AC repair inStatesboro, GA

While waiting out the weather delay during the Notre Dame vs. Texas Tech game many Georgia Southern fans and alumni gathered together at a tailgate in front of Hanner Fieldhouse.

Many of the alumni were former Eagle players who came back to town to watch Georgia Southern host their first ever NCAA Regional, and while they never got the chance, they were happy for this year’s group to finally break through.

“I have been paying close attention to college baseball this year with what our team has been doing,” said former Eagle pitcher Will Middour. “I really felt like they deserved to host this year and it is so special and we are all so proud of these guys. The excitement for all us former players, but also for the University and the city of Statesboro is just incredible. I know there are a lot of people who would have loved to come but it was such a quick turnaround. This may be the first but we all hope it’s not the last.”

Rodney Hennon took over the Eagle baseball team in 1999 and one of his goals was to increase the capacity of J.I. Clements Stadium in order for Georgia Southern to possibly host an NCAA Regional. The stadium renovations finished in 2005 gave them the opportunity and it finally paid off this season.

“I can remember years before I got to Georgia Southern about them deciding to build the stadium,” said former Eagle outfielder Stryker Brown. “Possibly hosting a regional was always Rodney’s goal and dream. Knowing that is what this stadium was built for and finally getting to host one is a really cool feeling. It’s such a great experience getting to see our guys in our program finally make it there. I feel like anybody who has had a hand in the program from the 70’s until now are either coming this week or really wish they could be here.”

Former players set up text threads in order to keep up with whether or not the Eagles received a bid, and then to coordinate plans to come to Statesboro for the games.

“We have a text thread with about 25 former players in it and we have been paying attention most of the year because their RPI was so good,” said former Eagle shortstop Evan McDonald. “I was supposed to be moving this weekend but I had to put it off because of this. My dad flew down from Missouri because we know this is so historic and you never know when it may happen again. We played in the 2014 Regional in Florida State and I know how much that meant to us. This is something these guys will remember the rest of their lives.”

If anyone can understand how special, it would be to host a Regional it's those who played in one on the road during their playing days.

“All of us that have played at Georgia Southern this is just something you can’t miss,” said former Eagle shortstop Dalton Busby. “Being able to host a Regional is going to have such a positive impact on recruiting and we are so happy to see the program continue to grow like this. To sell out the tickets that quickly also says a lot for our fan base.”

Another common theme among the former players was how happy they are for their former head coach Rodney Hennon.

“I feel like almost every single player who played here since 2000 is happy because of how special this is for coach Hennon,” said former Eagle catcher C.J. Brazil. “He has run this program for over 20 years and run it the right way and he deserves to host a regional. He is such a special guy who can pull the best out of you. He takes guys that come here as kids and helps to turn them into men.”

From a former player’s standpoint hosting a regional site should be a big advantage for the players.

“Mentally they have to be in the best spot possible,” said former Eagle pitcher Conner Simmons. “They are in a comfortable environment and will definitely have the majority of fans on their side. Those fifth-year seniors have had more reps at J.I. Clements Stadium than anyone in school history. We have such special fans here and I just can’t wait to get out there and pull them on and get onto those other teams.”

Legendary Statesboro head coach Lee Hill was inducted into the Georgia Athletic Coaches Hall of Fame recently in a ceremony held at the Dalton Convention Center in Dalton, Georgia, the home of the Hall of Fame.

Hill was the winningest coach in the state of Georgia at the time of his passing in August of 2020. He led the Blue Devils to the state playoffs in all but one of his 44 years of coaching. His career ended with 877 victories, a state title, one state runner-up, and six trips to the Final Four.

Attending the ceremony in his honor was his wife, Wilma Hill, his daughter, Iesha Baldwin, and his son, Lee Hill Jr.

"It is just a blessing to see Lee be inducted into the Hall of Fame,“ said Wilma Hill. “I'm overjoyed to see his hard work acknowledged.”

“It is a great honor to see my dad be selected to the Georgia Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame,“ said Baldwin. “I would sincerely like to thank everyone on the committee that thought of him for this wonderful accolade. It is truly a blessing to see him be honored for all the hard work that he put into Statesboro basketball.

