ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- The Bradley women's cross country team was picked to finish third in the Missouri Valley Conference preseason coaches poll and the men's squad was selected to finish seventh the vote of MVC coaches according to an announcement by the league office Monday.
One of the youngest teams in the conference, the women's team received 70 points to edge out Missouri State (65 points) for third in the annual preseason selections. Defending women's champion Wichita State was picked as the preseason favorite with 93 points.
"We are thrilled to be picked third in the preseason poll but we have a long way to go to achieve at that level," said Bradley head coach Marc Burns. "Our team is young and much of our success will depend on how well the youngsters develop throughout the course of the season. We have a lot of talent on this team and it is going to be exciting to see how things progress."
The Braves returned nine letterwinners from last year's squad which finished fifth at last fall's MVC Championship. Sophomore Whitney Schumacher (Appleton, Wis./Kimberly) placed 17th at last year's Valley Championship and fellow sophomore Cassie Lohmeier (East Peoria, Ill./East Peoria) joined Schumacher in the top 25. The duo is expected to help lead a young group which includes 11 underclassmen.
On the men's side, Bradley was tabbed to finish seventh in the preseason poll after an eighth-place showing at last year's conference championship. Indiana State was the picked to defend its title according to the preseason vote, receiving six of nine first-place votes and 77 points.
"Our men are not real excited about being picked seventh but as a returning eighth place team it will be up to them to prove the polls wrong," added Burns. "We are a young team which will need time to develop. Our talent level is rising so the expectations are much higher. It is very exciting for us to be working toward our ultimate goal of winning a title in the near future."
Junior Jon Richards (Streator, Ill./Streator) was Bradley's top finisher at the 2010 MVC Championship and is one of just three upperclassmen on a squad which features seven freshman.
