The Eastern men’s and women’s cross country teams will begin to wrap up their seasons at this weekend’s Ohio Valley Conference championships.

The Panthers are hoping to top the success they had at last year’s OVC championship, where the women’s team finished in second place and the men’s team finished in third.

The women’s team will return all three of their top 10 finishers from last year in junior Olivia Klaus, junior Gabriela Duenas and senior Brittany Arthur. The three players finished in fourth, seventh and ninth at last year’s championship meet.

They were three of five Eastern women to earn first team All-OVC honors, with senior Megan Gingerich and junior Erika Ramos.

Ramos, who broke Eastern’s all-time 6K record at her last event, the Bradley Classic, said the team is much improved from last year.

“I feel like our team is just 100 percent stronger than it was last year and we have a great chance to win, she said.

Ramos said the team has more depth this season, with more team members stepping up each week.

“We have some girls who were out of the season last year, who were held back and other girls who are stepping it up a little bit more,” Ramos said.

She also said despite the team’s strength last season, she feels that the team is even stronger this season.

“I think that this year we have a better chance to win it because our team is a little bit stronger this year,” she said.

Seniors Brad LaRocque and Matt Feldhake will lead the men’s team.

LaRocque has been the Panthers’ top finisher this season, winning the EIU Walt Crawford Open, an event that Feldhake also won the previous year.

Finishing in seventh place at the OVC championship last year, LaRocque was a first team All-OVC selection in last year’s season.

He, along with Feldhake and newcomer and freshman Bryce Basting will try to lead the men’s team again.

The biggest competition for both the men’s and women’s teams will again be Eastern Kentucky, who won the championship on both levels last season.

After the OVC championship, the Panthers will compete at the NCAA Midwest Regional, held at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb.

The OVC championship will take place at 8:30 a.m. with the men in Richmond, Ky. The women will follow at 9:30.

Dominic Renzetti can be reached at 581-7942 or dcrenzetti@eiu.edu.