At a Glance |
Family:
Wife: Mandi
Children: Bailey, Jaxsen, Riley
Education:
Graduated with a bachelor’s degree in physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (N.Y.)
Graduated with a master's degree in education from Florida Southern in 2006.
Coaching Background:
Head coach at Fulton-Montgomery Community College
Head coach at Bishop Verot High School in Fort Myers, Fla.
Assistant coach at Florida Southern College
Head coach at Angelo State University |
Awards
4x LSC Coach of the Year (2012, 2016, 2019, 2021)
Career Record (through 2024 season): 410-140 (.745 winning percentage)
Record inside the Junell Center/Stephens Arena (through 2024 season): 200-34 (.855 winning percentage)
Waddington, who will begin his 18th season as head coach in 2025, guided the Belles to ten-straight NCAA South Central Regional Tournaments and historic runs to the NCAA Elite Eight in 2016 and the Final Four in 2024. In that time, the Belles have won five regular-season LSC Titles and five LSC Tournament Championships. He’s been named the LSC Coach of the Year four times and has helped 26 players earn AVCA All-American status. He also guided Meghan Parker to the program’s first AVCA National Freshman of the Year award; Demi Carter would repeat with that honor eight seasons later in 2024.
He has accumulated 410 overall wins, 224 Lone Star Conference victories, 16 straight LSC Tournament appearances, and multiple All-Conference and All-Region performers.
The Rambelles had their best season in program history in 2024, going 32-3 overall. They won the Lone Star Conference Tournament, the South Central Regional, and advanced to the Final Four for the first time in program history. Caleigh Enax was named the LSC Libero of the Year while Adeline Ortman earned Setter of the Year and Academic Player of the Year plaudits. Waddington was named the AVCA South Central Region Coach of the Year. At the same time, five players - Evelyn Torres, Ortman, Enax, Madi Parrish, and Demi Carter - were first-team all-region selections and all featured on the All-American teams. Ortman was a first-team All-American, while Parrish was named to the second team and Torres to the third team. Carter and Enax were honorable mentions, and Carter was named the AVCA Freshman of the Year. Ortman was also a First-Team Academic All-American, the sixth in program history.
The 2023 season saw the Belles go 24-8 and 12-4 in conference play as they returned to the South Central regional. The Belles advanced to the LSC semifinals, upsetting second-seed Regis in five sets in the opening round of the regional. Hannah Kinnison was named the conference’s academic player of the year and eventually earned All-American honors from the AVCA and academic All-American honors from CSC.
In the 2021 season, the Belles went 24-5 overall, winning the LSC regular-season championship with a 16-1 record in LSC play. Three Belles – Kailyn Gilbreath, Baleigh Allen, and Sophia Berg – earned conference superlative awards, with Gilbreath being named the conference’s player of the year and offensive player of the year. At the same time, Allen was the LSC Defensive Player of the Year, and Berg was the academic player of the year. All three would earn AVCA All-American honors, while Berg was also named a CoSIDA Academic All-American.
In the shortened Spring 2021 season, the Belles won their division of the LSC with a 10-2 mark and eventually won the LSC Tournament with wins over Midwestern State, Texas A&M-Kingsville, and UT Tyler. They then went on to win the AVCA DII National Championship and finish the season as the top-ranked team in the country.
In 2019, the Belles went 29-3 overall and 17-1 in LSC play. The Belles won the LSC Tournament and advanced to the South Central Regional semifinals. Waddington was named the LSC Coach of the Year as seven Belles earned All-LSC honors, with Kailyn Gilbreath, Sundara Chinn, and Meghan Parker being named to the first team. Gilbreath was also named the offensive player of the year, and the trio of Gilbreath, Chinn, and Parker earned All-American honors.
The Belles went 22-10 in 2018, qualifying for the South Central Regional. Meghan Parker was named the LSC Setter of the Year and the LSC Academic Player of the Year, while Audrey Fragniere was named the newcomer of the year. Fragniere earned AVCA All-American honors.
Waddington led the Belles to a 21-10 overall record in 2017 as they qualified for the South Central Regional. Brianna Sotello and Morgan Seaton were first-team All-LSC selections, with Sotello repeating as an All-American.
Waddington and the Belles worked through a top-notch regular season schedule, claiming the program’s eighth LSC regular season title in 2016. ASU then swept through the Conference Tournament, adding another piece of hardware to the shelf. This and the No. 1 ranking in the South Central region earned the Belles the right to host the South Central Regional Championship Tournament for the second consecutive time. Moving its way through the regional tournament, ASU secured its first-ever NCAA DII South Central Regional Championship. The Belles finished their season with a 34-4 overall record, the team’s best finish since the previous 33-6 finish in 2015. Angelo State also posted an 18-2 conference record and went an undefeated 20-0 at home.
