PEORIA, Ill. -- The 26th running of the Bradley Open at Detweiller Park along with ninth annual Bradley Classic at Newman Golf Course, highlight the schedules for the 2012 Bradley men's and women's cross country squads.
 
For the second consecutive year, the Braves will run five of seven scheduled meets in the state of Illinois, beginning with the 26th Bradley Open Friday, Sept. 7 at Detweiller Park.  Sophomore Marshall Moyer (Burlington, Iowa/Burlington) got his career off to a strong start, by winning the men's individual title at last year's event; while fellow sophomore Sarah McMahon (Colfax, Wis./Colfax) paced a young women's team at last year's Bradley Open before going on to claim Bradley's Most Outstanding Female Athlete award in 2011-12.
 
"We have some very good teams scheduled to compete including Iowa, Indiana State and Purdue at the Bradley Open," said third-year Bradley head coach Marc Burns.  "It is important to us to continue the tradition of the Bradley Open at Detweiller Park as it has been such a fixture over the years in the program."
 
Bradley will get a chance to preview the course for the Missouri Valley Conference Championship early in the year, taking part in the Illinois Intercollegiate Championships Friday, Sept. 14 in Normal, Ill.  The Braves will return to Normal, Ill., toward the end of the year for the Valley Championships on Oct. 27.
 
The site of the NCAA Cross Country Championship (Nov. 17) will also host the Greater Louisville Classic (Sept. 29), with teams from across the nation traveling to Louisville, Ky.
 
The ninth annual Bradley Classic will help kick off a busy homecoming weekend on The Hilltop Friday, Oct. 12, with over 25 NCAA Division I teams competing at Newman Golf Course.
 
"We feel this schedule is a great mix of developmental and national level competition," Burns added.  "We still have a relatively young team and it is important for us to provide opportunities for them to develop throughout the year.  Our ultimate goal is to be prepared for our best efforts of the year at the MVC Championships and NCAA Midwest Region Championships.  Our men's and women's teams will be much deeper than year's past and we are excited about the potential of both teams in 2012."
 
The final tune-up for the MVC Championship will be Friday, Oct. 19 at the Illinois Open in Champaign, Ill., before the Braves return to Normal, Ill., for the Valley Championship on Oct. 27.  The NCAA Midwest Regional will be held Friday, Nov. 9 in Springfield, Mo.
 
Both teams are coming off their best conference finishes since 2009.  The women's team returns seven of eight individuals who helped the Braves to a third-place finish at the 2011 Valley Championship, including McMahon who went on to earn all-conference honors in cross country along with indoor and outdoor track.  Moyer was Bradley's top finisher on the men's side in four events as a freshman to help highlight a group that returns all eight individuals which ran at the MVC Championship.