The Panther volleyball team is only 2-5 in conference, but they look like they may finally be back on the right track.

With junior libero Brittany Wallace back at her natural position, senior Alex Zwettler can return to her own position, which has provided the Panthers with a much needed offensive boost.

Having Zwettler to take some of the swings helps the Panthers a lot more offensively, and this could provide the turning point needed for Eastern to get back on track.

Wallace, who had struggled with injuries early in the year, was finally ready to return to the lineup full-time, and when freshman outside hitter Reynae Hutchinson had an off day Saturday, it gave head coach Kate Price a reason to move Zwettler back to outside hitter.

The Panthers will now be getting into the second part of their Ohio Valley Conference schedule, which means they will start playing their conference foes a second time.

This, combined with the momentum of back-to-back wins and the rejuvenation of the lineup shift, should provide the Panthers the ideal situation to turn their season around.

Eastern currently sits at 10-10 overall, but they are currently a dismal 2-5 in the OVC. This trend needs to change and by all means should as the season rolls onward.

Eastern’s defense has been key to their recent success, with senior middle blocker Jorie Dieter earning OVC Defensive Player of the Week honors while posting a career-high 10 blocks in consecutive matches.

The Panthers have 11 games left in the regular season, which is plenty of time to turn their season around, but they need to start now.

If the Panthers win out the rest of their conference schedule, they would sit at 13-5, but saying you’re going to win 13 matches in a row (the first two having already been won) and actually doing it are two different things.

That’s not so say the Panthers can’t win out, but the odds are against it.

That being said, let’s say for the sake of argument that the Panthers win five of their final 11 matches.

That would put them with a 7-11 OVC record, and 15-16 overall. This would certainly be an improvement over last year’s team, which went 11-20 overall and a dismal 4-13 in the OVC.

But improvement isn’t the only benchmark of success. The Panthers want to win the OVC this year and that would require them to go on a roll at some point, redeeming themselves from their early OVC struggles.

All things considered, the Panthers’ volleyball team is looking like it has turned its season around. Considering its goal of being the 2010 OVC champions, they have to turn it around.

Brad Kupiec can be reached at 581-7944 or bmkupiec@eiu.edu