By Jim O'Hara
 
ROME, Ga. – Dealing with adversity is perhaps one of the greatest lessons athletes learn during their careers, lessons they all come to understand translates into life itself.

That is certainly being learned this season for the Shorter men's and women's basketball season, who  are in the midst of rare losing streaks but have been coping with the adversity doing the only thing they can do – keep player harder and harder.

On Sunday, the Hawks and Lady Hawks will do just that when they host West Alabama in a pair of Gulf South Conference games at the Winthrop-King Centre with Shorter's women out to end a seven-game skid starting at 2 p.m. and the Hawks seeking to snap a five-game slide. Admission to the games is free to those who bring a church bulletin and to fans that make a $2 donation to Make-A-Wish.

"We've had a lot of adversity all season, but the guys keep competing and play hard every game," Hawks head coach Chad Warner said as the team, which has seen its roster numbers get fewer and fewer, battles to improve on its 8-13 overall record and a 5-10 GSC slate.

"Sports is one of the great teachers of life," he added. "You have to learn to deal with adversity and setbacks. I do know this – we will be ready with our sword and shield in hand."

The Hawks are coming off their most lopsided defeat of the season, a 108-70 road loss to Alabama-Huntsville in which the Chargers shot an amazing 65 percent of their shots, and will be looking Sunday to get back on track as they seek to find new chemistry within a lineup that has completely changed since the start of the year.

Still constants for the Hawks has been Dedric Ware, Jordan Jacks and Brandon Pullman, who is addition to leading the team in scoring by averaging in double figures have also become the leaders of the team's determination.

Ware continues to set the pace at the point where the senior is scoring 18.2 points a game; Jacks is on a double-double for the season averaging 15.4 and 10.8 rebounds; and Pullman is turning in a 13.8 ppg clip.

Yet as the season progressed, the ranks have dwindled. Earlier this month Kurtis Woods, who had been averaging 13 points, was dismissed from the team and last week the Hawks lost Travis Jones (10.8 ppg) for the season when he was injured against Delta State on Feb. 8.

"Now we're really short-handed," Warner said, noting that the look of the team has undergone other changes since the start of the year. "It's tough when you have just five scholarship players out there against teams with 10 of them."

West Alabama, which handed the Hawks a 92-78 defeat in their first meeting, is riding a three-game win streak, the latest victory coming on Friday when the Tigers (13-8, 10-5) beat West Georgia 67-45. The decision gave was UWA head coach Mark Downey's 200^th career win.

The Tigers enters Sunday's game with five players in double figures with Desmond Raymond (17.1) and Sandy Underwood (16.9) leading the way.

The Lady Hawks (5-16, 3-12) will get the first shot at dismissing their losing trend, working even harder to change the outcome of their first meeting against West Alabama when the Lady Tigers (4-17, 1-14) made Shorter their only conference win last month claiming a 58-53 decision, one which none of the Lady Hawks were able to break into double figures.

This time around, however, the Lady Hawks are focused on changing that outcome by looking for a better outing from several players who have carried the offensive torch all season – Ieshia Alexander (13.7 ppg), Karisma Boykin (11.6), Lynette Harris (10.3) and Kristin Nash (9.5.)

West Alabama comes to Rome dealing with an eight-game losing streak, the latest a 60-57 loss on Friday to West Georgia 57-60.

After Sunday's games, Shorter embarks on a three-game road trip visiting West Florida in Pensacola on Thursday, at Valdosta State next Saturday and facing West Georgia in Carrollton on Feb. 25. The Hawks and Lady Hawks close out the regular season at home on March 1 against Lee.