Basketball Update: Men Perfect On The Week, Lady Eagles Lose To Ranked Bulldogs

Larry Eustachy's club scored two victories during the week to improve their record to 5-0. The Golden Eagles beat William Carey 74-57 on Tuesday and Spring Hill 90-57 on Saturday. Both visiting squads are NAIA schools. Southern Miss will continue non-conference play on the road on December 5 against Ole Miss in Oxford.

Through five games, Maurice Bolden leads the team with 16.4 points per game and is tied with Gary Flowers with 7.6 rebounds per game.

After beating NAIA opponent William Carey earlier in the week, the Lady Eagles split two contests in the Lady Eagle Thanksgiving Classic. On Friday night, Southern Miss beat in-state foe Jackson State 89-62. In the champion game of the classic, the Lady Eagles lost to #14 Georgia 84-55. Joye Lee-McNelis' squad is 3-3 on the season. They next play December 2 against Mississippi State in Starkville.

Through six games, Pauline Love leads the team with 18.7 points per game and 13.7 rebounds per game.

Conference USA Affiliated Bowl Projections

Conference USA affiliated bowl projections for the week of November 23, 2009.

St. Petersburg Bowl
December 19th, St. Petersburg FL - 7pm ESPN
Big East vs. C-USA
Projection: Rutgers vs. Southern Miss

R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
December 20, New Orleans, LA - 7pm ESPN
C-USA vs. Sun Belt No. 1
Projection: Marshall vs. Troy

Sheraton Hawaii Bowl
December 24, Honolulu, HI - 7pm ESPN
C-USA vs. WAC
Projection: SMU vs. Fresno State

EagleBank Bowl
December 29, Washington, DC - 3:30pm ESPN
ACC No. 8 vs. Army or C-USA or MAC or Big 10
Projection: Bowling Green* vs. Central Florida

Bell Helicopters Armed Forces Bowl
December 31, Fort Worth, TX - 11am ESPN
Mountain West vs. C-USA
Projection: Air Force vs. Houston

Texas Bowl
December 31, Houston, TX - 7pm NFL Network
Big 12 vs. Navy or C-USA
Projection: Texas A&M vs. Navy

AutoZone Liberty Bowl
January 2, Memphis TN - 4:30pm ESPN
C-USA No. 1 vs. SEC No. 6
Projection: East Carolina vs. Arkansas

*ACC will not have enough bowl eligible teams.

Women's Basketball Update: Lady Eagles Blowout Crusaders

Sparked by a 26 point and 24 rebound game from Pauline Love, Southern Miss beat the visiting William Carey Crusaders 81-55 tonight at Reed Green Coliseum. The Lady Eagles, who never trailed in the game, held William Carey to 30% shooting from the field and forced 23 turnovers.

The Lady Eagles return to "The Green House" Friday evening at 5pm in the opening game of the Lady Eagle Thanksgiving Classic against Jackson State. Game two will feature Texas A&M-Corpus Christi vs Georgia.

Women's Basketball Update: Lady Eagles Lead At Halftime

The Lady Eagles are up 39-25 over the visiting William Carey Crusaders.

Pauline Love goes into the break with 16 points and 13 rebounds.

Quick Hits: Golden Eagles Win 3rd In A Row, Tulsa Falls, Young Receives Honor

After being down 51-38 midway through the second half, Southern Miss rallied to beat the Montana State Bobcats 66-62 Saturday night at Worthington Arena in Bozeman, Montana. Gary Flowers led the Golden Eagles with a game-high 18 points. Southern Miss (3-0) returns to Hattiesburg to face William Carey Tuesday night at Reed Green Coliseum.


In a game filled with rain, big plays and a weather delay, Southern Miss proved to be too much for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane Saturday night at M.M. Roberts Stadium. The Golden Eagles prevailed 44-34.

Martavious Young, once again, managed the team well. Young threw four touchdown passes, including a 95 yard touchdown pass to DeAndre Brown. Brown finished with two touchdowns on the night.

The defense gave up too many yards, but did have big plays including two fumble recoveries, one for a touchdown.

USM travels to Greenville, North Carolina this weekend to take on the East Carolina Pirates for the Conference USA Eastern Division crown. ECU brings a big, fast and physical squad to the field that should be a tough matchup for Southern Miss. Even though this is a road contest, Southern Miss has fared very well at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. USM will need to step their defensive play if they have any hope of winning the contest. The game will come down to who wants it more and that should be the Golden Eagles. Southern Miss edges out a close one, 21-17.

