Jessica Marie Steffens (born April 7, 1987) is an American water polo player. She was a member of the United States national teams that won a silver medal at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

and a gold medal at the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

. She also played at

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Personal life

Steffens was born in San Francisco, California to Peggy Schnugg and Carlos Steffens. Her father, a native of Puerto Rico, became interested in the sport of water polo after witnessing a match as a child in Puerto Rico. He played for Puerto Rico in three

Pan American Games The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is held ...

. Her father left the island and joined the water polo team of University of California, Berkeley where he became a three-time All-American, leading the

California Golden Bears The California Golden Bears are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Berkeley. Referred to in athletic competition as ''California'' or ''Cal'', the university fields 30 varsity athletic programs and various club te ...

to the 1977 NCAA championship. In 1979, he was the PAC-10 player of the year in water polo. Jessica is tall and has two sisters and one brother, who all played water polo. Her sister

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is also on the U.S. national team.

Career

High school

Steffens, inspired by her father, played on the water polo team for four years at Monte Vista High School. She led the team to the

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championship twice."Jessica Steffens"
gostanford.com. Retrieved August 15, 2012.

College

Steffens started her career at Stanford University as a freshman in 2006. She scored 15 goals that season, as the Cardinal finished third at the NCAA championships. The following year, she scored 35 goals, and Stanford finished second in the country. Steffens redshirted the 2008 season to train with the U.S. national team while they prepared for the 2008 Olympics. She returned to Stanford in 2009, scored 12 goals, and was named to the All-MPSF first team and All-National Collegiate first team. In her senior year, she scored 17 goals, helping Stanford advance to the NCAA final.
usawaterpolo.org. Retrieved May 17, 2013.

International

Steffens scored five goals in the 2007 Pan American Games, as the U.S. finished first. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, she scored five goals, helping the U.S. win the silver medal, and was named to the Olympic Media All-Star team. At the 2009 FINA World Championships, she scored four times, and the U.S. won gold. Steffens did not compete in 2010 following shoulder surgery. She returned in 2011 and helped the U.S. win the gold medal at the Pan American Games. She then won a gold medal with the U.S. at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Awards

In 2019, Steffens was inducted into the USA Water Polo Hall of Fame.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Steffens, Jessica 1987 births Living people American sportspeople of Puerto Rican descent Sportspeople from San Francisco American female water polo players Water polo centre backs Water polo players at the 2008 Summer Olympics Water polo players at the 2012 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in water polo Olympic silver medalists for the United States in water polo World Aquatics Championships medalists in water polo Water polo players at the 2007 Pan American Games Water polo players at the 2011 Pan American Games Pan American Games medalists in water polo Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Stanford Cardinal women's water polo players Stanford Graduate School of Business alumni Medalists at the 2011 Pan American Games Monte Vista High School (Danville, California) alumni