Fall might just have been the season to really have paid attention to Eastern athletics.

Just looking at the evidence right now, considering Eastern is still competitive or leading in two of the races for the conference crown and already have finished a close second in one other, proves how strong Eastern athletics are in the fall this season.

Football got the one hope they were wishing for when Eastern Kentucky was defeated this weekend, thus keeping them very much in the race.

The volleyball team has cemented their spot, as of right now, in first place in the OVC after yet another Eastern Kentucky loss.

The women’s soccer team finished an extremely close second to Samford in the OVC, and even defeated the top-ranked Bulldog squad on the road, no less.

But the two races that are still active, the football and volleyball conference skirmishes, could go down to the very last weekend that each of the two teams play.

The volleyball team, while in first place by more than a half-game margin, still have to go up against the Eastern Kentucky squad that is in second place right now.

In what some are dubbing “showdown weekend” in OVC volleyball, Eastern has to go up against Morehead State and the Colonels of Eastern Kentucky.

Morehead State is tied for fourth place with Jacksonville State in the conference, but the match up that really matters is Eastern’s with the Colonels.

Eastern Kentucky will play one more match before playing Eastern and if they win that match they will play the Panthers with only one loss.

Eastern, if they win their Friday match, will be undefeated when playing the Colonels making the match a make or break situation for the top spot in the conference.

The football team now finds themselves back in the race for top spot in the OVC that Eastern Kentucky loss making Jacksonville State the only one-loss team left in the conference.

The Panthers have basically one chance to lay claim to the OVC title and that is winning out for the rest of the year.

If they are able to defeat the likes of Tennessee Tech (5-3, 2-2), Jacksonville State (6-1, 4-1) and Samford (4-5, 3-3), Eastern would most likely find themselves atop the conference.

Women’s soccer, even though they didn’t win the conference outright in the regular season, has a chance to win in what really matters.

While winning the regular season in the OVC doesn’t get that team an automatic bid to the NCAA College Cup, winning the conference tournament will.

Starting on Tuesday the OVC tournament begins, but Eastern won’t play until Friday due to the team’s bye in the first round.

Watching all three of these teams over the final weeks of this semester could provide the most interesting Eastern athletics over the course of the entire year, so enjoy it.