Jodee Pulizzano reaches milestone with 800th win at Ben Franklin

A marvelous career hit a marvelous milestone this past weekend as Ben Franklin High School volleyball coach Jodee Pulizzano won her 800th game — all with the Falcons.

The historic victory came Saturday at the annual Isidore Newman Tournament as the Falcons defeated Fontainebleau 25-19, 25-22.

Pulizzano currently is the 27th winningest coach in the U.S., according to the National Federation of State High School Association.

Now in her 28th season with the Falcons, Pullizano, who turns 49 today, is humbled by the accomplishment.

“When I first started at Franklin, I wasn’t thinking about 800 wins, let alone 100 wins,” Pullizano said. “We just wanted to get one win.”

While her birthday arrived two days later, the present arrived to days earlier.

“The kids didn’t plan it this way but they presented me with the best birthday gift they could ever give me Saturday,” Pullizano said. “They played awesome.”

The entire experience has been rewarding, gratifying for Pullizano.

“The best part of this whole thing is that all of this has happened at Franklin …to be able to do this with our kids and their parents over the years has been special,” Pullizano said. “It’s very humbling to be able to do what I love doing for this many years, with different groups of kids over 28 years. This is a great school and the kids make it possible. It’s always been about family and loyalty with me, and to be able to do it at the same school is a great honor.”

The Falcons stand 19-11 going into Tuesday’s District 7-4A showdown with co-leader Cabrini (18-9) at the Crescent gym.