PEORIA, Ill. ? The Bradley men's and women's cross country teams will open their 2007-08 seasons this weekend, when they take part in the Illini Challenge Friday in Champaign, Ill..

The Missouri Valley Conference preseason coach's poll was released Wednesday, tabbing the men's team for a seventh-place finish in the league. On the women's side, the Braves checked in at sixth. Southern Illinois was picked first in the men's poll with Wichita State taking the top spot in the women's poll.

The men's team will look to senior Chris George (Normal, Ill./University H.S.) to lead the way this season. George ended 2006 with a career best 10K time of 32:25 at the NCAA Regional in Minneapolis. He also turned in a career best 6K time of 19:40 on his way to a second place finish at the 2006 Washington University Early Bird Meet. Senior Nathan Leech (Fremont, Neb./Fremont H.S.) will also help lead a men's team that finished sixth in The Valley each of the last two seasons, marking the highest back-to-back finishes for the men since the 1986 and 1987 seasons.

"On the men's side, we'll have a good mix of depth and experience," head coach David Beauchem said. "Chris will likely be up front and has a chance to be in the top ten in the conference."

The women's team returns the entire roster from a year ago with the exception of Sarah Westrick. The Braves will have plenty of depth this season, with senior Ainslie Schultz (Forest City, Iowa/Forest City H.S.), junior Shelby Lile (Jefferson City, Mo./Jefferson City H.S.), and sophomore Rachel Brubaker (Davis, Ill./Durand H.S.) looking to have solid seasons. The Braves also plan to get a significant contribution from freshman Mary Goldkamp (Florissant, Mo./McCluer North H.S.).

Beauchem expects the women's team to be a work in progress, but points to the depth of the team to create large improvement by November.

The Braves will be very familiar with the NCAA Midwest Regional course by the end of the season, as the meet will be held at Newman Golf Course in Peoria for the second time in the last four years.

"For both sides, we'll be very familiar with what's going to happen," Beauchem added. "Our experience should be very key to the success of both teams."

Bradley opens the season Friday at the Illini Challenge and will host the first of three meets Sept. 7, when the the Braves host the 22nd annual Bradley Open at Detweiller Park. Bradley will also host a pair of events at Newman Golf Course, starting with the Bradley Classic on Oct. 12, in addition to the NCAA Midwest Regional Nov. 10.