Hailing from a family that has some 50 cousins—many of whom played water polo—it should come as no surprise that Jessica Steffens also got involved in the sport. Two Olympic medals and a FINA World Championship later, she set the bar fairly high. Emerging from Danville in northern California's East Bay, Steffens was a standout in the high school and club ranks, cracking the Women's Senior National Team roster as a teenager. In 2007 she helped the USA Women qualify for the Olympic Games in Brazil only to find herself halfway around the world a week later with the Junior National Team in Portugal. In 2008 she was solidified on the Senior National Team, helping the squad to Silver at the Olympic Games in Beijing. It was a breakout performance from Steffens who was named to the Media All-Star Team. She then returned to the college ranks at Stanford, balancing National Team competition with helping the Cardinal become one of the top teams in the country. Battling through injuries in 2010, Steffens returned to form in 2011, helping navigate Team USA through pressure-packed qualification at the 2011 Pan American Games. The 2012 Olympic Games followed, and this time the result was different. Steffens, considered one of the best defenders in the world, played an important role in lifting Team USA to its first Olympic Gold in program history. She remains involved in the game today as a member of the USA Water Polo Board of Directors as an Athlete Representative.