Grand Valley State’s women’s basketball team played five games in a little over two weeks during its improbable NCAA Tournament run to the Final Four. That, for most of the team, is deserving of a long offseason break.

Point guard Janae Langs, who had a breakout year and was a pivotal part of the Lakers’ postseason run, isn’t looking ahead to a break—she’s getting ready for her next game.

The Lakers’ dual-sport athlete is transitioning to softball season, as she’s done the past two years. In addition to being the guard on the basketball team, Langs plays center field for the softball team, which is already 24 games deep in 2016 (18-6, 3-3 GLIAC).

Langs is coming off one of the more memorable postseasons in GVSU athletics history. She had game-winning buckets in the first round of the GLIAC Tournament against Michigan Tech (March 1) and in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against Lewis (March 11), and game-winning free throws against Drury in the Sweet 16 (March 14).

“It’s really unbelievable and quite surreal, to be honest, that all of that actually happened,” Langs said. “It was unbelievable, that’s what I keep telling people. It was an awesome opportunity that none of us thought that that’s where we would be.”

Now, Langs is preparing for a quick turnaround and joined the softball team almost immediately following the conclusion of basketball, which ended on March 23. Langs’ first day of practice with softball was March 28, and she was excited to reestablish the camaraderie with her softball teammates.

“It was fun getting to see the girls again, seeing their smiling faces and giving them big hugs,” Langs said. “I spend so much time with basketball at the beginning of the school year, you don’t come in contact with those girls very much.”

Langs committed to GVSU out of high school after attending a camp held by GVSU and then-head basketball coach Janel Burgess. A week later she attended a softball camp, and then-head softball coach Doc Woods offered to work it out so she could play both sports at GVSU, with basketball being her primary focus.

First-year basketball coach Mike Williams and second-year softball coach Dana Callihan—who was an assistant under Woods—have honored the agreement, and it’s worked out for both sides.

“We got ahold of her kind of late in the process, as far as getting a chance to see her, and then she came to a camp,” Callihan said. “Basketball was already recruiting her at that point, but she came to a camp, we liked her attitude, her work ethic and things like that, so we jumped on the bandwagon.”

Langs has been invaluable to both teams. Last season, Langs made 26 starts at center field and one in right field. She posted a .346 batting average, good for third-best on the team, posting 28 hits, 14 runs and 13 RBIs.

Williams says the ability for Langs to literally drop one sport and pick up another at near full speed is rare at the college level.

“A lot of kids you see, if they’re not staying sharp with their sport they’ll struggle, but she seems to be able to come right off of basketball and be a major contributor in softball,” Williams said.

Once January rolls around, Langs typically meets with the softball team and coaches once a week, as well as doing her own warmup work and preparation on her own time.

Langs admits the grind of a two-sport athlete can take a lot out of her, but the rewards and relationships she has made doing both far outweigh the challenges.

“I played multiple sports in high school, so being on the go all the time, I’m kind of used to that,” Langs said. “But, it was a whole different monster coming to college athletics, and the commitment and the time you put into your sport.”

Langs’ first games back in softball was a doubleheader matchup at Wayne State on March 29. Langs didn’t play in the first game, but started the second at center field. She went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts in her first action since last season.

Though Langs has proven herself to be a top contributor, her spot on the softball team is not a given, and she has to earn her job back. She doesn’t want it any other way.

“I’m just like everyone else,” Langs said. “You’ve got to work for those things, nothing’s ever really given. You have to earn it and that’s how I would prefer it, is to earn it and not just have things handed over to me.”

The softball team followed Langs and the rest of the basketball Lakers’ run to the Final Four, and streamed the games when it was able to. Callihan says much of what was seen on the hardwood this past season can be expected in the diamond this spring.

“She plays (softball) a lot like she plays basketball,” Callihan said. “She’s scrappy, doesn’t give up on anything, grits her teeth and gets the job done. She’s just that type of player that thrives in that type of environment.”

The Lakers will travel to Notre Dame College (Ohio) in their next matchup on March 31. Langs will continue to transition to softball, getting back into the swing of things. While her mindset is solely on helping the softball team win games, she said it’s impossible to forget where she was just a week ago.

“Just sitting back, hitting the game-winners—those were awesome, it was cool that we could advance on, but when I sit back and just think about that whole experience, I think about my teammates, just those times of goofing around, being on the road,” Langs said. “Those friendships are something (that) will stay in my mind forever, not a game-winning shot or any of that.

“An opportunity to play and be in the Final Four, and spend it with some unbelievable women is something that I’ll never forget.”