February 10, 2010 Alex Brown

d.alex.brown@gmail.com

    By this point in the season, everybody has a good idea of what any given team is capable of and whether or not they are contenders.
    With about a month left until conference tournaments and Selection Sunday, we have seen the majority of the body of work that will be known as the 2009-2010 season. And for the Georgia Southern Eagles, it isn’t exactly pretty at this point. But don’t give up on these guys just yet.
    Despite a less than stellar 6-19 overall record, the Eagles have stood toe-to-toe with some pretty strong teams. Look no further than the first two road games of the season at South Carolina and Florida. The Eagles matched both SEC foes punch for punch until depth and size took over the in second half of each game.
    Georgia Southern beat Troy—one of the Sunbelt Conference’s top teams—in thrilling fashion at Hanner over Thanksgiving weekend. The Eagles also took care of Appalachian State and Western Carolina, the top two teams in the north division of the SoCon, on their home floor.
    These Eagles aren’t bad. As a matter of fact, they can be pretty doggone good. And at times they have been.
    Inconsistency and the inability to win on the road are keeping this team from being extremely dangerous. They play an in-your-face, tenacious style of defense that other teams hate to match up against. And when the three point shooters get hot, these Eagles are tough to beat.
    For these reasons, I still say this team isn’t done. They may not win the conference tournament in a few weeks, but I believe they still have something to prove. They are still dangerous. They just need to learn how to win.
    As for the Lady Eagles, they have shown that they can beat anyone in the conference. But after winning four in a row, they have lost two straight against Chattanooga and Samford.
    This has been a streaky team all season—they lost four straight in November, won five of six in December, then lost three in a row before winning six of its next eight. If one of those good streaks can coincide with that first weekend in March, look out Southern Conference.
    Getting that fifth seed for the tournament is critical for the Lady Eagles as the top five teams get a first-round bye. And it looks like it will come down to Southern and Appalachian State for that fifth spot. Oh, by the way—last game of the season: Georgia Southern vs. Appalachian State at Hanner. That one could be huge. But the ladies have four games to play before then. This is shaping up to be a fun ride.
    Speaking of fun rides, Georgia Southern baseball brought a SoCon championship home last season and the Eagles’ title defense starts next weekend. The Diamond Eagles open up the 2010 season with a weekend series at home against Tennessee Tech. Other teams of note coming to J.I. Clements this season are: Georgia Tech, South Carolina, Western Carolina and The Citadel.
    Southern will have 13 new faces on this year’s squad to complement a good group of returning players, which includes seniors Kyle Blackburn, Roman Grimaldi, Kevin Bowles and A.J. Wirnsberger. An experienced pitching staff featuring Jake Brown, Matt Murray, Andy Moye, and Dexter Bobo should equip this team to make another run at a conference championship and another NCAA Regional appearance.
    It’s tough to think baseball when my car windshield is still frozen most mornings, but it’s that time of year again. So bundle up for these first few games and come heckle opposing players in the student section or just sit back, fill up on sunflower seeds and enjoy America’s pastime…Southern style.

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