The game will be televised nationally by CBS College Sports at 12:30pm. The winner will most likely face Houston in the Conference USA championship game Dec 5.

After his stellar performance in the Tulsa game, Martavious Young has been named the C-USA Co-Offensive Player of the Week.Young recorded 276 passing yards (12-of-21) and added 59 rushing yards in leading the Golden Eagles to their fourth win in his six starts, 44-34 over Tulsa. He threw a career-best four touchdown passes, including a 95-yard strike to DeAndre Brown, which is listed as the second-longest pass play in school history. He also hit Johdrick Morris for a 60-yard TD strike on the Golden Eagles' first play of the contest and added 12-yard and 34-yard TD passes. It was the fourth-straight game that he has not thrown an interception and he has not thrown a pick in his last 112 attempts.

Volleyball Falls Short In Tournament Play

In their first Conference USA Volleyball Tournament semifinal appearance, top-seeded Southern Miss lost to the host and #4 seed Rice Owls 3-1 (25-16, 16-25, 25-14, 25-13). The Golden Eagles finish the season 27-5.

Rice will now advance to the championship game tomorrow against Tulsa. The match can be viewed nationally on CBS College Sports.

Volleyball Update: Owls Take Game 3, Lead Match 2-1

The Rice Owls took game three of the best of five series 25-14 and now lead the match 2-1. Game four will be starting shortly.

Volleyball Update: Golden Eagles Win Game 2, Match Tied 1-1

After dropping the first game to Rice, Southern Miss rebounded and took game two 25-16. The best of five match is tied 1-1.

The winner of the match will play Tulsa in tomorrow's championship game.

Volleyball Update

The top-seeded Southern Miss volleyball team dropped game one of the best of five match against the host Rice Owls 25-16. The Golden Eagles are leading game two 21-14.

Lady Eagles Fall To Wolverines, Volleyball Advances In Tournament Play

The Lady Eagles basketball team has their first streak of the season. Unfortunately, it is a losing streak. The Michigan Wolverines blew out Southern Miss 91-54 Thursday night at Crisler Arena in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Poor shooting (34%) and turnovers (27) led to a long night for the Lady Eagles. Joye Lee-McNelis hopes to right the ship when Southern Miss (1-2) returns to action Monday night at home against William Carey.

The Southern Miss volleyball team beat Houston 3-1 Friday night to advance to the semifinals of the Conference USA Volleyball Championship at Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston, Texas. This is the first time the Golden Eagles have advance to the C-USA semifinals and only the second time in the history pf the program. Southern Miss volleyball previously reached the Metro Conference semifinals in the 1985. The top-seeded Golden Eagles play #4 seed and tournament host Rice Saturday at 4pm. The winner advances to the championship game Sunday afternoon at 1pm. The championship match will be broadcast nationally by CBS College Sports.

Quick Hits: Battle of the D. Browns, Eustachy's Starters, Volleyball Honors

One of the more interesting matchups this weekend will be Southern Miss receiver DeAndre Brown against Tulsa defensive back DeAundre Brown. Both are sophomores that were members of the Conference USA All-Freshman team last year and they both wear number 5. Should be fun to watch.

Through two games this year, coach Larry Eustachy's starting line up has several new faces. Eustachy, who is rumored to be on a very hot seat, did a nice job bringing in impact players who could start immediately. The most impressive being guard Maurice Bolden, a 6'10" redshirt junior. The only returning starter from last year to get the same nod this year is guard R.L. Horton. Returning players Andre Stephen, Sai'Quon Stone and Gustavo Lino, who all started at various times last season, are all coming off the bench. Only Stone has seen action in both games this year. Lino has yet to play.

Southern Miss snagged a few Conference USA post-season volleyball honors today. After leading his team to the C-USA regular season title, Golden Eagles head coach Ricci Luyties was unanimously voted C-USA Coach of the Year. Luyties guided the Golden Eagles to a 14-2 C-USA record and a 26-4 overall mark.

