LIVINGSTON, Ala.— The University of West Alabama cross country teams kick-off their 2006 season Friday, at the Cougar Invitational hosted by Columbus State University (Columbus, Ga.).

“The kids are eager to race after several weeks of pretty hard training and I am eager to see how far they have progressed since the start of pre-season camp," first-year Tigers head coach Don Medeiros said.

The men’s team returns a pair of runners from last year’s squad – senior Randy Putman (Huntsville) and sophomore Deivid Delgado (Hoover). Junior transfer Daniel Ross (Hanceville) and true freshmen Jeremy Wilson (Trussville), Craig Warlick (Daphne) and Alex Brown (Tupelo) round out the squad.

The women’s team returns four runners from last year’s team – seniors Jillian Gibbs (Brilliant), Devin Fields (Brilliant), junior Brittany Berry and sophomore Jacki Aiken return to compete in the 2006 campaign. Newcomers include sophomore Brittany Otter (Montgomery) and red-shirt freshman Debbie Shisler (Phoenix), who sat out last season for medical reasons. Freshmen Crystal Leamons (Atlanta) and ReShai Reeves (Atlanta) complete the women’s team.

“My main goal this year is to develop a ‘running culture’ at UWA," Medeiros said. "By this I mean, I want our runners to know what they need to do in order to have a successful team at the conference, regional and national levels. Running is about doing a lot of ‘little’ things, which then add up to quality racing. Runners who are going to be successful must make these ‘little’ things a matter of habit – doing them every day. Even more important than the times we run this year, I am looking for our runners to do things the right way, to really focus on the process of becoming a successful collegiate runner. If they can accomplish this, faster times and higher finishes will follow.

“I have been very pleased with how this group has responded to what I have asked of them. They are starting to bond as a team and that is very important in cross country. Team support is a big part of getting through some of the very difficult training sessions that we do. Just as importantly, they have not backed down from any of the hard workouts I have assigned to them. If they can maintain this level of commitment and effort, I think they will be able to move up in the conference rankings this year”.

“It is hard to predict how much improvement we will show this year. Other teams in the conference and region are working hard and will be improved. It will be a challenge for us to move up in the conference and regional rankings, but I like our chances”.

“The Cougar Invitational is a short race – 5K for the men and 3K for the women. I like to open the season with a shorter race, since the runners are not yet in good enough condition to race the regular distances – 8K/10K for men and 5K/6K for women. A good performance in a shorter race can do a lot for their confidence and that is something we can build on as the season goes along. This race will give us a good reading of their fitness levels and help plan training for the next month or so. We’ll have a much better idea of how far we might go after this first race."