07 May 2025 501 Hometown Hall of Famers: Terri Johnson

Posted at 5:29 PMh in Sports by

By David Grimes

Terri Johnson is not only an Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame inductee, she has also served as the organization’s Executive Director over the past decade, leading the group to new heights. 

One of the best female athletes the state has ever produced, she grew up as Terri Conder on a farm in Romance and graduated from nearby Rose Bud High School in 1981. Standing 5 feet 10 inches tall, she played just about every sport she could for the Ramblers, including softball, volleyball and track. A sprinter and high jumper, she won the 1980 Class A high jump with a leap of 5 feet 4 inches. As a senior in 1981, she won the very first state high school pentathlon. 

As good as she was in those other sports, basketball is where Johnson truly excelled. As a junior, she averaged 26 points per game and was named to the Arkansas Gazette Super Team. She improved on that the following season, averaging 29 points, 15 rebounds and five steals per game, earning her Arkansas Gazette Player of the Year honors. Johnson was also named a Converse All-American for her play, as well as an Academic All-American with a 4.0 GPA.

Recruited by colleges in Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Louisiana, Johnson chose to stay close to home, playing for the University of Central Arkansas team, which was coached by ASHOF inductee Ron Marvel.

As a freshman at UCA, she helped the Sugar Bears to their first 20-win season and the AWISA state championship. Johnson was named all-conference and led the team in scoring. In fact, she led the Sugar Bears in scoring all four seasons. She became the first UCA player, male or female, to score over 2,000 career points, finishing with 2,020. That total still ranks fifth in school history.

Johnson was named first-team All-AIC four consecutive seasons and was an NAIA All-American in 1983, 1984 and 1985. That final year, she was also selected for the prestigious Kodak All-American team.

Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame Executive Director Terri Johnson (from left) with Sharon Tallach Vogelpohl, CEO and President of mhp.si, a Little Rock-based marketing and public relations firm. Vogelpohl is beginning a two-year term as ASHOF board president and will be the first female to hold the position in the organization’s 67-year history. Photo by Ashley Inman.

During her career at UCA, the Sugar Bears went 96-20, winning three NAIA District 17 championships and making one trip to the NAIA national tournament. 

She recorded the first triple-double in Sugar Bear history in 1983 with 19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists against Ouachita Baptist. As a junior in 1984, she scored a career-high 38 points against Arkansas Tech. That night, she set an NAIA national record by hitting 20 of 23 free throws.  

Johnson was named a charter member of the UCA Sports Hall of Fame in 2001. 

In 1986, she married Randy Johnson, who had been an All-AIC baseball player at UCA. Although her last name changed, her competitive spirit did not, as the athlete went on to become one of the state’s top distance runners.

She joined the Conway Running Club and eventually started running marathons, including the Boston Marathon three times. She was named the 2000 Arkansas Female Runner of the Year by the Road Runners Club of America while winning the Grand Prix Championship that year. In 2003, she repeated as Grand Prix Champion and was Arkansas Female Masters Runner of the Year.  

Johnson was inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame (ASHOF) in 2005 as part of the 47th class, along with Bud Brooks, Maurice Carthon, Scott Hastings, Cortez Kennedy, J.P. Lovelady, Mickey O’Quinn, Scottie Pippen, Carl Sawatski, Hal Smith, Doyne Williams and Nancy Williams

Johnson and I worked together at American Management Corporation in downtown Conway for about 10 years. We also served on the ASHOF board of directors. When the ASHOF Executive Director position opened up in 2015, I immediately knew Terri would apply. I also knew she would be perfect for the job.

The board vote was unanimous, and Johnson took over in December of that year. Her drive and determination have propelled her to succeed in just about everything she has ever done. Her job with the ASHOF is no exception, as she has helped take the organization and its museum in Simmons Bank Arena to new levels of success.

Located on the west side of Simmons Bank Arena, the 12,000-square-foot museum houses artifacts and exhibits featuring all of the more than 450 men, women and teams who have been inducted over the past 67 years.