Sophomore Kelsea Seymour was named Co-Setter of the Year. She guided USM to its first C-USA title and finished fourth in assists per set (10.60). She ended the regular season with 19 double-doubles, second most in the league, and dished out a season-high 60 assists twice (vs. UCF and Rice). Those 60 assists account for two of the top five single-match best for a league match this year. She shared the award with Rice's Meredith Schamun.

In addition to the specialty awards, Angela Hlavaty, Ashley Mell and Seymour were named first team all-conference. Maia Ivanova was placed on the second team.

Let's hope Richard Giannini can keep Luyties in Hattiesburg. The last successful volleyball coach at USM (Santiago Restrepo) was lured away after having an incredible season in 2003.

Baseball Signs Two Additional Preps Standouts

The Southern Miss baseball program added two additional players for the 2011 class.

Boomer Scarborough, from Pass Christian, Mississippi, is a two-time class 4A all-state selection out of St. Stanislaus High School as a right-handed pitcher and first-baseman. As a junior last season, he hit .451 with nine home runs and 29 RBI and was 8-2 with a 0.92 ERA and 100 strikeouts on the mound. In his sophomore campaign he was 6-2 on the bump with a 1.24 ERA and 69 strikeouts. On the mound the six-foot-two, 235 pound Scarborough can touch the low 90's with a hard curveball. He is also a middle linebacker for the St. Stanislaus football team which will play in the third round of the state playoff this week.

Michael Sterling, from Meridian, Mississippi, is a 5A all-division player for Meridian High School who hit .360 last season as a junior. The five-foot-eleven, 165 pound infielder plays second base, shortstop and third base in high school but projects to play shortstop at Southern Miss.

The signing of Scarborough and Sterling now gives Southern Miss six signees in the early signing period. The other four are junior college players Ashley Graeter (INF/RHP - Pearl River Community College) and Matt Shaw (RHP -Northwest Mississippi Community College) along with prep athletes Joe Martin (OF - Zachary High School, Zachary, Louisiana) and a Josh Rogers (LHP- Hillcrest Christian, Jackson, Mississippi).

Lady Eagles Ink Another Player In Early Signing Period

Southern Miss coach Joye Lee-McNelis announced the signing of Tiara George to a basketball scholarship.

George, a 6-1 forward, averaged 11.0 points and 7.6 rebounds and two blocks for Coach Bryon Coleman at Angelina College in Lufkin, Texas last season, helping her team to a 23-8 record and an appearance in the Region XIV Tournament. She earned Region XIV Freshman of the Year honors as she led Angelina in scoring and rebounding.

George played at Glen Oaks High School, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where she averaged 16.2 points and 11.5 rebounds as a senior for Coach Harold Boudreaux. She was named first team all-state, a four-time first team all-district selection, while earning district Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2008 and 2007.

Golden Eagles Gets By Wolfpack

With 29 points and 11 rebounds from Maurice Bolden, Southern Miss proved to be too much for Loyola New Orleans with a 73-62 victory at Reed Green Coliseum in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

The Golden Eagles went into halftime leading 42-35, behind 23 first half points from Bolden.

Loyola (3-0), an NAIA school, considered the contest to be an exhibition game.

Southern Miss (2-0) hits the road to take on Montana State on Saturday.

Side note for John Cox, Southern Miss played Loyola (pronounced like toy-ola) tonight, not LIE-ola.

Southern Miss Announces Early Signing Period L.O.I.s

Southern Miss athletic programs received signed letters of intent from several recruits during the NCAA early signing period.

Baseball Adds Four

Coach Scott Berry announced the signing of four recruits including two junior college players and two from high school. The two junior college transfers are Matt Shaw, a 6'4" right-handed pitcher from Northwest Mississippi Community College and Ashley Graeter, a 6'1" infielder and right-handed pitcher from Pearl River Community College.

Shaw joins the Golden Eagles from Northwest where he currently plays for former Southern Miss standouts Mark Carson and Bill Selby. As a freshman with the Rangers last season he was 3-4 with a 5.82 ERA in 10 games while firing three complete games. He worked 39.2 innings allowing 33 earned runs while striking out 33 and holding opposing hitters to a .89 average. He was a two-time All-State selection out of Oxford High School in 2007 and 2008.

