Carbondale Reporter

Southern Illinois University has appointed Brittany Harry as the new head coach for its women's volleyball team. Harry steps into the role following Ed Allen's departure in December after six seasons. She becomes the 10th head coach in the program's history.

Harry brings with her a record of 310-178 over 16 seasons as a collegiate head coach. In her recent tenure at West Texas A&M, she led the team to a 26-5 record, secured a Lone Star Conference championship, and took them to the Division II national tournament in 2024. Her efforts earned her the title of league's coach-of-the-year.

Tim Leonard, Southern Illinois' director of athletics, expressed enthusiasm about Harry's appointment: "I'm extremely excited to welcome Brittany to SIU. We were looking for a proven head coach, a winner, and a leader with integrity and high character. That's exactly what we found in Brittany."

A native of Champaign, Illinois, Harry began her coaching career at Spartanburg Methodist College at age 23. During her two seasons there, she achieved a 49-12 record and was named district coach-of-the-year twice.

Her coaching experience extends to several institutions: Vincennes University (88-38 record), Cumberland University (11-9 mark), Laredo College (84-65 record), and Texas A&M International (52-49 record).

Harry expressed gratitude for her new position: "I feel really grateful and blessed to have the opportunity to lead this program," she said. "My conversations with Tim and (Senior Woman Administrator) Katie Gerlach gave me a good sense of the direction Saluki volleyball can go."

She added that being from Champaign allows her to be closer to family while leveraging deep-rooted recruiting connections in Illinois.

Throughout her career, Harry has been honored as coach-of-the-year four times and has mentored three All-Americans along with 27 all-conference players. Her teams have also excelled academically, receiving AVCA All-Academic team honors for four consecutive years.

Harry played collegiate volleyball at South Carolina Upstate from 2002 to 2005 and holds a degree in communication-journalism. She is also mother to one daughter, Melia.