“I would also like to thank the great support system he had over the years to help him build a basketball dynasty in South Georgia,” said Baldwin. “From the administration, players, parents, game day personnel, boosters, and loyal Blue Devil fans. They truly believed in his coaching philosophy and allowed him to do great things with young men and women from his hometown Statesboro.”

And while there is no wing in the Hall of Fame for coaches’ wives, Baldwin recognized the sacrifices her mother, Wilma, made to help Coach Hill in his success.

“I would also like to thank my mom, Wilma Hill, for being a great coach's wife over the years,” said Baldwin. “She ran concession stands, packed lunches, and listened to all the moans and groans for thousands of games.”

The honor of inducting Hill into the Hall of Fame came from long-time Southeast Bulloch coach John Page. Page and Hill coached in Bulloch County together for over 36 years and shared a friendship off the court as well.

“We developed a friendship outside of coaching,” said Page. “We had our church Easter program at our house and I invited him and his family and grandkids over and they came many times and had a great time. He was impressed by our garden and took his grandchildren over to see the garden. We visited each other at each other’s homes and talked about a lot of things besides basketball.”

“I can’t really say we had a rivalry on the court since we never beat him,” said Page. “We shared offensive and defensive philosophies, and if he thought he could help you, he was happy to give you information, regardless of whether he was going to have to play you or not. He was one of the most well-respected coaches throughout the state for over 40 years and was a shoe-in to go into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot.”

The only other basketball coach to go in this year was Seth Vining. Other inductees included: football coach Hal Lamb, baseball coach Donnie English and golf coach Terry Tulley.

The Georgia Southern baseball team is hosting an NCAA regional for the first time. Can the Eagles take advantage and move on to the Super Regionals?

Georgia Southern opens against UNC Greensboro on Friday night, after Notre Dame and Texas Tech kick off the Statesboro Regional in the afternoon. The regional is double-elimination.

(UPDATE: Because of multiple rain delays during Friday's first game between Notre Dame and Texas Tech, Georgia Southern's game against UNC Greensboro was moved to Saturday morning.)

GS (40-18) received the No. 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Eagles were the No. 2 seed in the Sun Belt tournament and made the conference championship game, losing to Louisiana 7-6 on a ninth-inning rally. The Eagles' offense is led by senior Noah Ledford, who has 69 RBIs this season.

UNC Greensboro (34-28) was the No. 7 seed in the Southern Conference tournament but won the championship after beating top-seeded Wofford twice on Sunday. Kennedy Jones provides the juice in the Spartans' offense with 73 RBIs.

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Where and when do Georgia Southern Eagles vs. UNC Greensboro Spartans in NCAA baseball regional?

Where: J.I. Clements Stadium, Statesboro, Georgia

When: 10 a.m. Saturday, June 4. The start is contingent on Notre Dame and Texas Tech finishing their game, which saw multiple rain delays Friday.

How can I watch GA Southern baseball vs. UNCG in NCAA regional?

Streaming: ESPN+ ($6.99 per month), WatchESPN (cable subscription needed) and the ESPN app, YouTube TV (2-week free trial), Hulu + Live TV (7-day free trial), fuboTV (7-day free trial)

How can I listen to GA Southern baseball vs. UNC Greensboro in NCAA Statesboro Regional?

Online radio: Georgia Southern Sports Network, TuneIn

STATESBORO, Ga. (WSAV) – At the end of a back-and-forth day of baseball in Statesboro, Vidalia High School finds itself in the same position that it was in last week: facing a decisive Game 3.

Vidalia split the first two games of its AA state title series against Thomasville, winning the first game 14-4 by run rule but dropping the second game 10-3.

That Game 3 will be played Wednesday at noon in J.I. Clements Stadium.

The bats were on fire for Vidalia early on in Game 1; their offense reeled off eight runs in the third inning to take a 9-1 lead over Thomasville. Ty Dalley and Kevin Cox were especially effective, combining to go 8-for-8 with six RBI. Kaleb Bennett also added three RBI on a 3-for-4 performance at the plate. That included his infield single in the second inning to get the scoring started for Vidalia.