Graeter, who was an all-state selection at Poplarville High School, is currently playing for coach Jamie McMahon at Pearl River. As a freshman last season, he was a first team All-State selection and the Wildcats second leading hitter with a .366 average. Over 42 games he had 49 hits including seven doubles, two triples and six home runs for a .562 slugging percentage. On the mound he led the PRCC staff with a 1.67 ERA. In his seven appearances he accumulated a 3-2 record while working 21.0 innings, allowing only five earned runs while striking out 20 and walking six.

The Golden Eagles added to their youth with outfielder Joe Martin and a left-handed pitcher Josh Rogers.

Martin joins the Southern Miss program from Zachary High School in Zachary, Louisiana where he has been a three-year starter on a team that has won three-consecutive Louisiana State 4A championships. As a junior, Martin helped the Broncos the Class 4A championship by hitting .395 with 10 home runs and 41 RBI. The 5-foot-10, 190-pound Martin also had 16 stolen bases. He was an all-state selection the previous two seasons while also garnering preseason All-American honors.

Rogers is a left-handed pitcher from Hillcrest Christian in Jackson, Mississippi. where he has been pitching since the eighth grade. He was an all-state selection the past two seasons and an all-district selection the previous four years (eighth grade through junior year).

Men's Basketball Inks Three

Coach Larry Eustachy announced the signing of Trency Jackson of Jackson, Mississippi, Rashad Perkins of Starkville, Mississippi and Carrington Tankson of San Jacinto Junior College to play with the Golden Eagles next year.

Jackson, a 6-2 guard, is a senior at fifth-ranked Jackson-Wingfield High School. As a junior, he averaged 22 points, 4.2 rebounds and four assists. He is a member of the Clarion-Ledger's Dandy Dozen, and is rated as the No. 131 shooting guard in the country by ESPN. Last year, he was selected Second Team All-Metro. Jackson also received offers from Indiana, Marquette, Missouri, Missouri State, UAB and USC.

Perkins, a 6-5 forward, is a senior at fourth-ranked Starkville High School. Rated a three-star prospect by Rivals.com, Perkins averaged 19 points, 10 rebounds and five assists while helping the Yellow Jackets finish 21-5 last year. He was named to the 2009-10 Clarion-Ledger's Dandy Dozen. As a sophomore, he averaged 11 points and six rebounds off the bench. Perkins also received offers from Alabama, Mississippi State and UAB.

Tankson, a 6-4 guard, is in his second season at San Jacinto (Texas) Junior College. He is currently ranked as the 30th-rated player by JucoJunction.com, who also rates him as a two-star player. Last year, he was named NJCAA Region 14 All-Region Honorable Mention, playing in all 32 games, starting 26. He was third on the team with 12.6 points per game, while averaging four rebounds. He also shot 78-percent from the free throw line. He is originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he played for Osseo High School. He helped Osseo to three-consecutive conference championships. As a senior, he averaged 17.3 points and 4.7 rebounds while leading the Orioles to a 22-7 record and a berth in the Class AAAA state finals. Tankson averaged 17.0 points, 4.5 assists, 2.9 rebounds and 1.8 steals as a senior. He was named the Conference Most Valuable Player, First Team All-State, First Team All-Conference, and is a member of the 1,000-point club.

Women's Basketball Signs Four

Coach Joye Lee-McNelis announced the signing of four, including the high ranked recruit since her return to Hattiesburg. Janairrika Bland of Edwards, Mississippi, Niesha and Nitesha Pierce of Gulfport, Mississippi and Jamierra Faulkner of West Palm Beach, Florida.

Bland, a 6-3 center, averaged 15.4 points and 10.0 rebounds last as a junior, helping Raymond High School win the Class 3A state championship. She also averaged three blocks per game. She was named to the All-Metro team as a sophomore and junior. She scored a season-high 27 points against Terry High School. She also played in the Mississippi North-South All-Star Game this past summer. Bland, a member of the Clarion Ledger Dandy Dozen, was a three-year letterwinner for Coach Shay Jackson and earned all-state honors two straight seasons as well as all-south and all-district for three years.

Niesha Pierce, a 5-10 guard, plays at Harrison Central High School, where she is a four-year letterwinner for Coach Nancy Ladner. As a junior, she averaged 18.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.9 assists and .28 steals per game, while helping her team advance to the semifinals of the Class 5A State Tournament and finishing with a 22-2 record. She shot 44.5 percent from the field and 76.5 percent from the free throw line. She scored a career-high 35 points against Pass Christian. She was named the Sun Herald All-Coast Player of the Year, All-Sun Herald team and the Class 5A Division 8 MHASS All-Star Team. She also was a member of the Mississippi Sports Medicine North-South Junior All-Star team. Pierce earned her team's MVP award and named the team's best defensive player for two consecutive years.

