By: Doug Ireland/Sports Information Director
LAKE CHARLES – Northwestern State begins its 2011 cross country season joining six other state schools Friday at the McNeese Relays.
Two-person relay teams will split 6,000 meters in the 6 o'clock competition in Lake Charles. Joining Northwestern and host McNeese will be Southeastern Louisiana, Southern, Louisiana-Monroe and Louisiana-Lafayette.
All eight NSU women, and the dozen Demons, will compete in what is essentially a warmup competition to open the season.
“We've only been training for a week and a half, so we're not looking for a whole lot, but it's a training tool and an evaluation of where we're at. We want to see the competitive nature of the runners and get the season underway,” said Lady Demon coach Mike Heimerman.
For both NSU squads, two veterans should set the pace. Karensa Ellis and Lawanna Perkins are the fastest Lady Demons while Mark Dotson and Kyle Lessig are clearly the top NSU men.
“Karensa and Lawanna battled every meet for the first spot last year, and I expect the same this year,” said Heimerman.
“Mark and Kyle are very close. They've gotten better,” said veteran men's coach Leon Johnson. “After that, it's anybody's guess for us. We have seven freshmen.”
NSU's next meet is Sept. 17 at Louisiana Tech.
