman
2012-2015

All-American selections: 2014 (1st), 2015 (2nd)

All-Region selections: 2014 (Player of the Year), 2015 (1st)

Conference MVPs: 2014, 2015

NCAA Tournament appearances: 2013 (Elite 8), 2014 (National runners-up)

Other honors: 2014 All-Tournament team

From the archives

• Heather Johns Academic All-America video (Whitman College) (July 2015)
  Whitman has all the answers against UWW in semifinals (March 2014)
  Hurricane Johns blows Whitman into NWC title game (Feb. 2014)

What others say: "Heather is the most decorated student-athlete in Whitman College women's basketball history and the college's only CoSida Student-Athlete of the Year  during my 20 years at Whitman college.  Elite 89 winner in the toughest major at Whitman (Biophysics, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology) and our only first team all american in 2014. In 2013-14 Heather and forward Sarah Anderegg (a WBCA All-American) were a lethal scoring duo who led us to the national championship game. Sarah hated to lose and Heather hated it even more and our practices were intense, focused and competitive every day. Heather was a gifted athlete with a tremendous work ethic and competitive fire. Incredibly intelligent on and off the court, Heather helped a really talented team become the best team in the history of Whitman Athletics." -- Michelle Ferenz, Whitman College head coach   

In their own words: "The Whitman women’s basketball program is nothing short of a family. I am forever grateful for the lessons I learned regarding teamwork, leadership, and overcoming adversity while I played alongside my teammates. As I pursue a career in medicine, I rely on these skills on a daily basis. My favorite memory is making the 2014 Final Four in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. The trip was overall bittersweet, but the most memorable aspect is the way in which we loved and supported one another. However, getting a private team jet from Walla Walla was also pretty fun!”

Where are they now: Medical school, University of Washington

Career synopsis: Before Whitman College had its men's basketball team carry an undefeated record into the postseason, the college's women's basketball team did the same thing. In 2014, Whitman had a senior-laden lineup that won its first 26 games, and the best player on that team was junior point guard Heather Johns.

Whitman played rival Whitworth four times during that season and won the two regular season contests behind big performances by Johns. She scored 20 points in the first meeting, which the Missionaries (now Blues) won 62-57, and then she had an even better performance (23 points, eight rebounds and six assists) in Whitman's 84-69 win a couple weeks later. The Pirates broke through in the third matchup, beating Whitman 68-65 in the NWC tournament, despite Johns' double-double (15 points, 10 rebounds). A week later the teams met again, this time in the NCAA Tournament second round. Whitman prevailed 73-67 with Johns draining the game-sealing free throws late.

The Missionaries advanced and Johns continued to put up big numbers -- 30 points against Christopher Newport in the Sweet 16 and 33 in the national semifinal win over UW-Whitewater. Whitman fell lost in the championship to a team led by another All-Decade team honoree, but Johns was named to the All-Tournament team for her efforts. The Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology major also received the NCAA Elite 89 award given to the player with the highest GPA at the Final Four.

The next year Johns repeated as conference MVP and a second-team All-American. She finished her career as Whitman's third all-time leading scorer, despite playing just three years, and the conference's nominee for the 2015-16 NCAA Woman of the Year award.