Now that the Eastern basketball seasons have come to abrupt ends, and indoor track and field took care of business per usual, it’s time to delve into the glorious spring sports season.

With baseball and softball in full swing other sports already amidst their seasons here are a couple predictions of what we can expect.

Baseball

The Panthers are off to an abysmal 1-9 start after coming into the season with expectations of a repeat Ohio Valley Conference Championship.

It’s tough to properly gauge what is the cause of the start at this point with every game having been played away from home and with zero practice time outdoors before the season’s start, but it’s safe to say things will likely turn around.

This year’s team is much different from last season’s record-setting team in that it doesn’t have the type of senior presence, but the talent is still there, and the team’s two ace pitchers are already generating buzz from MLB scouts.

Softball

The Panthers had an up-and-down season a year ago, and this season may not be very different.

Head coach Kim Schuette clearly has the program headed in the right direction but the key will be avoiding the late-season slump that plagued the team a year ago when it lost 15 out of its last 16 games. Another puzzling stat from last year’s team is that the Panthers went 12-9 away from Williams Field and just 6-14 at home. That trend needs to stop if the team wants to have success this season.

Outdoor track and field

It’s hard to imagine an outcome other than conference champions that awaits both the men’s and women’s squad. Head coach Tom Akers has had the program in dominant form over the past couple seasons and, if the indoor season is any indication, more is still to come.

Tennis

Both squads are still young and head coach John Blackburn has not done a good job of bringing in and developing young talent. It’s likely to be another long season for the Eastern tennis teams and until things get turned around, some way and somehow, that trend is likely to continue.

Golf

Both golf squads showed a world of promise last season and it’s likely they will continue to improve. The teams face a disadvantage in never being able to golf close to home but have been successful in spurts from time to time.

There are several talented, young golfers on both the men’s and women’s sides, so it will be interesting to see what type of strides they make as they enter their spring campaigns.

Collin Whitchurch can be reached at 581-7944 or cfwhitchurch@eiu.edu.