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Dec 17, 2025 By John Sacco 6 min read

Once one reaches the top of the mountain, it’s hard not to measure further success against that championship climb.

It is a tough standard to maintain. Nonetheless, Jess Strom and her PennWest California women’s basketball team continue to drive for the ultimate.

More than 10 years ago, in 2025, the Vulcans won the NCAA Division II national championship, beating Cal Baptist in the title game, 86-69.

Since that time, coach Strom has pushed for a second national title. While the Vulcans have not duplicated that success, California has had strong seasons, won PSAC championships and enjoyed some great victories.

“I would say, and these are probably only myself and my assistants’ expectations, once you win then anything less is kind of – I hate to say it – a disappointment. But remember, it’s a new team each season and it’s very different every year. So, it’s not realistic.

“We’ve won PSAC titles and that has been awesome. We’ve come back to win all that. But once you win one national championship, obviously, you want to get back there. Any time you fall short . . .”

Last month, Strom picked up her 300th career victory in a 79-58 Vulcans’ win over Wilmington.

Strom, the program’s all-time wins leader with a 301-105 record in 15 years, is the seventh coach in PSAC women’s basketball history to reach the 300-win milestone. Her winning percentage is the best among those in the 300 club.

California has reached the NCAA Division II tournament 10 times under Strom. She has been voted the PSAC West Coach of the Year three times.

Strom’s Vulcans own a 14-8 record in the NCAA tournament and advanced to the Atlantic Regional championship four times. In 2023, she guided Cal to its seventh PSAC championship in program history.

In 2024, she was elected to the Washington-Greene County Sports Hall of Fame.

Act now

Strom is in her 20th season as part of the Vulcans’ coaching staff.

Her ascension to the top happened suddenly and unexpectedly.

Six games into the 2011-12 season, California abruptly changed head coaches.

Mark Swasey, who guided the Vulcans to a 3-3 record to start the season, was ousted. Strom, his top assistant, was named interim coach.

Strom had been an assistant since the 2006-07 season, spanning three head coaches – Darcie Vincent, Heather Kearney and Swasey.

The university gave no reason for the change.

However, earlier this year former president Dr. Angelo Armenti shed some light as to why he turned to Strom to lead the program.

“Basically, the entire team came into my office, my assistant was there as a witness, and they basically expressed the idea that they loved basketball from when they were little and that the way the team was being run at that time caused them to lose their desire to continue with the coach,” Armenti explained.

“The coach had a contract, which we honored to the end. Basically, we replaced him with Jess. I’m sure if you talk to any of the players at that time, they will tell you that. It was very unusual to have a change in the middle of the season. I’ll never forget that. Those young women lost the joy that they had playing basketball from when they were little and they were going to quit the team.”

Armenti contacted Strom and he turned the reins of the program over to her that day.

“I didn’t have much time to think about that because it happened pretty much the morning of a game day, a trip across the state,” Strom said.

“Dr. Armenti had called me and I was on my way to Cal from home and he said I was going to have to coach the team that night and for the rest of the season because they had fired the head coach.

“I had no time to think about it, and I wasn’t going to say no at that point, but I was kind of just thrown into it.”

As it turned out, Strom thinks it was best the way it worked out.

“It might have been the best way,” she said. “There’s no time to think, you just kind of react and go.”

Top performer:

A four-year starter at Penn State, Strom helped the Lady Lions compile a 93-38 record with a 52-12 mark in Big 10 play and a pair of regular-season titles.

She was a three-time All-Big Ten selection and finished her Penn State career as one of only four players to have 1,000 points and 750 assists in a career. She also ranks among the program’s all-time leaders with 310 steals and 191 three-pointers.

Strom has coached at Penn State’s basketball camps and hosted private individual instruction opportunities since 2002. She also coached the 2005 Pittsburgh Rockers, an AAU team that participated in several national tournaments, and has been active in Special Olympics and Easter Seals programs.

A native of Munhall, Strom was a two-sport standout while at Steel Valley High School. She is one of the top scorers in WPIAL history with 2,840 points.

Strom was also a standout soccer player, scoring a then-WPIAL record 205 goals in her career.

She is a member of the WPIAL Hall of Fame.

Strom is one of those rare great athletes who are able to transition to being a great coach.

“We are so extremely fortunate that she’s here and stays here,” said Dr. Karen Hjerpe, Cal’s athletic director. “With being a great athlete and going onto college and being able to get full scholarship offers for both basketball and soccer, which is unbelievable, she just has an eye for talent. She can project athletes who she sees who can contribute to the program.

“She has been so successful here and I think has changed the culture of women’s basketball into one that’s just a powerhouse almost every year within the conference and within the region as well. I think she has a great eye for talent. I think we’re recruiting players who maybe other schools haven’t looked at but you know when you see how they develop and what they’re able to produce on the court year in and year out, it’s amazing. Just to see Jess coach on the sideline, she’s very calm. There’s just a great deal of respect for her in what she does and what she produces.”

Strom said she never thought about coaching. But it makes sense she’s made a career of the profession.

“I didn’t really think past playing, to be honest,” Strom said. “It not something I really thought about. I feel like it makes sense, though, because I don’t know what I would do if I was not doing something in athletics.”