Eastern played well enough on Saturday that the 1978 National Championship team, which was honored at halftime, would have been proud.

For three consecutive years, Eastern has failed to win the Ohio Valley Conference regular season crown.

Coming off first-place finishes in the Panther Invitational last weekend, the Eastern swim teams continued to build momentum on the young season with wins against instate rival Western Illinois Nov. 8, at the Lantz Natatorium.

On a day where Eastern will be celebrating a past season to remember, the Panthers will be trying to finish off a season that has been disappointing.

Jacksonville State head coach Lisa Howe isn't afraid. In her team's first year playing in the Ohio Valley Conference, it meets Eastern in the conference tournament semifinals at 4 p.m. Friday in Birmingham, Ala.

Eastern Illinois' volleyball team will face a pair of competitive conference matches during Senior Weekend, where it will honor its only senior Chandra Hensley. The Panthers take on Morehead State University on Friday and Eastern Kentucky University on Saturday.

Saturday's match against North Carolina will mark the end of two things for the Panthers. The match will end the 2003 season for the Panthers and will also close out the careers of seniors Mary Archer, Becky Carlson and Kate Taake.

I never thought I'd even consider this but too much college football can be a bad thing.

Five schools have broken away from the pack to stay alive in the race for the Ohio Valley Conference championship, and by the end of the day, we'll be down to two or three.

Eastern will swim against a familiar foe on Saturday, when the Panthers compete against Western Illinois.

The injury of senior quarterback Robert Craft in the fifth game of the sason has brought about the emergence of a new leader for the Tennessee-Tech Golden Eagles.

Two familiar and two unfamiliar teams represent the final four in the 2003 Ohio Valley Conference women's soccer tournament.