THIBODAUX - The Nicholls State University men's and women's cross country teams will ring in the new season this Friday when the Colonels head to Lake Charles for the McNeese Relays.

The Colonels head into the Lake Charles meet led by their women's squad which, for the second consecutive season, finds itself ranked among the best teams in the region.  With the release of the first U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association regional rankings on Monday, the Colonel women enter the season ranked 13th in the South Central Region. 

However, Nicholls has plenty of company in this week's rankings as the Colonels are just one of six Southland Conference schools to appear in the USTFCCCA regional rankings.  Once again, the Southland continues to live up to the billing as home to some of the best distance programs in the region as Stephen F. Austin (No. 7), Texas A&M - Corpus Christi (No. 8), Texas-Arlington (No. 9), Lamar (No. 10) and McNeese State (No. 12) all begin the year rankd ahead of the Colonels in the South Central rankings.

A strong showing at the season opening McNeese Relays could help the Colonels vault some of their Southland Conference competition and help set the tone for the 2010 campaign.

Following the McNeese Relays, the Colonels the Colonels return to action on Sept. 18 with a visit to the Crimson Classic hosted by the University of Alabama.  The Tuscaloosa meet promises to be one of the premier cross country events in the region in 2010 and will give Nicholls a chance to run against one of their deepest fields of the season.

Nicholls faces a quick turnaround, however, as the Colonels return to action the next week at the Gulf Coast Stampede hosted by the University of West Florida in Pensacola on Sept 25.  After another extended layoff, the Colonels will head to the Mississippi College/Watson Ford Invitational in Clinton, Miss. on Oct. 16 in their final pre-conference meet tune up.

Nicholls begins its postseason schedule on Oct. 28 by looking for another record finish at the 2009 Southland Conference Championships.  This year's meet is slated to take place in Beaumont, Texas, home of Lamar University.