OREM — The best runners in the Mountain West Conference will trade swords with one another this morning at the Cascade Golf Center in Orem.

BYU is hosting this year's MWC cross-country championships, with the men's race scheduled for 10 a.m. and the women's race scheduled to follow at 11 a.m.

Admission is free.

BYU is expected to contend with New Mexico and possibly others for first place on the men's and women's sides, while Utah's women's team is hoping to finish in the top half of the conference chase.

"It's very fun to be able to be at home and know that you have the home crowd," said BYU men's coach Ed Eyestone. "We would just like to encourage everyone to come out. This is an opportunity to come out and just be yards away from the athletes on the field of battle, so to speak. You can reach out and touch them. It would be akin to having a sideline pass for football.

"With there being a bye for the (BYU) football team," Eyestone added, jokingly, "we're hoping to get 65,000 people out on the golf course."

Of all the interesting plots and subplots that will unfold during today's championship meet, possibly one of the most compelling storylines will be whether BYU's women's team can find a way to edge out New Mexico for the team title.

BYU had won 18 consecutive championships before losing narrowly to Air Force two years ago and then to New Mexico by two places a year ago.

With individual contender Cecil Lemmon-Lew leading the way, the Cougars hope to get back to their old winning ways today.

Not that it will be easy, of course.

"I have a young team, (and) there's not a single young (female) athlete that's been part of a conference-winning team in cross country," said BYU women's coach Patrick Shane. "In essence, it's a very young and inexperienced team, and so we're looking forward to it. It would be a first for the entire team that's here now."

On the other side, the highly-ranked BYU's men's team will look to run its best race to date to hold off New Mexico and Air Force.

Sophomore Miles Batty has been stellar for the Cougars this season, and there's quality depth behind him.

Eyestone, for his part, expects to see New Mexico give his team all it can handle.

"We know they're capable of delivering big-time, and we need to make sure we deliver big time, as well," said Eyestone.

Meanwhile, Utah's young women's team will look to show well in the high-pressure meet. Four of the Utes' top five runners are freshmen, and the squad will be without star Alyssa Abbott, who's redshirting because of an IT band injury.

"We're excited to be running so close to home, with BYU hosting down in Orem, and we're just gonna go out there and run our race, give a good effort," said Utah coach Kyle Kepler. "Our goal is to finish in the top half of the conference again."

e-mail: drasmussen@desnews.com