Nitesha Pierce, a 5-10 forward, plays at No. 2 ranked Harrison Central High School for Coach Nancy Ladner. As a junior, she averaged 18.0 points, 8.6 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 3.1 steals in leading her team to the semifinals of the Class 5A State Tournament. She also played in the Mississippi North-South All-Star game this past summer. She was named her team's best offensive player for two straight seasons.
Pierce was named to the 2009 Clarion Ledger Dandy Dozen team for the No. 2 ranked Red Rebelettes. She was tabbed the Sun Herald All-Coast Player of the Year, the All-Sun Herald Team and selected to the Class 5A Division 8 MHSAA All-Star Team. Pierce also played volleyball and participated in track and field. She was named the team's Most Outstanding Athlete last season. She was named to the 2009 Clarion Ledger Dandy Dozen team for the No. 2 ranked Red Rebelettes. She was tabbed the Sun Herald All-Coast Player of the Year, the All-Sun Herald Team and selected to the Class 5A Division 8 MHSAA All-Star Team. Pierce also played volleyball and participated in track and field. She was named the team's Most Outstanding Athlete last season.

Faulkner, a 5-6 point guard, plays at Trinity Christian Academy for Coach Luther McCray. Faulkner has scored 1,136 points in her career. Over the past three seasons, she has 351 steals and 619 assists. As a sophomore, she led her team to their first 1A State Championship and was selected the MVP. Faulkner was named Palm Beach Post first team all-county for three straight years. She has been ranked No. 69 overall in the ESPNU HoopGurlz 100 players and No. 20 in point guards

Men's Golf Adds Two New Faces
Coach Jerry Weeks announced the signing of Trent Hillis of Poplar Bluff, Missouri and Zach Estep of Lawrenceville, Georgia.

Hillis earned All-State honors in both 2007 and 2008 while earning fourth-place at the 2008 Missouri High School State Championship. In 2008 on the junior circuit, Hillis captured the Future Collegiate World Tour (FCWT) St. Andrews Classic, while taking second-place at FCWT the Mission Inn - Las Colinas Open. Both finishes helped him earn 2008 FCWT Third Team All-American. Healso finished in fourth place at the 2008 Missouri Junior Amateur and sixth-place at the 2009 American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) Lockton Kansas City Junior.

Estep shot a 71 to lead Peachtree Ridge High School to the Georgia State Championship in 2009, while helping them to a second-place finish in 2008. In 2007 and 2008, he was named to the Gwinnett County Super 6 Team. Estep earned two Top Ten finishes on the AJGA circuit in 2009, including a fifth-place finish at the Ringgold Telephone Company Junior Classic. Over the last three years, Estep earned eight Top Five finishes on the Southeastern Junior Golf Tour (SJGT), including victories at the 2007 SJGT Championship, the 2007 SJGT Southern Junior and the 2008 SJGT Greystone Junior Classic. He has twice represented Georgia in the Georgia vs. South Carolina Junior Cup matches, as well as being a two-time nominee for the AJGA Scholastic All-American Awar

Softball Adds Four
Coach Howard Dobson announced the signing of four athletes. Joining the Southern Miss family is Taylor Brown, a first baseman/outfielder from Cypress, Texas, Brittany Lilly, a third baseman from Houston, Texas, MacKenzie Sher, a catcher from Bellaire, Texas and Kayla Stanley, a utility player from Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

Brown comes to the Black and Gold from Cypress Springs High School in Cypress, Texas where she is a three-time all-district selection while twice leading her team in batting average, she hit .405 as a freshman and .580 in her sophomore campaign.
She also played for the Texas Eclipse Gold travel team which participated in the 2009 ASA Gold National Championships in Oklahoma City.

