The volleyball team defeated Western Connecticut State in three straight home games Wednesday night, giving head coach Gale Lackey her 400th career win. Lackey, who went 13-13 in one season at the University of Bridgeport before coming to Wesleyan in 1978, is only the second Wesleyan coach ever to reach this milestone. The first was baseball coach Peter Kostacopoulos who won 480 games as the Cardinals’ head coach from 1974 to 2001. The volleyball team has won eight of its past nine matches and currently sits at 9-2 on the season.

Western Conn. jumped out to a 6-2 lead to start the first game. The teams traded points twice before the Colonials won five of six points to take a 12-5 lead and prompt Lackey to call timeout. Western Conn. scored again for an eight-point lead, but Wesleyan then went on an 11-1 tear to take a 16-14 lead. The Cardinals remained in control for the rest of the game and pulled out a 30-24 win.

The second game began inauspiciously for the Cardinals. With the score tied 1-1, setter Ellie Healy ’10 tripped over another Wesleyan player and twisted her ankle. Healy elected to remain in the match. The Colonials held a one-point lead early, but Wesleyan then scored seven straight points to turn the 6-5 deficit into a 12-6 lead. The Cardinals later led 20-11 before Western Conn. scored four straight to close within five. Wesleyan withstood the rally and scored five of the game’s last six points for a 30-25 win. According to Lackey, Healy’s decision to remain in the game was crucial to the team’s success.

“Ellie’s a winner,” Lackey said. “She said [the injury] scared her more than anything…She is key to our team playing at the tempo and pace we want.”

The third game again started closely, but after the Colonials scored to cut Wesleyan’s lead to 12-10, the Cardinals outscored their in-state foes 18-8 the rest of the way, including a 6-1 run to end the game, for a 30-18 win, the Cardinals’ ninth this season by ten or more points.

After the game, the team’s coaches and players unveiled a banner reading “400 WINS!! GO GALE!!” According to Healy, the players are particularly happy that they were able to help Lackey earn the milestone victory.

“It’s really nice that she could get it with our group of girls,” Healy said. “It’s a huge accomplishment, and I’m really happy that we could give it to her.”

Lackey’s career record as a volleyball coach now stands at 400-318, a .557 winning percentage. Her .559 winning percentage at Wesleyan is the ninth-best all-time among coaches with at least ten seasons of experience. Lackey also served as head coach of the women’s field hockey and lacrosse teams; excluding cross country, track, tennis, and swimming – sports in which the men’s and women’s teams generally have the same coach – only four other coaches in Wesleyan’s history have served as head coach of three or more different teams. Lackey currently serves as Associate Athletic Director and the athletic department’s Senior Woman Administrator.

“Reaching this milestone is very rewarding and a chance to reflect on what a great opportunity Wesleyan has allowed me to enjoy over the years,” Lackey said. “I think of the players and others who have contributed along the way.”

Lackey also noted that she was not worried that her quest for number 400 would become a distraction to the team: “I have great confidence in this team. This was a match we should have won in three games and that’s what they did.”

Indeed, the Cardinals earned their fourth 3-0 win of the year behind strong contributions from a number of players. NESCAC Player of the Week Lisa Drennan ’09 led the team with 15 kills and would have had even more were it not for a Colonial defense that came up with several spectacular digs. Outside hitter Fotini Xenidis ’11 added nine kills, and Healy contributed seven kills and 36 assists. On the defensive side, defensive specialist Ruby Hernandez ’11 led the team with 14 digs to help nullify a strong Western Connecticut attack.

This weekend, the Cardinals will host the Wesleyan Invitational. In addition to nonconference foe SUNY-Old Westbury, two NESCAC foes, Amherst and Trinity, will participate in the two-day tournament. Healy believes that the matches against Amherst and Trinity will provide invaluable experience for when the Cardinals play them in October as part of the NESCAC schedule.

“It’s such a benefit to be able to play a team before you play them in the league schedule,” Healy said. “We can see what we need to do to beat them.”

Healy also noted that Wesleyan, along with Little Three rivals Amherst and Williams, has played the fewest total matches (11) of any NESCAC school. Lackey, however, does not believe that this places the Cardinals at a competitive disadvantage.

“[The low match total] is because on our opening weekend we only played two matches,” Lackey said. “But they were quality matches. I think the level of competition we have been playing has prepared us well for our upcoming tourney and for the conference matchups coming next week. It helps to see…and play a team before the conference match, but teams get better or worse each week. Our goal is to get better each week…We need to be more consistent and improve on defense.”

Amherst has participated in the Wesleyan Invitational every year since 2003. Last fall, the Lord Jeffs defeated Wesleyan for the first time since 2003 in the Invitational’s first match, 3-0. Amherst went on to defeat Wheaton and Trinity to win the tournament with a 3-0 record.

The Cardinals’ quest to dethrone the Lord Jeffs begins at 8:00 p.m. on Friday with a match against their Little Three rival. On Saturday, the Cardinals will take on Old Westbury at 11:00 a.m. and Trinity at 2:00 p.m.