When coach Christy Johnson-Lynch arrived in Ames, the Iowa State volleyball program needed a makeover.

In nine seasons before she was hired as head coach, Iowa State had gone a combined 59-212 and had not made the postseason since 1995.

Oh, how times have changed.

“Sustaining a high level is really hard,” Johnson-Lynch said. “One of (my coaching staff’s) goals coming in was let’s be good over time. Not, let’s be good for a short period of time and then become irrelevant.”

In her 13 years in Ames, she has become the winningest coach in Iowa State history and has helped guide the Cyclones to 11-straight NCAA Tournaments. Iowa State is just one of 11 programs to accomplish that feat.

Come this Friday and Saturday at the Dayton Invitational in Dayton, Ohio, Johnson-Lynch has a chance to add another impressive honor to her resume: 250 career wins as the head coach of the Cyclones.

“I didn’t know about it or think about it really,” Johnson-Lynch said. “You just kind of plug along. I’ve been lucky to be here along time and have a lot of great teams, great players. We just want to play well this weekend.”

During the Dayton Invitational, No. 25 (3-0) Iowa State will take on the Dayton Flyers (3-1) on Friday at 6 p.m. and the Pittsburgh Panthers (1-2) on Saturday at 12:30 p.m.

Both opponents are much different than the foes the Cyclones faced last weekend. The Flyers and the Panthers run fast offenses which will cause problems for Iowa State according to Johnson-Lynch.

“You really have to move into your defensive positioning very, very quickly,” Johnson-Lynch said. “It is a quicker offense than we are used to seeing. Quicker than we saw last weekend. So we have to make some adjustments to that.”

Claiming 250 wins would be a remarkable feat for any coach. But for Johnson-Lynch, it will not be the most memorable thing in her coaching career.

She will remember the NCAA Tournament runs Iowa State made back in 2008 and 2011 when it made the Regional Finals. Johnson-Lynch will also remember the times when the Cyclones claimed upsets in Hilton Coliseum and the fans rushed onto the court, as the Cyclones beat No. 1 Nebraska in 2012 and No. 5 Texas last year.

Those are the types of moments Johnson-Lynch will remember. However, she will be remembered as the coach who rebuilt the Iowa State volleyball program.

“Just her consistency,” said libero Hali Hillegas. “I think she has just stayed consistent throughout her time here. I think that’s how you really build a program and she has built this program through that.”

Johnson-Lynch may not think much about getting her 250th win. But her players cannot wait to help her reach such a milestone in her career.

“That would be awesome,” said setter Monique Harris. “Just to be able to be on the court to help her get that win, that is all we care about because she cares so much about us and she cares about us winning and doing well. So, it would make us feel so great to be able to help her to get that 250(th) win.”