Claflin Athletics Names Zadaisha Waddell Head Softball Coach
Terica Peay
ORANGEBURG, S.C. — Claflin University Director of Athletics
Tony O'Neal has announced the hiring of Zadaisha Waddell as the new head softball coach.
Waddell brings a strong background in collegiate coaching, player development, academic success, and championship-level competition to the Claflin softball program. Most recently, she served as the head softball coach at Lincoln University of Pennsylvania, where she led the program while emphasizing the academic, athletic, and personal development of her student-athletes.
"We are excited to welcome Coach Waddell to Claflin University," O'Neal said. "She brings a tremendous amount of energy, experience, and knowledge to our softball program. We believe she is the right leader to move Claflin softball forward."
During her time at Lincoln, Waddell helped establish a culture centered on accountability, discipline, leadership, and academic achievement. The program produced the highest team GPA in the CIAA for softball in 2024, while averaging 11-12 student-athletes on the dean's list each academic semester.
Waddell was named CIAA Coach of the Year in 2024 and guided Lincoln to the final four of the CIAA Tournament in both 2025 and 2026. Under her leadership, the program increased its average number of wins from six to 17 in 2024. She also helped develop seven CIAA conference honorees from 2024-26. Another hallmark of Waddell's tenure has been student-athlete retention. The program did not have a student-athlete enter the transfer portal during the 2025 and 2026 seasons.
"I am truly honored and excited to join the Claflin family," Waddell said. "I look forward to building relationships with our student-athletes, coaches, alumni, and the entire Claflin community. We are going to work extremely hard to build a program that represents Claflin with pride, competes at a high level, and develops young women who are prepared to succeed beyond the softball field."
Before taking over at Lincoln, Waddell served as an assistant softball coach at Grambling State University from 2021-22. Her responsibilities included player development, pitching instruction, defensive development, and hitting mechanics, as well as monitoring student-athlete retention and academic progress. She also helped Grambling make two SWAC Tournament appearances.
Waddell began her collegiate coaching career as a graduate assistant at North Carolina A&T State University in 2020. In that role, she assisted with NCAA Division I compliance, monitored academic progress, supervised study hall, helped develop student-athlete schedules, and created drills focused on fundamental development.
A former standout softball player at North Carolina A&T, Waddell was a four-year athlete who earned Rookie of the Year honors, four All-MEAC Conference selections, and All-HBCU Team honors in 2019 and 2020. She was also named MEAC Pitcher of the Week in 2018.
Her experience as a player and coach has helped shape a development-focused coaching philosophy that emphasizes fundamentals, preparation, accountability, and confidence.
Waddell earned a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from North Carolina A&T in 2018 and a master's degree in adult education from the university in 2020. During her graduate studies, she completed an internship with the university's compliance office and studied human resources, leadership, and adult education.
In addition to her coaching responsibilities, Waddell serves as vice president of the CIAA Conference Coaches Committee and has remained active in community service, including volunteer work with the Miracle League of Greensboro and the Greensboro Animal Shelter.
Waddell will begin her tenure at Claflin immediately and will lead the Panthers into the upcoming softball season.
Stay Connected
For complete coverage of Claflin Athletics, follow us on social media at @claflin_athletics (Instagram) or Claflin University-Athletics (Facebook), or visit the official home of the Panthers at www.athletics.claflins.edu.
About Claflin University Athletics
Claflin University is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division II institution that sponsors 11 intercollegiate sports. The university's athletic program includes volleyball; men's and women's cross country; men's and women's basketball; softball; men's and women's indoor and outdoor track and field; and baseball. Claflin's teams compete primarily in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA), while the baseball program competes in the Peach Belt Conference.
