It's not the first time the 32-year-old has had success on a TV game show. In 2010, she won $5,000 on "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire"

" 'Jeopardy!' was the show I wanted to be on," she said. "I'd tried to be on since 2008 when I went to my first audition."

If contestants make it through auditions successfully, they're placed in a pool of names for eligibility that's good for the next several years.

It was after her third audition that she got a call to be on "Jeopardy!"

"Everybody who goes through those auditions could do well on the show. Some people go through for years and years, but never get picked," she said. "They feel frustrated, but they keep doing it."

The signaling devices were the "X factor" in the show, she said, because all three of the players usually know the answer, but it's their speed on the button that makes the difference. A mock game played prior to taping allows the players to acquaint themselves with the device.

"Sometimes I felt like I was out-competed," she said. "I didn't really feel like I was that fast."