Youngstown, Ohio - Sophomores Damian Eargle and Andy Timko have been added to the Youngstown State men's basketball 2009-10 roster, Head Coach Jerry Slocum announced on Thursday (Aug. 27).
Eargle, a native of Warren, Ohio, must sit out the 2009-10 season after transferring from UNC-Greensboro, but will have three years of eligibility. Timko has three seasons of immediate eligibility remaining.
"We are very excited about Damian coming back home to play for Youngstown State," Slocum said. "We coveted him while he was at Warren Harding and we are glad he decided to join our basketball family.
"He is a player that can play on the perimeter and inside and is one of the finest defensive players I've seen at the high school level."
In his lone season at UNCG, Eargle appeared in 29 games with 20 starts and averaged 9.2 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. He also led the Southern Conference with 57 blocked shots, averaged 11.6 points per game in conference play and was named to the All-Freshmen Team. His season-high 25 points in a win over Appalachian State back in January was the most scored by a UNCG freshman in 18 years.
At Warren Harding, Eargle was twice named an AP All-State Honorable Mention selection twice. He averaged 13.6 points per game as a senior and 14.3 points per game as a junior with nine boards per contest both seasons. He was named the MVP of the Kentucky-Ohio All-Star game when he scored a game-high 17 points and grabbed six rebounds.
Eargle also set Warren Harding's career blocked shots and rebounding records.
Timko, who served as the team's manager last year, played his freshman season at Westminster College where he started 18 of 26 games and averaged 20 minutes per game.
A three-year letterwinner at McDonald High School, Timko averaged 16 points, six assists and three steals per game as a junior and senior and was a three-time first-team all-conference selection.
"Andy is a hard working young man and we are glad he decided to continue his basketball career at Youngstown State," Slocum said.
Timko's uncle, Bruce Timko, played basketball for YSU from 1982-86.