STATESBORO – Georgia Southern baseball will hit the road to start the season, as it makes the return trip to Knoxville, Tennessee, to play the No. 19 Tennessee Volunteers this weekend. The three-game series is slated to begin Friday, Feb. 18, with the first pitch set for 4:30 p.m. at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Last season, the Eagles finished with a regular-season record of 31-22 and progressed to the Sun Belt Conference Championship Game. They defeated rival Georgia State, ULM and Louisiana in the three games setting up the championship match against South Alabama, where they fell just short on the final day of the tournament to the Jaguars.
The Eagles saw many accolades after the season, with former player Mason McWhorter winning Sun Belt Player of the Year, being named a Collegiate Baseball All-American, and being named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District First Team, among other awards. The Eagles also had two pitchers taken in the MLB Draft, with Nick Jones being taken in the eighth round (231st overall pick) to the Los Angeles Angels, and Jordan Jackson being taken in the 10th round (294th overall) to the Seattle Mariners.
The Volunteers went 50-18 last season and swept the Eagles on opening weekend in Statesboro. The Vols hosted an NCAA Regional and NCAA Super Regional, progressing to the College World Series before they fell in back-to-back games against No. 8-seeded Virginia and No. 2 Texas.
FRIDAY (2.18.22)
Georgia Southern @ #19 Tennessee
4:30 p.m. (ET) – Lindsey Nelson Stadium (Knoxville, TN)
RADIO – Georgia Southern Sports Network
VIDEO – SEC Network +
LIVE STATS
GS – LHP – Ty Fisher
No. 19 TENN – RHP – Chase Burns
SATURDAY (2.19.22)
Georgia Southern @ #19 Tennessee
1:00 p.m. (ET) – Lindsey Nelson Stadium (Knoxville, TN)
RADIO – Georgia Southern Sports Network
VIDEO – SEC Network +
LIVE STATS
GS – RHP – Jaylen Paden
No. 19 TENN – TBA
SUNDAY (2.20.22)
Georgia Southern @ #19 Tennessee
1:00 p.m. (ET) – Lindsey Nelson Stadium (Knoxville, TN)
RADIO – Georgia Southern Sports Network
VIDEO – SEC Network +
LIVE STATS
GS – RHP – Ben Johnson
No. 19 TENN – TBA
QUICK HITS
- Transfer Ty Fisher will get the ball to start the season. Fisher is a transfer from Tennessee Tech, where he compiled a 6-4 record in 12 starts. He averaged 7.11 strikeouts per game, and opposing batters only averaged .260 against him.
- This is only the second time ever the Eagles and the Volunteers will face off in Knoxville. The Eagles won the first time, 11-9, on March 17, 1965.
- Georgia Southern's schedule features four teams that are in the preseason top 25, including Tennessee (#19). They also play Georgia Tech (#21), Georgia (#16), and Florida State (#11).
- The magic number for the Eagles in the past several years has been six runs. In 2021, the Eagles were 21-3 in games where they scored six or more runs.
- The Eagles have progressed to the Sun Belt Championship Game in four of the past five seasons (not including the shortened 2020 season).
UP NEXT
The Eagles will host their home opener on Tuesday, Feb. 22, as they host in-state opponent No. 21 Georgia Tech for the first of two meetings against the Yellow Jackets. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. at J.I. Clements Stadium. Tickets are on sale through
GSEagles.com/Tickets.
