STATESBORO, GA - Auburn, Coastal Carolina and Wake Forest will battle Georgia Southern this weekend for the ‘Bash in the Boro presented by Verizon Wireless title in the two-day tournament which begins September 11. The Eagles host the tournament for the second consecutive year in a round-robin format.

Schedule of Play
Coastal Carolina and Auburn open the tournament slate on Friday at 5 p.m. Then Georgia Southern takes the court against Wake Forest at 7 p.m.

Four matches take place on Saturday with the first beginning at 10 a.m. with an Auburn vs. Wake Forest match-up. The Eagles take on Coastal Carolina at noon before the nightcap commences. Wake Forest and Coastal Carolina hit the court at 5 p.m. before Auburn and Georgia Southern close out the tournament at 7 p.m.

Scouting Georgia Southern
The Eagles opened their season two weekends ago at home, capturing the Holiday Inn Invitational title with a perfect 3-0 slate. The wins halted as Georgia Southern dropped three matches at the Colorado State Classic before rebounding with a 3-0 win at Savannah State on Labor Day.

Bethany Sanford and Lauren Claybaugh lead the Eagles with 64 kills and 58 kills, respectively. Georgia Southern stands at 4-3 on the season under the direction of second-year head coach Chad Callihan.

Scouting Auburn
Entering the tournament standing at 5-3, the Tigers will look to rebound from a 3-2 loss to Jacksonville State on Tuesday. Alyssa Davis led the Tigers with a career-best 13 kills on 17 attacks and two errors for a .647 hitting percentage.

The Tigers return eight players, including four starters and a libero from 2008. Voted to finish fourth in the preseason SEC Western poll, Auburn is coached by Wade Benson.

Scouting Coastal Carolina
Jill Nyhof and Megan Bickford were named to the All-Tournament Team at the Gamecock Invitational for their efforts on the court as the Chanticleers went 1-2 in the tournament. Coastal Carolina swept Eastern Kentucky after falling to UNC Greensboro, 3-2, and South Carolina, 3-0. Coastal Carolina is lead by Nyhoff who has tallied 38 blocks thus far and paces the team with a .339 hitting percentage.

The Chanticleers are 2-4 on the season. Nyhof earned Big South Defensive Player of the Week honors after being named to the Mortar Board All-Tournament Team in the season-opening tournament. Coastal Carolina was picked to finish second in the Big South Preseason Poll. Chelsy Kimes was selected to the Preseason All-Big South Team.

Scouting Wake Forest
The Demon Deacons have gotten off to a rough start to the year, dropping their first six decisions. Wake Forest dropped matches to Western Michigan, Dayton and Illinois State at the Holiday Inn West Bronco Classic last weekend. Andrea Beck averaged 3.10 kills per set and a .300 hitting percentage  to earn All-Tournament honors.

Wake Forest was picked to finish ninth in the Atlantic Coast Conference with Kadija Fornah being selected to the Preseason All-ACC Team. The Demon Deacons return 11 letterwinners and six starters from the 2008 season.

Promotions
The first 100 fans at each Georgia Southern match will receive a Verizon Wireless/Georgia Southern jersey bag and one fan at each Georgia Southern match will be selected to receive a prize pack courtesy of Verizon Wireless.

On Friday, the first 50 fans in attendance for the Wake Forest-Georgia Southern match will receive free Chick-fil-A sandwiches. Then on Saturday, the early match between Coastal Carolina and Georgia Southern has been designated “Group Day,” with all groups receiving free admission. The night match on Friday is Education Night and all Bulloch County teachers and students receive free admission.

Ticket Information
Season tickets for the 2009 Georgia Southern volleyball season are currently on sale at $15 for a general admission pass. A family plan, which includes two adult passes and two children passes, can be purchased for only $35. Single-game tickets are priced at $5 for an adult and $1 for youth (ages 3-12).

For more information regarding tickets, please call the Georgia Southern Athletics Ticket Office at 1-800-GSU-WINS or visit the official website of the Georgia Southern Eagles at www.GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com

Follow the Action
Visit the Holiday Inn Invitational Tournament page to follow all the action and get the most up-to-date scores and information. Click here to access the page.