STATESBORO - They always say that before you start to move forward, you need to look back and remember where you came from. While 2022 was a season to remember for the Eagles, with 41 wins, numerous postseason honors and awards for players, and a #16 National Seed in the postseason with the first-ever Statesboro Regional, Rodney Hennon and the Georgia Southern Eagles know there is more that they want to accomplish.

"Hosting a regional was a big step for us," Coach Hennon said. "I think it created a lot of momentum for our program. As great as that accomplishment was, we still did not reach all of our goals, we did not get where we wanted to go, and our kids have their sights set beyond that."

The positives, though, were very positive. Being the only team in the state of Georgia to host a regional generated a lot of interest and buzz around the program. Not only for potential future Eagles, but for the student-athletes already here. "They see what they're capable of doing here," Hennon said. And a healthy amount of the guys that made it happen last year are back, and they know what they are capable of.

"They're working really hard to build off that and maybe learn from some things we can do better to continue to grow. They've closed the chapter on the 2022 season."

The term "player-led team" is thrown around a lot, but this group really feels like it feeds off the energy of the leaders on the field. There are a lot of guys Coach Hennon says have assumed a leadership role, from fifth-year players to players that are only going into their second season here. Sam Blancato, JP Tighe, Kyler Hultgren, Noah Ledford, Jarrett Brown, and Blake Evans are the guys that immediately come to mind. 

The infield is full of experience and leadership, and Eagle fans will see plenty of familiar faces, but just slightly reconfigured. Ledford will come out as the starting first baseman after playing a majority of his career as a designated hitter, but its a spot that he has earned. Coach Hennon talks a lot about how much work Ledford put into his defense, and the staff feels confident in him. Jesse Sherrill will continue to lock down second base, and the Preseason All-SBC player looks to have another stellar season after his team-leading .361 BA last season. Jarrett Brown returns to the hot corner to defend at third base, and Hennon describes him as a great mix of speed and power that will help the Eagles tremendously on the offensive side. At shortstop, Blake Evans will return to be an everyday started at shortstop, where he was the starter during his freshman year in 2019. Hennon describes Evans as a spark-plug guy, and admires the amount of work he has put in to get back to starting for the Eagles.

The catcher position is one with some intrigue to it. The Eagles have five catchers on the roster, including the aforementioned Tighe and Hultgren. There is also Sean White, JD Kaiser, and Bobby Stang, all of which could see playing time. Hultgren and Tighe look to see the majority of the playing time, and could be swapped between games based on some matchups. Tighe, however, has been seen a lot during practice in the outfield, and could have some appearances in the outfield this season. 

Speaking of the outfield, the position only has one returning starter from last season, the aforementioned Blancato. Blancato has the ability to play all three spots in the outfield, but he will slide over the right field to make room for J.C. Peacher, who will be starting the year in center field. Hennon says that Peacher got a taste of playing center last year when he would come in late in some games, and now he's ready to move into the starting role. However, in left field, the staff mentions several names that could see time out there, such as junior college transfers like Zane Faulk and Luke Hatcher, or even a true freshman in AJ Wenrich. 

The designated hitter is another position of interest, because there are several guys that could take part in that position. Corey Dowdell came up as a big option for the DH, as well as Hatcher. Jonathan Jamie and Phillip Ard are also young options for the DH spot, and Kaiser's name also came up to potentially see some time there.

Pitching has also seen a lot of improvement over the course of the off-season in Statesboro. The weekend rotation will start with two familiar names and a name that people will come to know in Statesboro, with Ty Fisher taking to the bump on Fridays, Ben Johnson pitching on Saturdays, and freshman Zachary Harris throwing on Sundays. Harris was named D1Baseball's Sun Belt Freshman of the Year and Top Impact Freshman, so he will be a player to keep an eye on this season.

Jaylen Paden looks to be a hard-throwing bullpen arm that could see starting time during the midweek games, and Jay Thompson looks to bring back his dominance out of the pen. Thompson made 37 appearances last season, which was the third-most in the nation. Hennon says that a lot of new arms were brought in to compliment the arms they currently have.

Ga'von Wray is another name that Coach Hennon believes could see time both out of the pen and in a starting role. Hennon also talks about some of the arms that impressed him this off-season, such as Thomas Ross, who has a chance to take on a bigger role. Anthony DiMola had a big year in his development last year, and Will Robbins improved during the offseason. Some of the new guys also impressed the staff, such as Jonah Milchuck, a 6'8 righty that is very comfortable out of the bullpen. Mitchell Gross, a transfer from Santa Fe College, is also one that could see a solid amount of playing time this season. Benjamin Stuart and Brady Pendley are two freshmen that Hennon spoke highly of as well.

The messages are the same this year as it is every year. Go out and compete. Play fundamental baseball. Every game matters. But there is a new term the team is rallying behind this year: present. Present is the idea that today is the day that matters the most, this at-bat is the one the matters the most, this pitch is the one that matters the most. And the team is ready for the next game, which is the game that matters the most.

AT A GLANCE
FRIDAY (2.17.23)
West Virginia at Georgia Southern
6:30 p.m. (ET) – J.I. Clements Stadium (Statesboro, Ga.)
RADIO – Georgia Southern Sports Network
WATCH
LIVE STATS
TICKETS
GS – LHP – Ty Fisher
WVU – LHP - Ben Hampton

SATURDAY (2.18.23)
West Virginia at Georgia Southern
2:00 p.m. (ET) – J.I. Clements Stadium (Statesboro, Ga.)
RADIO – Georgia Southern Sports Network
WATCH
LIVE STATS
TICKETS
GS – RHP – Ben Johnson
WVU – RHP – Blaine Traxel

SUNDAY (2.19.23)
West Virginia at Georgia Southern
1:00 p.m. (ET) – J.I. Clements Stadium (Statesboro, Ga.)
RADIO – Georgia Southern Sports Network
WATCH
LIVE STATS
TICKETS
GS – RHP – Zachary Harris
WVU – TBA

Check out the Media Center for game notes, this year's media guide, and more.