Another fall sports season is upon us, Where did summer go?
It's the middle of August and temperatures are in the 80s, so it still feels like summer outside. And according to the calendar, there's still a month or so of summer remaining.
But with schools back in session and fall sports practices in full swing, there's a definite fall-like feel around us.
With that I'd like to offer up a few of my observations as we head into the 2015 fall sports seasons.
It's going to be strange not seeing coach Gina Ingram roaming the sidelines at Eastern Greene volleyball games.
Speaking as a member of the media, Gina was a dream to work with. Always good with a quote and always diligent to provide results, statistics and commentary when our staff couldn't be present at games.
Thank you Gina!
All five area volleyball teams look to be improved this season as nearly every team returns at least five regulars from a season ago.
Defending Class 2A sectional champion Linton-Stockton lost just one player to graduation - GCDW Co-Area Player of the Year Macy Fidler - and returns five starters and a key reserve. If setter extraordinaire Libbi Fougerousse can remain healthy all season, the Lady Miners have a chance to be even better this season.
Defending SWIAC champion Eastern Greene was undefeated in conference play and they too return five starters for first-year coach Whitney Richardson.
In Class A Bloomfield would appear to be the prohibitive early favorite. The two-time defending regional champions return their top eight players and are poised for another semistate run.
Shakamak and White River Valley also return at least five players who saw considerable playing time a year ago. Along with Clay City it should make for a competitive Class A sectional.
It's shaping up to be another competitive year just like last year on the cross country courses. Nine area runners were individual qualifiers for the semistate and eight of those runners return. Bloomfield's Alli Workman made it to the state meet last fall, finishing 44th and is eying a return trip and perhaps a visit to the medal stand this season.
It's realistic several area boys - Parker Ramsey of Bloomfield, Eastern Greene's John Kirts, Janzen Franklin of Linton-Stockton, Shakamak's Clay Reynolds and WRV's Buddy Davis might join Workman at the state meet.
There was no one dominant team last year as teams took turns beating each other in the county and the conference meets. This year should be no different. Every area coach I've interviewed has talked about how tough their county and conference opponents are going to be.
On to the gridiron, where the Eastern Greene Thunderbirds remain in pursuit of their first winning season since the program's inception in 2003.
With a veteran group returning for second-year coach Joey Paridaen, this might be the year.
The T-Birds were on the brink of breaking through last year, at 5-2 with two winnable regular-season games remaining.
Eastern Greene lost both games by identical 28-14 scores -- to West Washington, at home in a mudfest, and at Tecumseh.
Two common threads emerged in those losses. Opposing running backs had big nights and departed four-year starting quarterback Briar Martindale accounted for the bulk of the T-Birds' offense.
West Washington's Brandon McPheeters ran for 111 yards and Tecumseh's Spencer Oxley piled up 170 yards in those games.
It was more of the same in the sectional as 2-7 Tell City handed Eastern Greene a 47-32 home loss behind 213 rushing yards from Elliot Brown as the T-Birds season ended at 5-5.
So much like the NFL team in Indianapolis, Eastern Greene will need to run the ball and stop the run this season.
Could this be the season when the Linton-Stockton Miners finally make it to Lucas Oil Stadium?
They'll face a tough schedule to start, beginning with home games against Speedway and arch-rival Sullivan. They also have road contests at Tecumseh and defending Class A state champ North Vermillion.
Sullivan came from behind in the final minute to nip the Miners 24-21 and North Vermillion handed Linton-Stockton a 31-8 setback in the Class A regional last year.
If the Miners can get through those first three games undefeated, the Linton-Stockton at North Vermillion matchup Friday, September 11 could be the game of the year.
The early schedule may tell us a lot about the Miners' fortunes this season. Or not. Brian Oliver's teams have a history of improving as the season progresses.
Keep in mind, all of the above is just pure speculation based on what I observed last year. As they say in the mutual fund business, "past performance does not guarantee future results."
My final thought is this: I hope that every player for all our area teams remains healthy this season. Yes' injuries happen in sports - that's reality. But it would be nice to see our players and our teams make it through the season relatively injury-free.
Terry Schwinghammer is a sports writer for the Greene County Daily World. He can be reached by telephone at (812) 847-4487, ext. 27. He can also be reached via email at tschwing32@yahoo.com.
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