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The quarterly publication for Georgia Southern University Athletic Foundation. Committed to Rings and Diplomas for all its scholar-athletes.
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SoaringGEORGIA SOUTHERN UNIVERSITYATHLETIC FOUNDATION
Winter 2011
Inside
Sports’ Preview
NCAA Releases Graduation Success Rates
Men’s Basketball“This is an exciting time for GSU Basketball,” remarks Head Coach Charlton (C.Y.) Young. The coaches and players are dedicating this season to Willie Powers (top left and on the cover) and Ben
Drayton (top right), both of whom are All-Southern Conference and are set to complete their senior careers.
“Willie and Ben are two young men for whom I have a tremendous amount of respect,” says Young. “They have been through all sorts of ups and downs in their careers here at GSU with many things out of their control like injuries. Yet Willie and Ben have fought through it. They have shown a tremendous amount of character and continued to work to get better for their basketball program.”
Added to their skills in the backcourt is a nucleus of talent including Cameron
Baskerville (left), a junior who enhances the team’s leadership, and other up-and-
coming players. “We have some young guys who can really play,” claims Young.
Sophomore Eric Ferguson (right) was the 19th rated freshman in
the country and was on the All-Southern Conference All Freshman Team. Jelani Hewitt (above left) was the nation’s leader in steals for
all freshmen. Both he and
Marvin Baynham (above middle) show tremendous growth. Tré Bussey and Sam Mike (above right) both had good freshmen campaigns.
In addition to that talent are two 6’8” freshmen, Kameron Dunnican and Tyrone Brown, and a great combo-guard in Jessie Pernell, who was an all-state football and basketball player. “We have a lot of young talent in our program and they are championship people,” says Young. “The whole team was here the entire summer, for both summer sessions. They have improved their bodies and everyone is doing a tremendous job in the classroom.”
“We have the luxury of having two seniors who have played a lot of games – having them in the backcourt together is a great thing – the situation I needed, with all the youth,” says Young.
Every year the team’s goal is to win a SoCon championship and to represent the conference in the NCAA tournament. Young urges the fans to come out to watch them and root them on to a championship season. “I would like to have a record setting year in terms of attendance for GSU basketball and that is the goal I would like to set for the fans. When we pack Hanner, we cannot lose.”
“Come see us,” he adds. “We have some guys who can really play.”
Sports’ Preview
Women’s BasketballIt has been an unusual year in the offseason for Women’s Basketball due to so many injuries sustained in last season’s play. “All our injuries
started in mid to late December and absolutely annihilated our year,” says Head Coach Rusty Cram.
But with a large percentage of the team’s leadership on the sidelines, last year’s freshmen, who are now sophomores, got a “boatload of experience,” according to Cram. “A lot of the younger kids got a tremendous amount of playing time that normally they would not have, so we are looking forward to this year when that experience is going to help us.”
Ten of the fifteen players are freshmen or sophomores, so two-thirds of this year’s team are very young, making balancing the younger players with the leadership a goal.
“The players have a great attitude and the work ethic of these young ladies is second to none in the 22 years that I have been here. They are a very close group and we just have to survive the first part of the season as we get into conference play. All in all, I feel like we are going to have a pretty good year.”
Junior, Meredyth Frye (below), a versatile player, will be fun to watch — she is very steady and knowledgeable and considered to be a solid all-round player. MiMi DuBose, (above right) a red-shirted sophomore, is one of the most prolific shooters on the team. Danielle Spencer (top left), a sophomore, was one who got a great deal of experience last year as a freshman and will probably prove to be one of the best.
Three freshmen are considered to be major contributors to the team this year, Kayla Upchurch, Anna Claire Knight and Tashayla Steede.
“The thing we look for is the team chemistry — that rhythm between the five on the floor at the same time. We then make that six, seven and eight, so that we know that we can have eight people minimum on the floor, who can play together and not miss a heartbeat, says Cram.”
So finding the right chemistry, avoiding the injuries, and adding a little luck will help make good things happen — hopefully winning
the conference and continuing that push to the NCAA tournament. “Individually and as a team we’re going to be a pretty good ball club when we get to the conference games.”
BaseballLast year Baseball had a strong finish winning the SoCon tournament and getting to the regional.
“We would like to put ourselves back in that position and hopefully take it further this year,” says Head Coach Rodney Hennon. “Our ultimate goal is to get to the college world series in Omaha.”
Yet with a roster with only three seniors this year, that is going to depend a lot on young talent. “The good thing is that we have a talented group,” says Hennon. “We have a good nucleus back that was part of that championship team a year ago.”
Senior Eric Phillips (above right), the team’s short stop, has been a regular starter in the program and will give the team some leadership in the infield. “We have more depth in the infield than we probably had last year,” says Hennon. “But we have some depth returning in the outfield as well.
The outfield, led by Victor Roache (right), who was All American last year, led the nation in home runs.
Michael Burruss (above left) has been in the program for a number of years and this year he is a red-shirted junior. As a designated hitter and an outfielder, he will give the team leadership and experience.
