MOULTRIE — The Colquitt County soccer teams made a run on cold-weather gear on Thursday, hoping to fend off some of the chill when they open their seasons against Westover tonight in Albany.

And although the Packers and Lady Packers practiced each of the last two days in cool conditions, they still may not be prepared for playing tonight.

The forecast is for a temperature of about 38 degrees at 8 p.m., just a half-hour after the Packers-Westover match’s scheduled 7:30 p.m. start.

Both the Packers and Lady Packers faced Westover in the Lee County jamboree on Feb. 3, but Colquitt County boys co-head coach Mell Wier cautioned about reading too much into his team’s 1-0 victory in the 30-minute mini-game.

“The jamboree means absolutely nothing,” said Weir.

It did, however, allow the Packers to try their new 3-4-3 formation, a change from the 4-4-2 they have used in the past.

The team has adapted well to it, Wier said, and credits a strong defensive trio of Tyler Mobley, Stephen Adcock and Daniel Phillips for enabling the team to make the adjustment.

They could form one of the best combinations in Region 1-AAAAA this season and will try to keep the heat off first-year starting keeper Colby Browning.

The midfielders who will start tonight include Hudson Wrenn, Matt DeMott, Daniel Garcia and Beau Holden.

Oscar Quintanilla, Salvadore Duque and Omar Zapote will be up front.

The rest of the roster includes keepers Seth Chitty and Derek Illian, Dogo Cisneros, Nathan Fowler, Spencer Clayton, Daniel Carranza, D.J. Vanzant, Julio Perez and Trey Brooks.

Wier said the team set as a goal was to play 20 games, which would take the Packers to the second round of the state playoffs.

The Packers were 6-11 overall and 3-7 last year, failing to make the state playoffs under coach Randall Balch.

Wier and community coach Rob Craft have taken over this season from Balch, who resigned after just one season.

“We’re excited about the season,” said Wier, who was the junior varsity head coach the last two seasons. “We like our talent.

“If we play as a team, we could make some progress.

Wier said he likes his team’s blend of experienced varsity players, including veterans such as Mobley, DeMott, Adcock and Phillips, and young, promising performers.

“We’ve got some guys who have played a lot of varsity soccer and a lot of young guys who are really talented and really love the game,” Wier said.

Lowndes and Houston County are expected to be strong in the region this season.

The Colquitt County girls will meet the Westover girls at 5:30 p.m. today in their season-opener.

The Lady Packers include seniors Brianna Campbell, Anna DeMott, Kristin Hall, Morgan Jones, Katie Roberts, Alex Smith, Sarah Tyndall, Jessica Vick and Jessica Williams; juniors Lunden Connell, Lindy Sanderson and Mary Beth Wiggins; sophomores Marissa Aldridge, Alba Hernandez and Abbey Taylor; and freshmen Anna Hall and Suzi Hernandez.

Four starters — Tyndall, Sanderson, Williams and Aldridge — will miss the game against Westover to perform in the high school musical “Cats.”

“We’re going to miss them as much as they are going to miss playing,” said Lady Packers coach Jimbo Jarvis, who added that those players’ absences will give some other players a chance to get some additional time on the field.

Jarvis said he is looking forward to seeing a potential high-scoring quartet of Taylor, Vick, Alba Hernandez and Kristin Hall perform this season.

Alba Hernandez scored a school-record 32 goals last season. Kristin Hall had 11 and Taylor had eight.

“Abbey’s been striking the ball well, especially from a distance,” Jarvis said.

Lunden Connell will start in the net tonight, taking over from Kaitlyn Price, an All-Region performer who went on to play Converse College after last season.

Jarvis said Jones has undergone knee surgery and it is unclear how much it will affect her.

“She’s determined to play,” said Jarvis, who also might try Jones at keeper.

The Colquitt County varsity teams will play their home-openers on Tuesday against Lee County.

The Region 1-AAAAA part of the schedule begins on Tuesday, Feb. 27, at Lowndes.