IOWA’S JALEN ADAMS has entered the transfer portal for her senior season. (Photo by University of Iowa Athletics)

Jalen Adams had a breakout season for the Iowa softball team in 2025.

Instead of resting on her laurels, the former Fort Dodge all-state pitcher has decided to step outside her comfort zone and into the unknown.

Adams officially announced on Thursday that she has entered the transfer portal heading into her final season of collegiate eligibility.

The right-handed standout, who earned second team Big Ten and all-region honors this past year, declined to list the specific schools she will visit. Adams did confirm, though, that she has heard from programs in the Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC, among other conferences.

“It wasn’t an easy decision to make,” said Adams, who was 25-6 with a 2.18 earned run average for the Hawkeyes in 2025. “My class (at Iowa) has been super close, and we’ve been through so much together. I wouldn’t be the pitcher or the person I am today without them, and without what we went through with (interim) Coach Karl Gollan. I owe them so much.

“There are no hard feelings. There is no animosity. This is a personal choice to put myself out there and see what happens.”

Adams ranked in the Top-5 nationally for wins and complete games as Iowa went a surprising 35-18 overall and 15-7 in the Big Ten this year. The Hawks lost their head coach, Renee Gillispie, who stepped down for personal reasons in December. Their interim coach, Brian Levin, then left the program in the middle of a spring trip to Arkansas after cultural and societal divides within the team reached a boiling point.

Through it all, Adams and her squad persevered and ultimately flourished.

“I feel like what we accomplished put everything in perspective, but also, reminded me that (the four-year window of a collegiate athlete) is small,” Adams said. “I’m down to my last year now. I’m ready to challenge myself in a different way and see if I can make a bigger impact on a team and at a school where it may be more difficult at first to break (into the top end of the rotation), but will help me grow and push me in an even more competitive environment.”

Iowa announced the hiring of Stacy May-Johnson as its new head coach last week.

Adams added she doesn’t have a specific timeline in mind for a decision, and that she will be meticulous in choosing a new school.

“I’ll take a lot of things into consideration, of course, but it’s just about finding the best fit for what I want to get out of my last year,” said Adams, the daughter of Webster City graduatesd Dan and Andi (Royster) Adams. “My goal is to become the top pitcher on the staff. If I’m not that (on paper), I’ll work as hard as I can to get to that point. And I’ll do whatever it takes to help my teammates along the way.

“I’ll give it everything I have.”

Hawkeye teammates Jena Young, Desiree Rivera and Talia Tretton have joined Adams in the portal.

Adams was a five-time all-state selection with the Dodgers. Fort Dodge reached the Class 5A championship round four consecutive times, winning the school’s only state title in 2021 with Adams in the circle.

The 2022 FDSH graduate had a career record of 45-34 at Iowa with a 2.44 ERA. Her win total this spring was the most by a Hawkeye since 2009.

Adams led the Big Ten in starts, complete games and innings pitched. She ranked in the Top-10 of the league for ERA (4th), batting average against (5th), WHIP (6th), and strikeouts (9th).