The recruiting process did not take long for Sterling junior Jossy James.

After attending a camp and making another visit to Valparaiso University, James was confident she found her next school.

“Once you know, you know,” said James, who was offered in late July and made her verbal commitment in early September. “I love the coaching staff, and I think it will be a great opportunity and a great fit.”

The 5-foot-3 guard has been making a big impact since she was a freshman. She was third on the team in scoring with eight points per game in her first season, playing all 30 games. She jumped up to 14.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.5 steals and 2.9 assists per game last season an an All-Western Big 6 Conference first-teamer and IBCA All-State third-team selection.

She led Sterling’s sectional championship team with 127 steals, 105 assists and hit 71 of 172 3-pointers (41%) as a sophomore.

“There’s not a kid in our gym that put in more time over the last year than she did,” Sterling coach Taylor Jackson said. “I think it’s just a testament to her hard work and her effort and her dedication to really become a great basketball player.

“She is always willing to learn where she might have an area of weakness, and try to get better at that. And I think that’s what makes kids at that level unique.”

James scored 27 points in her last game a season ago in the supersectional.

In Thursday’s season opener, she scored a career-high 32 points.

“I think our expectations of her after the work she’s put in are really, really high,” Jackson said. “She’s an extremely coachable kid. She’s a team-first kid, and so her role is changing. But her commitment to the team I think has always been there ... she’s just going to have more on her shoulders this year.”

Valpo’s coaching staff and players sold her on the togetherness the team has, and what it wants to build.

“The culture there and how they want their players to be,” she said of what stood out. “And not just on the court, but off the court, too. And all the opportunities that come with that.”

Now that she’s made her commitment, there is a sense of relief moving forward as only a junior. It was not her goal to do so, but things just fell into place.

Valpo plays in the Missouri Valley Conference.

“Now I don’t have to worry about anything else, I can just play,” she said. “I just get to hoop like I do every day.”

James has become a Division I recruit through hard work. Her effort and energy stand out when she’s on the court.

“It’s exciting,” she said. “I worked my butt off for this. And I’m going to continue to do just that.”