Team and Country: Penn State Brandywine's Jessica James juggles two sports and military service

For the second straight year the PSUAC has partnered with a 400-level sports journalism class at University Park to offer feature stories from around the conference. This is the second in a series.

By RAFAELA PONTES

 UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Jessica James does it all.

James, a third-year psychology student at Penn State Brandywine, plays both softball and soccer at Brandywine and serves in the Army National Guard.

James knew in high school that she wanted to serve and attend college. During a career fair in high school, James learned about the Army National Guard program, which allowed her to enlist the summer before senior year.

"(Joining the military) wasn't much of a conversation before it happened," James said.

She participated as much as she could while still in high school and, soon after graduation, James left for boot camp for six months. When she returned home, she decided to attend Penn State Brandywine.

The Brandywine campus, in Delaware County, served a convenient location for James, as it is close to her military base in Southampton. Brandywine's softball program was also a decisive factor for James, who played the sport throughout four years of high school and wanted to continue her athletic career.

Playing soccer in college, meanwhile, wasn't part of her plan when James committed to Brandywine. James said that the women's soccer coach wanted to reshape the team, so he reached out to student athletes who might be interested in joining the soccer team. James was one of those athletes.

James, who had not played soccer in a long time, said she had to take time to think when the coach reached out to her. But eventually she fell in love with the sport and stayed with the team as a defender and midfielder.

With so much on her plate already, James shared that joining another sport required a lot of time management work, discipline and communication with both teams.

James' teams knows her most important commitment is to the military and they are supportive of her journey.

"My team has been extremely supportive," she added. "They ask questions and are interested in my (military) life."

James played third base on the Brandywine softball team that won the USCAA national championship – also known as the Small College World Series -- last spring. She had to miss a few games due to military service, but she knew she could rely on her team.

James made it back and not played at the championship game, she scored the winning run in the championship against the Mississippi University for Women, saying it was one of the highlights of her softball career.

"(Winning the championship) was probably the best feeling ever," she said. "We battled for that, we worked really hard.”

Beyond the championship, James has won awards due to her athletic achievements in college both for softball and soccer. In May 2023, she was awarded the USCAA All-Tournament Team Award for softball.

James said she prides herself in her achievements and is always looking for the next one. She works on not only committing to school, sports and the military, but also trying be excellent in all phases of her life.

"I'm really proud of myself for serving and getting a degree," she said. "I'm not only doing it, I'm succeeding at it."

James said her family support has been crucial for her success. They are always pushing her to do more, even if they were hesitant when she shared she wanted to serve.

James, who decided to finish college in three years instead of four, is now well into her final year in college and already thinking about what the future holds. Though she dedicated her time to a lot of activities in college, serving her country is James' goal.

She is in the process of applying for the military's flight school program and hopes to start once she graduates. Though James is near the end of her current enlistment, she sees the military as her future.

"My family and myself have always been super patriotic," James said.

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Rafaela Pontes is a student in the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism