Jen Shea Lane - Head Softball Coach

(860) 685-2436 - jslane@wesleyan.edu

      Jen Shea Lane will be in her eighth season at the helm of the Wesleyan softball program in 2009. Also an assistant with the Wesleyan field hockey team, Jen is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Physical Education at Wesleyan.
     Jen led the Cardinals' softball team to back-to-back 21-win seasons in 2007 and 2008. During the 2008 season, the Cardinals won the NESCAC West title and earn the right to host the NESCAC championship where they finished as runners-up. The Cardinals also won their first Little Three title in 2008. Along the way, the 2008 team broke several Wesleyan records, including hits in a season (351), doubles in a season (52) and home runs in a season (14).  Members of the squad also set a number of individual school records. For her team’s success, Jen was named Co-Softball Coach of the Year in the NESCAC. .
      During the summer, Jen travels throughout New England, as well as to tournaments in Pennsylvania and Colorado, to assess high-school talent. Jen is the director of the Cardinal Softball Camp at Wesleyan, and also instructs at other softball and field hockey camps in Connecticut. Since 2005, Jen has been the training director for Middletown Youth Softball. She has gotten the Wesleyan players involved in the youth program as well, serving as volunteer coaches during the various teams’ practices. Jen attends the National Fastpitch Coaches Association’s annual convention and has achieved the level of 2-star Master Coach through the National Fastpitch Coaches College. She is also the treasurer of the New England Intercollegiate Softball Coaches Association and was a member of the NCAA Division III New England Region Softball Committee from 2006-08, a three-year term.
     Before coming to Wesleyan in the summer of 2001, Jen coached at her alma mater, NESCAC and Little Three rival Amherst College, while earning her Master's degree in exercise and sports studies at Smith College. In 1999, she was an assistant with the Lord Jeffs' softball team before moving into a co-head coach position for 2000 and 2001. She was an assistant with the field hockey program at Amherst as well for two years, including the 1999 season when the Lord Jeffs were the NCAA Division III national runners-up. During her undergraduate years at Amherst, Jen captained both the softball (1997 & 1998) and field hockey (1997) teams. As a pitcher, Jen helped lead the Lord Jeffs to a #16 finish in the country her senior year and was named to the New England Regional All-Tournament Team. A sweeper in field hockey, Jen played in the Division III North-South All-Star game in 1997. Originally from Hatfield, Mass., Jen was a four-year, three-sport (field hockey, basketball & softball) varsity standout at Smith Academy.

Lindsay Wasserman - Assistant Coach
lwasserman@wesleyan.edu

     Lindsay Wasserman will be in her second season of serving as a field hockey and softball assistant coach at Wesleyan during 2008-09.  A 2003 Wesleyan graduate, Lindsay was a standout two-sport athlete for the Cardinals, serving as a team captain in both field hockey and softball as a senior.  She also received team MVP honors in the latter sport that year as well as her freshman season.  As a four-year goalie and two-year starter, Lindsay played every minute in net for the field hockey squad in 2001 and 2002.  She ended her career with a 19-15 record which included eight shutouts. As a starting pitcher in softball, Lindsay holds team marks for appearances in a season and career (29/104), starts (25/81), complete games (20/75) and innings pitched (154/552).  She also is second in career strikeouts with 277 and was a two-year team captain on the diamond. When not on the mound, Lindsay also saw some action at first base.  After graduating from Wesleyan, Lindsay went on to earn her M. Ed. degree from Quinnipiac University in 2005 and taught high school for two years before accepting a position at Polson Middle School in Madison, teaching eighth-grade history.  She was the pitching coach for the Branford High School softball team for four seasons, helping the squad to its best season in program history during her tenure.
 

Leslie Barry - Assistant Coach
(860) 685-2982 - lbarry@wesleyan.edu

     Leslie Barry, a 2005 graduate of Carleton College where she was a four-year softball starter, will serve as an assistant coach for the softball team again in 2009 after debuting in that position in 2008. A catcher and third baseman for the Knights, Leslie was twice voted Offensive Player of the Year by her teammates. She also earned all-MIAC honors twice. Prior to Carleton, Leslie played travel softball with the Holly Hills U-18 organization, which is based in her home state of Ohio. In addition to travel softball, she was a member of one of four teams representing the United States in the World Cup of Softball Tournament in Lyon, France.  She was named MVP Catcher following that tournament. During her summers as an undergrad, Leslie was an assistant coach for the Holly Hills U-16 organization. Currently, she serves as an assistant dean of admission at Wesleyan.

Shelly Koehler - Assistant Coach

     Shelly Koehler will be in her first year as an assistant with the Wesleyan softball team in 2009. She has coached all levels of the game, from high school and travel ball to college, over the past 15 years. She most recently was at Marietta College (Ohio) as a varsity assistant and head JV softball coach. In 2006, Shelly and the Marietta softball coaching staff were awarded the Ohio Athletic Conference coaching staff of the year. Within the past five years, Shelly has directed over 150 clinics and showcases. She has spent summers recruiting all-star players from 35 different states to represent the U.S. in overseas competition. Shelly has led clinics and camps with professional players from teams such as the California Sunbirds, Philadelphia Force, Texas Thunder and Akron Racers. Shelly was a four-year catcher and two-year co-captain at Elmhurst College in Illinois before graduating in 1989. After college, Shelly went on to play with a mid-west “A”-Travel ball team for five years. Shelly currently works as a business advisor, helping small businesses within the state of Connecticut successfully manage entrepreneurship.