EASTERN ILLINOIS at Southern Miss Tournament
Friday, Feb. 22 - Sunday, Feb. 24
Hattiesburg, Miss. • Pete Taylor Park/Hill Denson Field (6,600)

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Friday, Feb. 22 • EIU at Southern Miss at 6 p.m. |  Live Stats  |  Watch Live  |  Listen Live
Saturday, Feb. 23 • EIU vs Alcorn State at Noon | Live Stats
Sunday, Feb. 24 • EIU vs Missouri State at 11 a.m. | Live Stats

PROJECTED STARTERS
Game 1: RHP Matt Borens (0-0, 1.69 ERA) vs RHP Andrew Pierce (1-0, 1.29 ERA) 
Game 2: RHP Joe Greenfield (0-0, 1.93 ERA) vs TBA
Game 3: RHP Andrew Grahn (0-0, 5.40 ERA) RHP Cody Schumacher (1-0, 1.29 ERA) 
 
TOURNAMENT PARTICIPANTS
EIU heads into the weekend with a 1-3 overall record after four games at the Jackson State Tournament last weekend. Nationally ranked Southern Miss is 3-1 on the year after sweeping Missouri in a three-game series on Feb. 15-17. The Golden Eagles lone loss was to Alabama, 10-8, on Tuesday, Feb. 19.
 
Missouri State is 2-1 on the year after posting a 40-22 overall record in 2012 and advancing to the NCAA Tournament. Alcorn State went 18-37 a year ago and is currently 0-6 this season.
 
VALACH LEADS PANTHER OFFENSE AT JSU TOURNAMENT
Sophomore Brant Valach, the 2012 OVC Rookie of the Year, posted a .600 batting average in four games last weekend. He went 9-for-15 at the plate with three RBI, two doubles and a run scored.
 
PANTHER NOTES
• Junior transfer Treysen Vavra led the Panthers with four RBI last weekend. The infielder went 5-for-19 at the plate with a double and a stolen base. He also had a .263 batting average and a .316 slugging percentage.
 
• The Panthers went 5-for-5 in stolen bases at the JSU Tournament, led by senior Nathan Sopena who went 2-for-2. The infielder went 8-for-9 in stolen bases during the 2012 season to rank third on the team.
 
• Jacob Reese and Nick Priessman led the team in scoring last weekend as both players scored four runs. Reese also added two doubles while Priessman added five hits.
 
• Jaden Widdersheim posted his first career win at EIU in the Panthers extra-inning win over Jackson State on Feb. 16. The junior right-handed pitcher is 1-1 on the year with a 3.00 ERA in two appearances out of the bullpen.
 
• Redshirt-senior George Kalousek recorded his first career save in the win over Jackson State on Feb. 16. The Schaumburg, Ill., native has a 3.60 ERA in 15 career appearances with 15 strikeouts.
 
• Sophomore Matt Borens, in only his fourth career start, had his longest career outing in the Panthers season opener on Feb. 15 against Texas Southern. He went 5.1 innings and only surrendered two runs (one earned) with two strikeouts.
 
• Joe Greenfield threw a team-high six strikeouts last weekend, coming in the Panthers win over Jackson Sate on Feb. 16. The junior pitcher only allowed one earned run and five hits in 4.2 innings of action.  
 
INJURIES PLAGUE PANTHER ROTATION TO START SEASON
After losing projected No. 1 starter Troy Barton with an arm injury a week before opening day, the Panthers had their No. 2 starter go down at the Jackson State Tournament in Christian Slazinik. The junior southpaw hurt his leg on his first pitch of the game against Jackson State on Feb. 17. The injury is minor and Slazinik is expected to return to the rotation soon.
 
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
After the Southern Miss Tournament, the Panthers travel to Southeastern Conference member Auburn on March 1-3. EIU faces another SEC foe, Vanderbilt, on March 5 in Nashville, Tenn.
 
SCHMITZ ENTERS HIS 19th SEASON AT EIU
Head coach Jim Schmitz enters his 19th season with the Panther baseball team in 2013, recording a 477-488 overall record. The three-time Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year has won four regular-season titles – most recently in 2009 – and has taken the Panthers to the NCAA Tournament on two occasions, both in 1999 and 2008.
 
Schmitz has seen the on-field accomplishments of his players come to fruition as 65 players have earned all-conference accolades including 36 players who have earned first-team distinction. Three players have also earned player of the year honors in Matt Marzec (1998), Pete Pirman (2002) and Jordan Kreke (2009) during his tenure. John Larson also captured pitcher of the year honors in 1999 while Ben Duke (2001) and Brant Valach (2012) have earned newcomer of the year recognition.
 
Under the tutelage of Schmitz, 18 players have been taken in Major League Baseball's First-Year Players Draft since taking the helm of the program in 1995. Seven players have been drafted in the last four seasons, most recently Ryan Dineen and Joe Greenfield who were taken in the 2012 draft. When Tyler Kehrer went 48th overall in the 2009 MLB Draft, he became the highest Panther picked since 1988.
 
PANTHERS PICKED TO FINISH FIFTH IN OVC
The Panther baseball team was tabbed to finish fifth in the Ohio Valley Conference's Preseason Poll as selected by conference head coaches and sports information directors on Feb. 8.
 
Austin Peay was picked to win the conference, earning 14 first-place votes. The Governors have won the last two regular-season and conference tournament titles. OVC newcomer Belmont was selected to finish second (eight first-place votes) after capturing the Atlantic Sun regular-season and tournament titles a year ago.
 
Jacksonville State was tabbed to finish third followed by Eastern Kentucky and Eastern Illinois. Tennessee Tech was picked to finish sixth while SIUE was selected seventh. Southeast Missouri, Morehead State, Murray State and UT Martin rounded out the bottom of the predicted order of finish.