As with most joys in life, the sweetest victories come when returning home. For Ursuline Academy volleyball coach Jeni Case, this meant traveling to her alma mater Seton Thursday night to record her 300th career coaching win. Cases career high school coaching record is 300-107 over 17 seasons heading into today.

Case, who graduated from Seton in 1990, said that reaching the milestone where she grew up made the victory even more special.

My first volleyball coach I ever had, from when I was in fifth and sixth grade, was there, Case said. My high school coach was there, and I actually ran into two former teammates from Seton.

Following the win, parents and players took Case into the Seton lobby, where cookies with 300 written in icing awaited her.

Ursuline won the match 25-17, 25-23, 25-21, improving their record to 2-2. Case previously recorded her 200th career coaching win also against Seton, although that match was home at Ursuline.

Volleyball has been a constant throughout Cases life. At Seton, she was part of two state championship squads (1986, 1988), one state runner-up team (1989), and reached the state semifinals her sophomore year. After graduation, Case continued her playing career at Thomas More College, where is a member of the Thomas More College Hall of Fame, a three-time All-American for her defensive play.

Case began coaching club volleyball when she was 18 years old. In 1995 she returned to Seton as an assistant before taking over the head coaching position at Colerain in 1996. There she led the Cardinals to the regional finals and amassed 21 wins. In 1997, when Lakota split into Lakota East and Lakota West High School, Case became the inaugural Lakota East head volleyball coach, holding that title for nine years and 135 wins. Finally, in 2006, Case moved to her current position at Ursuline. The win over Seton yesterday is her 144th with the Lions.

For me, the most memorable game would probably be in 2009 when we won the state for Ursuline. We had lost in 2008, and that really hurt us, Case said. I felt that year like we had a college team, we were just so deep and had so many options.

Case continues to coach club volleyball during the high school offseason, establishing Elevation Volleyball, a program that fields squads for ages 10-18, with her husband, John Paul Case. The couple also founded the Sports Express Volleyball Center in Mason. Case also helps coach her daughters fifth grade team.

I have probably been coaching all year round since I was 18. I only took a year off after I had my daughter, Case said.

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Ursuline volleyball coach records 300th career win