W&M Announces Transformative Gifts to Women's Soccer/Men's Tennis

Few things impact the experience of a student-athlete more than the leadership provided by a head coach. A pair of former William & Mary student-athletes, Jennifer (Tepper) '91 and Scott '91 Mackesy, have recently committed the resources to endow the head coaching positions of both the women's soccer and men's tennis and ensure future generations of Tribe student-athletes will enjoy the same experience they shared on campus.

"Jen and Scott have long been connected with our department," commented Terry Driscoll. "They both valued the strong leadership they received from their respective coaches in their time on campus and decided this was an area they would like to make a lasting impact. These endowments will give each program financial flexibility that was never before possible."

Scott was one of the most accomplished players in the history of the Tribe's tennis program, as he was a two-time CAA Player of the Year and was named to the league's Silver Anniversary squad (as one of the all-time top 25 players in league history). Additionally, he was inducted into the William & Mary Athletics Hall of Fame in 2004. Jennifer made four appearances in the NCAA Championships in her time with the women's soccer program (1987-90) and was a freshman on the squad when it defeated then No. 1 and undefeated Universiity of North Carolina to win the prestigious WAGS tournament (on penalty kicks).

The Mackesys issued a joint statement in commenting on their desire to continue to build the leadership within the respective programs. "We hope that our gift will improve the College's ability to attract and retain high quality coaches and build upon William & Mary's continued success both on and off the field. Giving back to these programs is very important to us, and our goal is to enhance the experience for current and future student-athletes."

The endowments will allow each program to draw on the funds that would have otherwise been steered to the salaries of the head coaches and use them to enhance its operating budget. Both programs will be able to use 100% of the funds donated for this purpose.
"I would like to thank Jen and Scott for their outstanding generosity," remarked long-time Tribe Head Women's Soccer Coach, John Daly. "The endowment for women's soccer will benefit our coaches tremendously. It will also provide our student athletes with experiences and memories to treasure well beyond their years here at William & Mary."

The endowments will be named the Tepper Mackesy Women's Soccer Coaching Endowment and Mackesy Men's Tennis Coaching Endowment and are the first such established for a Tribe head coaching position.

"The incredibly generous gift of the Mackesy Men's Tennis Coaching Endowment is going to allow men's tennis to reach new heights in college tennis," said current head men's tennis Jeff Kader. "The immediate impact will be seen in our schedule, allowing us to travel to play the best competition in the country. The second area of focus is going to be in our recruiting. We are currently planning for our in-person international recruiting trips this summer, which is something that I have not done in the past. We are unbelievably grateful and look forward to the future of Tribe Tennis."

The William & Mary Athletics Department receives no state funding and the Tribe Clubworks with its many alumni, friends and corporate partners to raise the resouces necessary to provide W&M's student-athletes with a first-class athletics experience.