Lilly comes to Southern Miss from M.B. Lamar High School where she has been the starting third baseman and an all-district selection the previous three seasons. As a freshman she led the district with a .555 average while swiping 20 bases, which was tops on her team. In her sophomore campaign she hit .576 while leading the greater Houston area in extra base hits (25 double, 15 triples and four home runs). She earned her third consecutive all-district selection as a junior, hitting .400 with seven doubles and three triples. She played on the Texas Storm DeMarini Gold Summer Team, with current Golden Eagles players Leslie LeJune and Beth Dietrich, and reached the 2008 ASA Gold Nationals.

Sher is a catcher out of Bellaire High School in Bellaire, Texas where she is a three-time all-district selection and as a freshman in 2007 she was selected Newcomer of the Year. As a sophomore in 2008 she blasted 10 home runs, which led the Houston area for long balls. She followed with her junior season, in which she blasted eight more home runs and hit .390. She also played on the Texas Eclipse Gold travel team, with fellow signee Taylor Brown.

Southern Miss did not have to go very far to find their last signee, from just down the road at Oak Grove High school. Kayla Stanley becomes the latest Oak Grove player to join the Golden Eagles, along with current players Courtney Hill, Megan Hill and Logan James. Stanley is a three-time all district selection and a five-year letter winner while serving as the team captain the previous three season for the Warriors. As an eighth grader she was a starter for the 2006 5A state Championship team. She is a true utility player who has started at seven different positions in her high school career and boasts a .980 career fielding percentage. As a junior last year she hit .390 with 29 RBI and eight triples.

Lady Eagles Lose Road Contest To Redhawks

The Southern Miss Golden Eagle women's basketball team lost its first game of the season to Southeast Missouri State 73-63 tonight at the Show Me Center in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.

The Lady Eagles trailed by as many as 12 points in the first half and went into the half trailing 31-26. The Redhawks outscored the Golden Eagles 42-37 in the second half and never let Southern Miss have a lead in the game.

The Redhawks (2-0) extended their home winning streak to nine games. The Lady Eagles (1-1) return to action on Thursday night at Michigan.

Conference USA Affiliated Bowl Projections

Conference USA affiliated bowl projections for the week of November 16, 2009.

St. Petersburg Bowl
December 19th, St. Petersburg FL - 7pm ESPN
Big East vs. C-USA
Projection: South Florida vs. Southern Miss

R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
December 20, New Orleans, LA - 7pm ESPN
C-USA vs. Sun Belt No. 1
Projection: Central Florida vs. Troy

Sheraton Hawaii Bowl
December 24, Honolulu, HI - 7pm ESPN
C-USA vs. WAC
Projection: SMU vs. Fresno State

EagleBank Bowl
December 30, Washington, DC - 3:30pm ESPN
ACC No. 8 vs. Army or C-USA or MAC or Big 10
Projection: Northern Illinois* vs. Marshall

Texas Bowl
December 30, Houston, TX - 7pm NFL Network
Big 12 vs. Navy or C-USA
Projection: Texas A&M vs. Navy

Bell Helicopters Armed Forces Bowl
December 31, Fort Worth, TX - 11am ESPN
Mountain West vs. C-USA
Projection: Wyoming vs. Houston

AutoZone Liberty Bowl
January 2, Memphis TN - 4:30pm ESPN
C-USA No. 1 vs. SEC No. 6
Projection: East Carolina vs. Georgia

* ACC will not have enough bowl eligible teams.

Golden Eagles Earn P.O.W. Honors, USM - ECU To Be Televised

Tracy Lampley and Pauline Love claimed Conference USA Player of the Week awards after their performances last week.

Lampley won the football Special Teams Player of the Week award. He established a school record for kickoff return yards in a game with 211 in the Golden Eagles win at Marshall. He registered his first career kickoff return for a 93-yard touchdown and ended the game with 225 all-purpose yards. Lampley is one of just three FBS players to return a kickoff and punt for a touchdown in 2009 and the only true freshman that has done that this season.

Love, a two-time All-C-USA first teamer, was named women's basketball Player of the Week after starting the 2009-10 season off by recording her 40th career double-double. She scored a game-high 26 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in the team's 72-53 season opening win over South Alabama Saturday. Love shot 58.8 percent from the field on 10-of-17 shooting as well as going 3-of-4 from behind the arc. The senior also dished out six assists and had one steal in 37 minutes of play. Love scored the first eight points of the game. This is her first Player of the Week honor this season and third for her career.

The Southern Miss football game at East Carolina on Saturday, November 28 will be televised nationally by CBS College Sports. This will be the eighth televised game this season for the Golden Eagles. Game time has been changed to 12:30pm.