Making its fifth consecutive NCAA DII South Central Regional Tournament appearance, Angelo State hosted the regional tournament for the first time in program history. In front of its home crowd, the Belles battled to their third regional final in program history, finishing as South Central Region runner-up. In Waddington’s eighth season, the Belles went 14-1 at home and won their seventh LSC Volleyball Tournament, downing Tarleton State in five sets. Under his leadership, Mallory Blauser, Katie MacLeay, and Maggi Jo Keffury were named AVCA All-Americans, and Brianna Sotello joined the trio as AVCA All-Region selections. The Belles capped the season with a 33-6 overall record.
Angelo State made its fourth straight appearance in the NCAA DII South Central regional in 2014. In Waddington’s seventh season, the Belles went 11-3 at home and reached the LSC tournament finals for the fifth straight season. Under his leadership, Shelby Wilt was named AVCA Honorable Mention All-American.
Angelo State returned to the NCAA DII South Central Championships for the third straight season and advanced to the regional finals for the second consecutive year in 2013. In Waddington’s sixth season, the Belles went 13-1 at home and reached the LSC tournament finals for the fourth straight season. Under his leadership, Maddie Huth and Maggi Jo Keffury were named AVCA All-Americans, and Shelby Wilt joined Huth and Keffury as All-Region selections.
ASU’s season that featured a 29-6 record and the Belles’ first Lone Star Conference regular-season championship since 1992 ended one win away from their first-ever trip to the NCAA national tournament, the 2012 team established itself as the most decorated group in program history along with Chuck Waddington being named the conference’s Coach of the Year. The accolades came throughout the season with 14 LSC Player of the Week honors, six players earning All-LSC recognition, and three being named All-Americans.
The Belles were nationally ranked in the top 10 throughout most of the season, and advanced farther in the regional tournament than any team in ASU history. Waddington and the Belles finished the year with a 29-6 record and at No. 10 in the AVCA’s final poll of the season.
ASU advanced to the NCAA DII postseason, were 17-3 in conference play, 13-1 at the Junell Center, and advanced to the LSC title match for the second straight season in Waddington’s fourth season. The Belles won 18 straight-set matches and had their first 30-win season since 1992. ASU finished the season with a 31-6 record, including beating St. Edward’s in the first round of the NCAA DII South Central Regional in Warrensburg, Mo. The postseason berth was the first for the Belles in 19 seasons, and the win over the Hilltoppers was the program’s first in the national tournament in 20 years.
Waddington led the Belles to the LSC tournament’s championship match for the first time since 1992 in his third season as head coach. ASU finished the season with a 12-2 conference record and beat Central Oklahoma (3-0) and No. 22 Abilene Christian (3-0) en route to the title match.
Previous to his success in San Angelo, Waddington spent five years as the assistant coach at Florida Southern College. He helped guide the Moccasins to five-straight NCAA Division II National Tournament appearances and a top-five national ranking.
Waddington began coaching with a one-year stint at Fulton-Montgomery Community College in Johnstown, N.Y., before serving six years as the head coach at Bishop Verot High School in Fort Myers, FL. During his tenure at BVHS, the volleyball team went 127-58, claimed five district titles, advanced to the Class 3A semifinals, and he earned the district’s coach of the year all six seasons.
From Bishop Verot, Waddington took his coaching passion to Florida Southern. The Moccasins were 136-44 during the five years the Belles’ head coach was there. He mentored 20 All-Sunshine State Conference honorees, 15 all-region selections, 10 All-Americans, and six academic all-district performers.
Also an experienced club volleyball coach, Waddington coached Junior Olympic Club Volleyball for six years in the Fort Myers area and was the club director for the Lakeland Area Volleyball Association in Lakeland, Fla. In the summers of 2006 and 2007, he was involved with the Team Florida USA Volleyball High Performance Program, coaching some of the top players in Florida.
Waddington is an accomplished volleyball player both indoors and on the beach. His indoor teams have finished as high as 11th in the USA Volleyball Open National Championships. He has won several AA and open-level tournaments on the beach, including a co-ed 4’s national championship in the mid-1990s. In 2006, Waddington was named the USAV Florida Region Outstanding Adult Male Player.
During the offseason, Waddington serves as the director for the Belles Volleyball Camps, which run the first week in June and the final week in July. The camps are for aspiring volleyball players ages 9-17 and provide instruction to all skill levels.
A native of Johnstown, N.Y., Waddington earned his bachelor’s degree in physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (N.Y.) in 1993. He added his master’s degree in education from Florida Southern in 2006.
Waddington and his wife, Mandi, have two daughters, Bailey (26), who played volleyball for Division I Central Arkansas University, Riley (12), and one son, Jaxsen (19).
