Henderson State University Women's Volleyball

Henderson State Director of Athletics Seth Dutton has announced the hiring of Brett Charlton as the new head coach of Reddies track and field. Charlton joins the department after a four-year stint at Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, Texas, where he served most recently as Head Track and Field and Cross-Country Coach after three years as an assistant with the program.  "We are ecstatic about having Brett join us in Arkadelphia as head track coach," Dutton said. "As we went through the search process, it was important for us to find someone who fits our culture at Henderson State and who could capitalize on the unique opportunity we have to rebuild the program. It was evident right away that Brett checked both boxes. His experience as a collegiate head coach and his deep recruiting ties in Texas will be paramount as he lays a foundation for Reddie track that will not only bring a large group of new student-athletes to our campus but will be built for sustainable competitive excellence."  In his lone year as a head coach, Charlton led the Saints to multiple Red River Athletics Conference championships in both track and cross country and was named RRAC Head Men's and Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year. His teams had 11 indoor and 16 outdoor NAIA National Qualifiers, including two NAIA Outdoor All-Americans. Charlton was also named RRAC Men's Track and Field Coach of the Year in 2025 and was a finalist for the USTFCCCA South Central Regional Men's Head Coach of the Year.  "Brett Charlton will be an excellent addition to our university community," Chancellor Dr. Trey Berry said. "His recruiting abilities and enthusiasm for our program will bring many successful student-athletes to our campus, and, with his instruction, Reddie track and field will quickly become contenders on and off the playing field. We are excited to bring this program back to the university."  Throughout his time in San Antonio, Charlton was known as an illustrious recruiter of talent. His roster at OLLU boasted over 100 students between indoor, outdoor, and cross-country teams and consisted of athletes from throughout Texas, as well as multiple other states and territories, including Kenya, Puerto Rico, and the United Arab Emirates.  In total, Charlton's athletes earned 45 individual conference championships, 47 athletes of the week awards, and set or broke a combined 59 school records. His teams featured NAIA All-Americans in Indoor and Outdoor relays, distance runs, and sprints and hurdles.  "I am honored to be named head track and field coach at Henderson State," Charlton said. "I would like to thank Seth and Dr. Berry for their vision and trust in me to bring this program back and to experience the success that Henderson has had in the past. We are excited to bring track and field back to Arkadelphia. Go Reddies!"  Prior to his tenure at OLLU, Charlton spent three years as an assistant coach at Eureka High School in Illinois, where he coached an Illinois High Jump state champion and 400-meter dash state champion along with a 4X400 meter relay national qualifier. His Hornets set eight records in his three years at the school.  Charlton is a 2019 graduate of Eureka College, where he was a seven-time SLIAC All-Conference selection in both track and field events, including field athlete of the week honors for his efforts as a long jumper for the Red Devils. 