Winning Weekend For Golden Eagle Sports

A regular season conference championship, season opening victories and a key road win sum up a big winning weekend for Southern Miss athletics.

The Golden Eagle volleyball team secured its first Conference USA regular season championship and the number one overall seed for the conference tournament with a win over 3-1 over Central Florida Friday night. Southern Miss (26-4, 14-2 C-USA) will play Houston (9-22, 6-10)in the opening round of the conference tournament Friday night at Rice.

Both the men's and women's baketball programs are feeling good after both recorded wins in their regular season openers. Led by R.L. Horton's 20 point game, the Golden Eagles beat Louisiana-Lafayette 79-72 at the Cajun Dome on Saturday. Coach Larry Eustachy and the Golden Eagles return home on Tuesday night to play Loyola-New Orleans at 7pm.

Not to be out done, Joye Lee-McNelis and her squad went on the road and beat South Alabama 72-53. The game ball goes to Pauline Love and her 26 point and 14 rebound performance. The Lady Eagles next take the court tonight at Southeast Missouri State (coached by Southern Miss alumnus and former assistant John Ishee). Tip off is set for 7pm.

The Golden Eagle football squad picked up a key conference victory with a 27-20 win over Marshall. This was USM's first road win of the season. The offense was sluggish most of the game, but made big plays at key moments to take the win.

The defense still needs a lot of work. Even with an impressive run defensive and an aggressive pass rush (finally), the defensive backfield has trouble containing Marshall's quick passing game.

Tracy Lampley was the brightest spot of the evening with 211 return yards, including a touchdown on a 93 yard kick off return. Unfortunately, the place kicking game still needs a lot of work. New kicker Daniel Hrapmann had an extra point blocked and missed a field goal.

The Golden Eagles now change their focus to Tulsa. Southern Miss has historically struggled with the Golden Hurricane, who has a five game losing streak this season. They are typically a pass happy team with offense that can give the USM defensive backfield fits. Southern Miss will need to correct their defensive and special teams errors in order to get a win this weekend.

Tulsa will be a hungry team also needs two wins to become bowl eligible, but the Golden Eagles will be focused on winning out and securing the Conference USA East title. USM senior's will also be shooting to win their last game at The Rock. Southern Miss wins a high scoring game at home 44-39. Game time is set for 6:30pm and the game will be televised nationally by CBS College Sports.

Conference USA Affiliated Bowl Projections

Conference USA affiliated bowl projections for the week of November 9, 2009.

St. Petersburg Bowl
December 19th, St. Petersburg FL - 7pm ESPN
Big East vs. C-USA
Projection: South Florida vs. Central Florida

R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
December 20, New Orleans, LA - 7pm ESPN
C-USA vs. Sun Belt No. 1
Projection: East Carolina vs. Troy

Sheraton Hawaii Bowl
December 24, Honolulu, HI - 7pm ESPN
C-USA vs. WAC
Projection: SMU vs. Nevada

EagleBank Bowl
December 30, Washington, DC - 3:30pm ESPN
ACC No. 8 vs. Army or C-USA or MAC or Big 10
Projection: Northern Illinois* vs. Marshall

Texas Bowl
December 30, Houston, TX - 7pm NFL Network
Big 12 vs. Navy or C-USA
Projection: Texas A&M vs. Navy

Bell Helicopters Armed Forces Bowl
December 31, Fort Worth, TX - 11am ESPN
Mountain West vs. C-USA
Projection: Air Force vs. Southern Miss

AutoZone Liberty Bowl
January 2, Memphis TN - 4:30pm ESPN
C-USA No. 1 vs. SEC No. 6
Projection: Houston vs. Georgia

* ACC will not have enough bowl eligible teams.

Quick Hits: Conference Champions, Basketball Begins, Fall Baseball, Football Back In Action

It looks like a championship program has been running below the radar in Hattiesburg this season. With a 25-4 overall and the 13-2 conference record, the Southern Miss volleyball team has already captured a share of the Conference USA regular season volleyball championship. With a win over Central Florida on Friday, November 13, the Golden Eagles will claim sole possession of the regular season crown.

