Softball | 4/15/2016 2:05:00 PM

STATESBORO, Ga. – Last Saturday, numerous former Georgia Southern softball players returned home for the Eagles' annual Alumni Day. The former Eagles enjoyed a weekend of catching up, including a tailgate during Saturday's games, and were treated to a weekend sweep by the current team over longtime rival Appalachian State.
                               
"It's always nice when former players come back and show support for the program that they helped build and for them to see the championship flags that they earned flying high and proud," head coach Annie Smith said. "While it's always great when you can sweep a longtime rival, it's even more special having those former players there to see it. I'm sure they take pride in it as well because many of them have been a part of similar sweeps in the past. The team and I really appreciate them taking the time to come back this past weekend."
 
Represented by those that returned were three Southern Conference (SoCon) Tournament Championships, two SoCon Regular Season Championships and a pair of NCAA regional appearances as well as over 400 victories. There were also four All-SoCon First-Team honorees present as well as four SoCon All-Tournament mentions, two All-SoCon Freshman Team winners, two SoCon Players of the Month and one SoCon Freshman of the Year.
 
Some of those who returned home were Victoria Davis, class of 1981; Sabrina (Knight) Nordeoff, 1999; Kristi Bryant, 1999; Jaclyn (Kaylor) Donovan, 2000; Courtney (Jones) Stovall, 2005; Mackenzie Williams, 2012; Assistant Coach Marie Fogle, 2012; Andrea (Tarashuk) Turner, 2013; Nicole (Benton) Shiver, 2014; Kourtny Thomas, 2014; Gabby Story, 2014; Shelby Morill, 2014; Savannah Coon, 2015; Kaitlyn Johnson, 2015; and Brooke Red, 2015.
 
"It really brings back a lot of memories for me including a lot of great times I had pitching (while at Georgia Southern)," said Brooke Red, class of 2015. "It's really great to be able to come back and support those that are still playing."
 
"I remember it meant a lot when I played on Alumni Day," said Andrea (Tarashuk) Turner, class of 2013. "Even though we didn't always know the previous players personally, it meant a lot having them there to support us and to pass the torch on to the new generation. It's very important that we (alumni) come back and do that as well."
 
"It's a great feeling to know that they came back to support us and it gives us a chance to see them at least once a year," current assistant coach and former GS player Marie Fogle said. "It really means a lot being able to be a part of a good program – not just as a player but now as an assistant coach – and being able to see the team succeed and get better as we continue to build."
 
The Eagles will be back in action this weekend, hosting South Alabama in a three-game, Sun Belt Conference series at Eagle Field. GS and USA will play a 3 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday, April 16 and close out the series with a single game at 1 p.m. on Sunday, April 17.
 
 
 
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