Behind the plate, the team will be relying on two true freshmen, Clint Clark and Chase Griffin, in the catching position. “They are very talented players and they just need to get some experience,” says Hennon. “They will get that opportunity this spring.”
The pitching staff will be led by a junior, Chris Beck (right), who really came on at the end last year. He was MVP at the SoCon Tournament and was a Friday night starter last season.
Josh Adams (below right), one of this year’s seniors, will return as part of the weekend rotation.
Last year several talented players were lost, including Andy Moyeand Matt Murray, a closer, who was the SouthernConference 2011 Pitcher of the Year. “We will be looking for someone on our staff to fill the closer spot this year,” says Hennon. In addition to Moye and Murray, Shawn Payne and Steve Cochrane went on to sign pro-contracts.
“The main focus this year is to try to mesh a group of guys together and get that chemistry where you want it. Every team is different,” remarks Hennon. “We have to define some roles before opening day.” With a group of freshmen who Hennon claims, “is a talented group,” the whole team — freshmen and returners — will be ready for their opener at home with UT Martin on February 17 – 19th.
SoftballFirst year Head Coach Annie Smith joins ten new Softball team members for their initial season as Eagles.
Focused on getting to know both the returning
players and the first year recruits, Smith started work with the fundamentals of playing the game. “We play the game to have fun, but we also want to play the game the right way,” she says. “I don’t know if they know how good they can be and we are working on that. Things shift with new people, and this is a good group and they work hard.”
Smith’s big goal is to have her team focus on one game at a time. “If they get ahead they lose focus and they start to worry about things they cannot control,” she says. “I tell them to worry about the game they are playing and when they win that, it will build on itself.”
The team’s four seniors bring a wealth of leadership and are doing a nice job of integrating with all the new people. Jorie Walker and Mackenzie Williams (2nd on the right) along with Marie Fogle (3rd on the right) and Hanna Ennis (4th on the right), who are the team’s top hitters, are very disciplined and do a good job of keeping the rest of the team in line.
The pitching staff is young but strong including Sarah Purvis, a sophomore who almost threw a no-hitter this fall, and freshmen, Marla Thompson, Brooke Red and Savannah Coon. Allie Miles (1st on the right), a sophomore, is doing well in rehab after surgery, but is
expected to be back in full form. Allie is the team’s top returning pitcher.
The infield is also very solid with junior Tabby Douberley doing great so far this year, combined with freshmen Kourtney Thomas and Hannah Wilson, both of whom are working hard.
Overall, Smith is pleased with the team’s progress. “Every week we have gotten better. They are doing a great job learning a lot, running hard, and getting into condition.”
With a large squad – 23 on the roster – the challenge will always be for the players to earn their spots on the 10 person team. “For me, earning their spots is like a clean slate. I do not know what people did in the past and I do not care. I just want to see what we have and go for it from there,” says Smith.
For Smith, the goals every year are to compete for the conference championship and go on to post season. “I told the team from the first day that I got here that I do not like to lose, so we are going to work on winning,” says Smith.
Smith works on her players winning in the classroom, too, with the goal of everyone getting their degree. Her requirements are clear. “If you don’t go to class, you don’t play, and if you are below a 3.0, you have to be in study hall.” For Smith, this is all “pretty simple” — staying focused and growing as a team one day at time.
The National Collegiate Athletic Associa-
tion (NCAA) recently released the Grad-
uation Success Rates (GSR) for the
cohort of Division I scholarship student-athletes
who entered college in 2004. Georgia Southern’s
athletics programs cumulatively achieved a GSR
of 66 percent with four individual sports recording
graduation success rates that surpassed national
GSR figures. Two Eagle teams, Women’s Tennis
and Volleyball, registered a 100 percent GSR for
the cohort measured in this report.
“We are continuing to make positive strides in
terms of reaching and surpassing the benchmarks
for academic success,” said Georgia Southern
Director of Athletics Sam Baker. “Last academic
year, our entire program posted its highest-ever
cumulative grade point average and had its highest-
ever single semester GPA in the spring. These
indicators of achievement, GPA and graduation
rate, show our programs are succeeding in the
classroom as well as in athletic competition. Our
mission is to make sure every student-athlete has
the opportunity to earn a diploma and win a
championship ring, and we’re committed to the
on-going efforts to enhance our student-athlete’s
academic performance.”
GSR was initiated by the NCAA at the request
of college and university presidents who wanted
to more accurately reflect the mobility among all
college students. - GSU Athletics Media Relations
NCAA Releases Graduation Success Rates
John [email protected]
David BeaubienExecutive Director of the Eagle Fund [email protected]
Frank HookDirector of Donor [email protected]
Lindsey RandolphAtlanta Regional AthleticsDevelopment [email protected]
Kathryn BryantOperations [email protected]
Dee ParkerDonor Records [email protected]
Caroline BevillardEagle Fund Program [email protected]
Gordon HunterEagle Fund Special Projects [email protected]
John RamfjordAthletics Ticket [email protected]
Writer/Editor: Bonnie JaegerGraphic Design: Hilde KeldermansPhotography: Frank Fortune
Seventh edition of the Georgia Southern
University Athletic Foundation’s quarterly
newsletter, Soaring
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