Saint Mary's College softball announced two-time Team USA gold medalist Jazmyn Jackson as its hitting coach Tuesday, Oct. 6.
The move, announced by Saint Mary's athletics, adds a decorated player and proven batting developer to a Moraga program coming off a program-record 42-16 season and a third consecutive West Coast Conference (WCC) title.
Jackson, a San Jose native, earned three straight All-Pac-12 honors at Cal from 2015 to 2017. She won gold medals with the U.S. National Team at the 2016 WBSC Women's World Championship and the 2017 Pan-Am Championship.
After Cal, Jackson played professionally for Scrapyard Fastpitch, California Commotion, Athletes Unlimited and the Atlanta Smoke. She also competed overseas in Italy, the Netherlands and Mexico. In 2026, Jackson played for the Atlanta Smoke, which captured the inaugural Professional Softball League (PSL) championship, according to the Highland County Press.
Her coaching résumé shows results at the college level. As hitting and outfield coach at Howard University in 2019, Jackson helped the Bison post an 11-win jump from the prior year, according to the hiring announcement. Howard went on to make three NCAA Regional appearances under head coach Tori Tyson.
"We are thrilled to have Jazmyn joining our coaching staff and our team," head coach Sonja Garnett said in the announcement. "She has a stellar playing and professional career to her name, and is already showing that she can connect with athletes and teach the game."
Jackson joins a Gaels squad that won a third consecutive WCC title in 2026 and earned the program's first two NCAA Tournament victories. Saint Mary's beat Idaho State 3-1 and eliminated host Oregon 5-4 in the Eugene Regional before falling to Mississippi State. The Gaels finished the year ranked No. 24 in D1Softball’s national ranking.
Garnett, the 2026 D1Softball Mid-Major Coach of the Year and WCC Coach of the Year, signed a six-year contract extension before the NCAA Tournament. The program tied or broke 19 records during the 2026 campaign.
Jackson will work with five returning All-WCC players: Sam Buckley, Alex Cutonilli, Hannah Ferguson, Braxton Brown and Camille Lara. Ferguson delivered five hits across the two regional wins in Eugene.
The Gaels open the 2027 season in the spring.