Phil McDaniel was hired as the Reddies' head coach in February of 2017 and began his ninth season at the helm of the Henderson State volleyball program in the 2025 season. In his nine seasons, McDaniel has coached 17 All-Conference players - six First Team, six Second Team and five Honorable Mention recipients. In 2025, McDaniel's Reddies continued their streak of reaching the GAC Tournament. HSU produced the Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year as well as two All-Conference players. In 2024, McDaniel's Reddies reached yet another GAC Tournament, following a regular season in which the team defeated eventual league champion Ouachita Baptist. HSU also produced two All-Conference players. In 2023, McDaniel led the Reddies to their third 21-win season in the last five seasons, as well as their third 10-win GAC season in that same time span. Following a 19-10 regular season, HSU reached the the program's second ever GAC Tournament Championship Game after upsetting No. 1 overall seed Harding in the Semifinals. In the final match of the 2022 season, McDaniel reached career win number 100 at Henderson with a 3-0 victory at Arkansas-Monticello, becoming the second HSU head coach to ever reach the century mark. In that same win over the Blossoms, McDaniel reached 50 GAC victories.  After the 2021 season, McDaniel had led HSU to three 20-win seasons in the last four seasons - the only GAC team to reach that feat during that time span. Additionally, his teams have earned the United States Marine Corps/American Volleyball Coaches Association Team Academic Award three consecutive years after having never won the award prior to 2019. In his first year, McDaniel led the Reddies to 14 wins, their most in a single season since 2010, which included Henderson's first victory over Harding since 2009. In year two, Henderson took a huge step forward, and produced one of the finest seasons in school history. The Reddies won 28 matches, a school-record 13 Great American Conference contests, and reached the GAC Tournament Championship Final at the Bank OZK Arena in Hot Springs. Henderson's 28 victories were the most for the program since 2001. His third season saw another 20-win campaign, as the Reddies finished 21-12 overall and 11-5 in the GAC. COVID-19 shortened the 2020 campaign, which was played in the spring, but HSU finished third in the GAC Eastern Division and won its first round game in the GAC Tournament. In four years under McDaniel, Henderson has a winning percentage of .644.   Before coming to Arkadelphia, McDaniel built a long and impressive resume which included head coaching stops at Drake University and South Dakota State, as well as assistant coaching position at several top Division I and II institutions. His career also includes successful head coaching positions on the high school and club levels.   McDaniel spent the 2016 season as an assistant coach at Northern State University in Aberdeen, South Dakota, where he was responsible for recruiting as well as working with the Wolves’ defensive play. NSU finished the season ranked No. 21 in the final AVCA Division II Top 25 Poll.   Prior to his stint at Northern State, McDaniel served as head coach at South Dakota State from 2011 to 2015. During his time in Brookings, South Dakota, he had two Jackrabbits earn First-Team All-Summit League honors, two named to the Summit League All-Freshman Team, and eight garnered Summit League Player of the Week accolades.   His teams at South Dakota State earned Academic All-American Volleyball Coaches Association honors all four years, by compiling a grade point average of 3.3 or better each year.   McDaniel's first DI head coaching job came at Drake University, where he rebuilt the Bulldog volleyball program which had tallied only seven wins in 2007.   With McDaniel at the helm, Drake reached numerous program milestones including qualifying for the Missouri Valley Tournament in 2009 and 2010, with a total of four players receiving all-conference honors, including the program’s first First-Team MVC honoree in over a decade. In 2009, the Bulldogs registered a 22-12 record and followed with a 23-11 mark in 2010.   McDaniel served as an assistant coach at South Dakota State from 2005 to 2008. During his tenure at SDSU, he helped the Jackrabbits to the 2007 Summit League title and the school’s first-ever Division I NCAA Tournament appearance.   While overseeing SDSU’s recruiting efforts, McDaniel also monitored the academic progress for the Jackrabbits with the team earning the AVCA Academic Awards in 2005 and 2006.   Prior to his time at SDSU, McDaniel was an assistant coach at New Mexico State, where he helped lead the team to an 86-15 record and three straight Sun Belt Conference Championships. The Aggies also made two appearances in the NCAA Tournament in 2003 and 2004.   McDaniel began his coaching career at J.H. Rose High School in Greenville, N.C., where he led the program to a 42-7 record and earned Big East Conference 4A Coach of the Year for two consecutive seasons (2000, 2001).   McDaniel earned a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Culver-Stockton College in 1996 and a master's degree in counselor education from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville in 1998. He competed on both the soccer and tennis teams while at Culver-Stockton. CAREER RECORD AT HENDERSON STATE   YEARS WINS LOSSES 2017 14 14 2018 28 6 2019 21 12 2020 6 6 2021 21 9 2022 10 18 2023 21 11 2024 15 15 2025 15 16 TOTALS 151 107 CAREER CONFERENCE RECORD   YEARS WINS LOSSES CONFERENCE 2017 7 9 Great American 2018 13 3 Great American 2019 11 5 Great American 2020 5 5 Great American 2021 10 6 Great American 2022 4 12 Great American 2023 10 6 Great American 2024 6 10 Great American 2025 7 9 Great American TOTALS 73 65  

Sydney Vance (Skelton) begins her first year as assistant coach for Henderson State Volleyball in 2024-25. A former three-year captain for the Reddies, Vance returns to HSU after working as a personal trainer in El Dorado, Arkansas, for the past four years. Before that, she was a health teacher and head junior high volleyball coach at Wynne High School in Wynne, Arkansas. Vance also has experience as a USAVB coach for the Jonesboro Storm and Rocketfuel. She began her coaching career as a graduate assistant at Henderson in 2018. During her time as a player for HSU, Sydney set Great American Conference records for digs in a match (54), digs in a four-set match (54), and digs in a three-set match (34). As of 2020, two of these conference records still stood. Vance also earned both athletic and academic All-GAC honors twice. Vance holds two degrees from Henderson State: a Bachelor of Science in Sport Management (2018) and a Master of Science in Sport Administration (2020).

Mirela Polete Vasconselos begins her second year as an assistant volleyball coach for Henderson State in 2024-25. Vasconselos joins the HSU Athletics staff full-time after serving as the HSU women's volleyball graduate assistant from 2021-23. Vasconselos comes to HSU from Ribeirão Preto in Sau Paulo, Brazil, where she began her volleyball work as a Sports Coach at the University of Ribeirão Preto where she provided instruction to student-athletes of volleyball and handball. Vasconselos earned an Associate's Degree in Arts & Science from Indian Hills Community College before getting her Bachelors of Physical Education at the University of Ribeirão Preto in 2019 and then her Masters of Health and Education in 2021. Vasconselos earned her Master's in Sports Administration from Henderson State in 2023.