Basketball

Basketball season is under way across the nation and the Southern Miss men's basketball team will tip off another campaign this Saturday (November 14) on the road at Louisiana-Lafayette. There is a lot of chatter about this year's team and the new talent that arrived on campus. Picked 6th in the Conference USA pre-season poll, coach Larry Eustachy and the Golden Eagles return to Hattiesburg for their home opener on November 17 against Loyola-New Orleans.

After winning to exhibition games over West Alabama and Mobile College, Joye Lee McNelis and the Southern Miss women's basketball program open up regular season action Saturday afternoon at home against South Alabama.

Plenty of tickets for both programs are still available.

Baseball

Coming off of a dream season that included a College World Series appearance, first year head coach Scott Berry and the Golden Eagle baseball team recently completed its fall baseball season, including a 13-1 victory over William Carey University. In addition to several new faces, there were a few position changes to note including Joey Archer from first base to third base, Adam Doleac moving to first base and Taylor Walker moving from third to second base (his natural position). The regular season opens up their regular season schedule on February 19, 2010 at Pete Taylor Park against Northwestern State

Football

The Golden Eagle football team hits the home stretch of the season this week on the road Saturday against Marshall. Southern Miss will try to avenge last year's loss to Marshall in Hattiesburg. This is a must win game if the Golden Eagles want a chance at winning the Eastern Division of Conference USA. USM becomes bowl eligible and wins close a one 27-24. Kickoff is set for 3:30pm (CST).

CBS College Sports has picked up the Tulsa at Southern Miss game on November 21. Kickoff for this game has been moved to 6:30pm.

Conference USA Affiliated Bowl Projections

Conference USA affiliated bowl projections for the week of November 2, 2009.

St. Petersburg Bowl
December 19th, St. Petersburg FL - 7pm ESPN
Big East vs. C-USA
Projection: Rutgers vs. Central Florida

R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
December 20, New Orleans, LA - 7pm ESPN
C-USA vs. Sun Belt No. 1
Projection: East Carolina vs. Troy

Sheraton Hawaii Bowl
December 24, Honolulu, HI - 7pm ESPN
C-USA vs. WAC
Projection: SMU vs. Nevada

EagleBank Bowl
December 30, Washington, DC - 3:30pm ESPN
ACC No. 8 vs. Army or C-USA or MAC or Big 10
Projection: Boston College vs. Southern Miss

Texas Bowl
December 30, Houston, TX - 7pm NFL Network
Big 12 vs. Navy or C-USA
Projection: Texas A&M vs. Navy

Bell Helicopters Armed Forces Bowl
December 31, Fort Worth, TX - 11am ESPN
Mountain West vs. C-USA
Projection: Air Force vs. Marshall

AutoZone Liberty Bowl
January 2, Memphis TN - 4:30pm ESPN
C-USA No. 1 vs. SEC No. 6
Projection: Houston vs. Georgia

Quick Hits: Golden Eagles Come Up Short In Barn Burner

What a fun game to watch...1,358 combined offensive yards, 93 points, big play after big play. In a game that resembled the WAC of old, Houston scored the game winning touchdown with less than one 30 seconds on the clock to win the game 50-43.

Martevious Young continues to be impressive at the quarterback position. This was by far his best game of the year with 334 yards passing, 26 yards receiving, 70 yards rushing, three touchdown passes and another rushing. If he keeps this up, the quarterback race next year will be very interesting.

Props also go out to Gerald Baptiste for pulling down eight passes for 186 yards and three touchdowns.

Even with the offense running at full steam, defense and special teams play are frustrating coaches, players and fans alike. The defense did not appear to make any adjustments throughout the game. Aside from two turnovers, Case Keenum and the Houston Cougars pretty much were able to whatever they wanted to do Saturday afternoon. 750 yards...really?

Two more blocked extra points and a missed goal continued the kicking game mistakes the Golden Eagles have had all season. Justin Estes had his first extra point blocked and was replaced by Daniel Hrapmann who went on to miss another extra point and a field goal attempt. The the field goal unit should be scrapped and rebuilt.

From an injury standpoint, the Golden Eagles came out relatively good. The only injury that may have a long term effect is Anthony Gray (possible broken ribs). The defensive line will have a hard time replacing BAG if he is held out of games.

Southern Miss has a much needed bye week to get healthy and to fine tune all three phases of the game. The Golden Eagles return to action on Saturday, November 14 at Marshall.