After a single by Jordan Walden drove in Vidalia’s second run of the game in the third inning, Cox hit a bases-loaded single two batters later to score a pair of runs and make the tally 4-0 Vidalia. Bennett followed up with a bloop hit to centerfield to add to Vidalia’s lead. The score was 9-0 in Vidalia’s favor at the end of the inning.

Cox also delivered the fifth-inning hit that would ensure Vidalia’s run rule victory. With one out and runners on first and second base, Cox smacked a line drive to left field, scoring both baserunners and putting Vidalia up 14-3.

By the end of the game, seven different Vidalia hitters batted in at least one run.

Thomasville was able to push across a run of its own in the bottom of the inning, but not enough to narrow the deficit to fewer than 10 runs, which ended the game early in Vidalia’s favor.

Senior Bryson Whited picked up the victory on the mound by throwing all five innings. He allowed three runs.

Thomasville flipped the script on Vidalia in Game 2, quickly pushing across four runs in the top of the first inning. A Jace Lowe single started the scoring for the Bulldogs, who scored those runs on only three hits.

Vidalia got two runs back in the bottom half of the inning thanks to RBI singles from Walker Moncus and Chandler Corbett, but Thomasville countered with one run apiece in the top of the second and third innings.

Vidalia starting pitcher Caden Spivey exited the game after five innings with his team trailing 6-3. Senior Bryce Morley finished out the final two innings.

Lowe tagged Morley for two more runs in the sixth inning on a ground ball through the left side of the infield that scored runners on second and third bases. Thomasville added two more in the seventh inning to salt the game away.

Vidalia also encountered a Game 3 last week in the semifinal round against Lovett, winning it 5-4 on a late-inning home run from Moncus.

CWS Bracket

ACC Baseball Release: https://bit.ly/3vAH9lL 2022 ACC Baseball Guide: https://bit.ly/3IANmlc

June 15, 2022

• Notre Dame (40-15) will represent the ACC at this year’s Men’s College World Series and will face No. 9 Texas (42-18) in its opening game on Friday evening at 7 p.m. ET (ESPN) at Charles Schwab Field Omaha in Omaha, Nebraska.

• The Fighting Irish advanced by winning five of six games away from home - first sweeping three straight in the Statesboro (Georgia) Regional, and then taking two of three in last weekend’s Super Regional at top-ranked Tennessee.

• The ACC has placed at least one team in each of the last 16 Men’s College World Series. A total of 29 ACC teams – nearly a quarter of the total field – have earned MCWS berths since 2006.

• Ninety-nine ACC teams have earned NCAA bids in the last 13 tournament years. The 14 current ACC teams have a combined 99 College World Series appearances.

• Three ACC teams rank among the top five nationally for most all-time tournament appearances: No. 2 Florida State (59), No. 3 Miami (48), and No. 5 Clemson (44).

• Notre Dame is making the third trip to Omaha in school history and the first in 20 years. The 2002 squad was the last Irish team to earn a bid prior to this season, when it knocked off top-ranked Florida State in three games to punch its ticket.

• Nine ACC teams were selected to compete in the 2022 NCAA Tournament, tying for the most of any conference. The ACC has placed at least six teams in the NCAA tournament for 18 straight years. This marks the sixth year since 2010 that at least eight ACC teams have landed spots in the field.

• The ACC leads all conferences with two of the five finalists for the Dick Howser Trophy, which is presented annually to the national player of the year. ACC Player of the Year Max Wagner of Clemson and Georgia Tech catcher Kevin Parada are among the remaining candidates for the honor, which will be announced Friday, prior to the start of the Men’s College World Series in Omaha.

• Georgia Tech’s Parada is also a finalist for the 2022 Golden Spikes Award and the Buster Posey Award, which is presented to the nation’s top catcher.

• Wagner and NC State freshman Tommy White each finished with 27 home runs, tying for the third-highest single-season total in ACC history. Parada hit 26 home runs this season and UNC freshman Vance Honeycutt hit 25. All four players set or tied program single-season marks.

• With two wins during this year’s NCAA Regional competition, Georgia Tech’s Danny Hall became NCAA Division I’s winningest active head coach with 1,348 career victories. Hall, whose career spans part or all of the last six decades, has posted 1,140 wins in his 29 years with the Yellow Jackets.