2014 Schedule

LAFAYETTE The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns cross country team opens its 2014 season on Friday when it travels to Lake Charles to compete in the annual McNeese State 6K Relay held at the Enos Derbonne Complex.

The season-opening event will begin with the women's 3,000-meter race at 6 p.m. followed by the men's 4,000-meter event at approximately 6:30. Teams competing in the dual relay race will be Louisiana, McNeese, Northwestern State and LSU.

"It's nice to start off short and fast, get your feet wet and see where you're are," Louisiana assistant coach Kelly LaMaison said. "It's a good distance to get a judge of where our fitness is and where we need to go."

The Ragin' Cajuns, who were picked to finish seventh in the preseason Sun Belt Conference poll that was released on Wednesday, return eight runners on the men's side paced by sophomores Matthew Rice and Logan Pearce. Pearce, who was named the Co-Freshman of the Year by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association in 2013, finished as the Cajuns top runner, earning three top-10 performances on the season.

Rice, named to the All-Sun Belt team in 2012, returns to the lineup after missing the final five events with an injury. As a freshman in 2012, Rice was the Cajuns' top runner, earning a pair of top-5 finishes and a 12th-place showing at the Sun Belt Championships.

Corbett Ourso, Jacob Chicola, Scott Brewster, Trey Bonin, Sean Bezdek and Christian Bergeron all saw action for Louisiana last season. Newcomers Logan LaGarde, along with twin brothers Beau Robinson and Bryce Robinson will give Louisiana its deepest squad under the tandem of head coach Lon Badeaux and LaMaison, the Ragin' Cajuns cross country coach.

"We're anxious to see what they can do," LaMaison said of the Cajuns' freshman class. "Our returners are looking good and they are healthy. We're just excited to see what they can do. It's a big bonus to have Matt (Rice) back. He's extremely fit right now and probably in the best shape of his life."

Anna Katherine Devitt and Claire Hodges are the top returners on the women's side for Louisiana as Devitt earned third-team All-Sun Belt Conference honors in 2013 while Hodges was the Louisiana Co-Freshman of the Year.

Camille Barnett, Danielle Castaldi, Kaylei Esfeller, Ashley Irwin (the school record-holder in the 10,000-meters) and Courtney Musgrove return for the Ragin' Cajuns and will be joined by newcomers Courtney Broussard, Lindsay LeGarde and Tulane transfer Kelci Lyons.

"Ashley (Irwin) had an incredible spring for us and she's looking really good," LaMaison said. "Her, AK (Devitt), Courtney Broussard and Claire (Hodges) are running neck and neck along with Danielle (Castaldi). All of the ladies are really pushing each other and running together."

The Ragin' Cajuns will compete in five events during the season heading into the Sun Belt Conference Championships, that is scheduled for Nov. 2 in Mobile, Ala. Louisiana will compete at the Rice Invitational (Sept. 12), the McNeese Cowboy Stampede (Sept. 27), the Florida State Invitational (Oct. 10) before hosting the Ragin' Cajuns Invitational on Oct. 17.

"We love our schedule," LaMaison said. "We didn't have our home meet last year, so we're definitely excited to bring it back. We're looking to introduce good competition and good meets, trying to run against a bunch of (Sun Belt) conference teams and see where we are and perform to the best of our abilities."