EDWARDSVILLE – Jaylen Townsend, who was a key player in the successful Edwardsville girls basketball season in 2018-2019, signed her letter-of-intent to play for Johnson County Community College of Overland Park, Kan., on Monday in a ceremony held at Edwardsville High School.
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Townsend, a forward, averaged 13.2 points and 5.3 rebounds per game for the Tigers in helping Edwardsville to a 30-3 record this past season. Townsend will play in a very good Cavaliers’ program under head coach Ben Conrad. JCCC has won 15 National Junior Collegiate Athletic Association (NJCAA) regional titles and two national championships, in 2000 and 2015, in its history.
Townsend had various reasons for choosing to play at Johnson County.
“Just it felt like home, and it provided me with the best opportunities on and off the court,” Townsend said. The fact the school is a straight shot down I-70 in suburban Kansas City also played a role in her selection.
“Yeah, and it’s also a really nice town,” Townsend said. “The whole school’s pretty nice. The biggest question for me was ‘am I going to get better?’ I feel like if I would have gone anywhere, I would get better, but Johnson County provided me with the best opportunities on and off the court.”
Townsend hasn’t yet decided on a major but will take her general studies classes first at JCCC before transferring to a four-year school. Her goals at Johnson County are very simple.
“Just to get better every day on and off the court,” Townsend said, “and dominate.”
Townsend also considered St. Louis Community College and felt that going to a junior college was a route that was chosen by a higher power.
“I felt like I should have gotten some D-I offers, but I didn’t,” Townsend said. “This is the route God chose for me, and I’m just trusting in God and trusting the process.”
The Tigers had a very successful season despite some key losses to graduation, and Townsend thought the team learned a lot during the season.
“I think we learned throughout the season,” Townsend said. “I feel like we could have done a little bit better towards the end, but you know, it’s all about learning. So I felt like, overall, we did pretty good.”
And Townsend hopes to make a big contribution to the Cavaliers in the 2019-20 season.
“To help the program, and help it to get another championship,” Townsend said.
And in the future after college, Townsend hopes to continue her basketball career.
“Hopefully continue on with my basketball career,” Townsend said.
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