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Georgia Southern News Roundup
Brown, Swope named to 2012 CFPA Watch List
After combining for nearly 2,000 rushing yards in 2011, Robert Brown and Dominique Swope were added to the College Football Performance Running Back Award Watch List for the upcoming 2012 season.
Brown rushed for 937 yards on 136 carries in 13 games and posted a 6.9 average per carry. The rising junior tallied 100 or more yards in three of the first five games and posted a pair of 90 yard games against Western Carolina and The Citadel. Brown also tallied five touchdowns on the season and just missed the second 1,000 yard season of his career.
Swope carried the ball less than 10 times in all but one game before breaking out for 165 yards on 27 carries at Wofford. He went on to tally 153 yards at Alabama, including an 82-yard touchdown, and 255 yards in the playoffs against Old Dominion. Swope finished the season with 1,023 yards and seven touchdowns and averaged 6.1 yards per carry.
Eagles post highest-ever GPA during fall 2012
Georgia Southern University’s 15 varsity teams put together the best semester in school history with a 2.92 grade-point average (GPA) during the fall 2011 semester.
The Men’s and Women’s athletic programs also posted their highest GPA term with a 2.71 and a 3.20 GPA, respectively. There were 32 members of the teams named to the President’s list. More than 200 made a 3.0 or better in the fall, and 65 more student-athletes were named to the Dean’s List.
Garrido, Bellissimo named Scholar-Athletes of the Year
Georgia Southern Athletics honored its Scholar Athletes of 2011-2012 at the annual awards banquet in the University’s Nessmith-Lane Ballroom.
Men’s Tennis player Alain Garrido and Volleyball player Moriah Bellissimo were selected by the University Athletics Committee as the 2012 Georgia Southern Scholar-Athletes of the Year for their outstanding work in the classroom and on the playing field.
Garrido graduated in the spring with a degree in accounting, posting a 3.72 grade-point average (GPA) through the fall semester. He served as the Men’s Tennis representative on the Student-Athlete Advisory Board over the last two seasons and served as the Eagles’ team captain this year.
Bellissimo finished her junior season at Georgia Southern with a 4.0 GPA majoring in nutrition and a minor in marketing.
Golf Eagles finish second in SoCon
The Georgia Southern golf team came up one spot short of defending their conference title on April 17, as the Eagles finished second in the Southern Conference Tournament.
Georgia Southern shot 289 in the final day to jump into second place, but could not overcome Chattanooga. The Mocs shot 281 in the final round to cement their victory. Chattanooga shot 861 for the tournament good for three-under par.
S&D matches best-ever finish
The Georgia Southern Swimming and Diving team tied its highest finish ever in the Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association (CCSA) Championship.
The Eagles finished third in the CCSA Championships with a total of 477.5 point. They finished behind only first-place Florida Gulf Coast’s 840 points, and Liberty’s 538.5 points.
Sara Meisenhelder continued her record-breaking season as well. She broke her own record in the 3-meter dive with a score of 290.05 and took second place. The dive put Meisenhelder in zone cut, the first step to getting to the NCAA Championships. The sophomore also earned the Female Diver of the Year title in the CCSA.
Three more Georgia Southern school records fell at the meet. Amber Juncker broke the record for the 1650 Free with a time of 17:04.07 and a fourth-place finish. Courtney Harrison broke the school record for the 200 breaststroke clocking a time of 2:18.17 and a first-place finish. Harrison was followed by Kristen Bates, who came in second with a time of 2:18.52.
The 400-meter free relay team also broke a school record with a third-place finish. The team of Kristen Bates, Devan White, Katie Crider and Elaina Lanson clocked a time 3:27.57 on their way into the record books.
Track and Field finishes fourth in SoCon
Georgia Southern track and field finished fourth in the Southern Conference Championship (SoCon).
The Eagles were impressive across the board as they jumped four spots on day two. Georgia Southern finished behind Samford in third, Western Carolina in second, and conference champion Appalachian State.
Johnson receives Phi Eta Sigma Scholarship
Georgia Southern swimmer Hayley Johnson received a $6,000 scholarship from Phi Eta Sigma. Phi Eta Sigma is an honor society that is part of the First-Year Experience at Georgia Southern, which is designed to ease the transition into the University for freshmen.
The criterion for an invitation to Phi Eta Sigma membership is a 3.6 GPA for first-year students enrolled full time. Members also actively participate in on- and off-campus service projects and leadership groups and work experience.
Johnson is a sophomore on the Georgia Southern Swimming and Diving team majoring in public relations.
53 Student-Athletes receive diplomas at Spring Commencement
During Georgia Southern’s spring commencement ceremony at Allen E. Paulson Stadium, 53 student-athletes walked across the stage to receive their degrees at the annual spring commencement.
The culmination of their experience and years of hard work was witnessed by family, friends, coaches, teammates and a packed house of an estimated 23,000 at the “Prettiest Little Stadium in America.”