Sept. 22, 2006

PENSACOLA, Fla. - Head coach Matt Dobson will lead his men's and women's cross country teams to Hoover, Ala. this weekend for the Great American Cross Country Festival on Saturday. The men's race will begin at 9:55 a.m., while the women's race will commence at 10:55 a.m.

"Our teams are running in the premier collegiate races," said Dobson. "We are running against the best competition that we can find, and it will help us prepare for the post-season."

Both squads will participate in the Nike Race of Champions for men and women. The two races are part of 23 high school and collegiate races Saturday at the festival. Along with West Florida, both Nike men's and women's races will feature conference opponents North Alabama, West Alabama and West Georgia.

The West Florida men's squad is ranked third in the south region, behind Harding and Florida Southern. Florida Southern is one of 12 teams that will be running against West Florida on Saturday. Two weeks ago, senior Michael Padilla (Pensacola, Fla./Pine Forest HS) set a course record as West Florida claimed the team title at the Columbus State Invitational.

The West Florida women's team is ranked fourth in the south region, behind Harding, Tampa and Alabama-Huntsville. The Argonaut women's team also finished first at the Columbus State Invitational. All of the top six West Florida runners finished in the top 10, led by senior Lauren Brooks' (Westlake, Ohio/Westlake HS) fourth place finish.

"I could not be more pleased with how our men's and women's team has run in their first two meets," said Dobson. "We have defeated every Division II team we have raced against and everyone has shown improvement. We will see how our runners respond after a week off."