Feb. 15, 2002
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Championship Time
The San Diego State track and field program travels to Colorado Springs, Colo., this week for the McLeodUSA Mountain West Conference Indoor Championships to be held at the Air Force Academy's Cadet Fieldhouse. The event is scheduled to get underway at 11 a.m. MST on Feb. 21 with competition in the pentathlon. Competition in the other track and field events will be held on Friday (Feb. 22) and Saturday (Feb. 23). Tickets for Friday and Saturday are five dollars for adults and two dollars for children. Tickets can be purchased at the gate or by calling 1-800-666-USAF.
Recapping The NAU Invitational
The Aztecs got a final tune up for the MWC championships by setting high marks at last weekend's Northern Arizona Mountain T's Invitational. Competition in the track events saw the Aztecs score seven top-five finishes. Junior Jennifer Stakiw scored the team's highest finish of the day, taking the top spot in the 800-meter invitational with a time if 2:17.54. Junior Melinda Smedley and Tonette Dyer finished second (24.34) and third (24.42), respectively, in the 200-meter dash invitational. The highlight of the day in the field events came courtesy of senior Tricia Gutierrez, who hit her third NCAA provisional mark of the season in the pole vault with a vault of 3.85 meters (12-07.50).
Vaulting To Success
Two SDSU pole vaulters enter the MWC championships looking to improve on NCAA provisional marks. On Jan. 12, two Aztecs, senior Tricia Gutierrez and freshman Shayla Balentine, set school record and NCAA provisional marks at the National Pole Vault Summit, in Reno. Balentine and Gutierrez both vaulted 3.90 meters (12-09.50). At the Wolf Pack Invitational, on Feb. 2, Gutierrez set another NCAA provisional mark with a 3.82-meter (12-06.25) second-place vault. Balentine came in third in the competition (3.72m/12-02.25). Gutierrez's school-record mark bested the record of 12-07.50 she set last season.
Aztec Honors
Senior Tricia Gutierrez's school record and NCAA provisional vault at the National Pole Vault Summit earned her Mountain West Conference indoor track athlete of the week honors for the period ending Jan. 14. The occasion marked her first career athlete of the week award.
Coaching Staff
The Aztecs are led by head coach Rahn Sheffield, who is in his 11th season with the Aztec program. Sheffield is assisted by Jennifer Nanista, Richard Fox, Leslie Coons and Kristi McGihon. Nanista oversees the team's distance corps, Fox works with the pole vaulters and McGihon handles the jumps.
League Leaders
Several Aztecs are listed among the top-10 best times and marks this season in the Mountain West Conference. Senior Tricia Gutierrez and freshman Shayla Balentine are tied for second in the pole vault with a 12-09.50 mark. Junior Melinda Smedley and sophomore Tonette Dyer are fifth and sixth, respectively, in the 60-meter dash with altitude-adjusted times of 7.72 and 7.77. Smedley and Dyer are also 2-3 in the 200-meter dash with times 24.34 and 24.42, respectively. Jillita Griffin owns the conference's tenth fastest time of 7.88 (adjusted) in the 60 meters. Junior Hollann Givens holds the league's tenth spot in the 400-meter dash with a time of 58.13. Junior Jennifer Stakiw's time of 2:17.54 in the 800-meters this past weekend ranks her tenth on the MWC list.
A Year Ago
With many of its top performers having completed their indoor eligibility, SDSU sent just one athlete, Tricia Gutierrez, to the 2001 MWC Indoor Championships. The junior, who just two weeks earlier set SDSU's indoor record in the pole vault, cleared 12-00.50 to take second place in the event. Air Force's Ana Maria Ortega vaulted the identical height but was awarded the event's top spot based on fewer misses.
The Outdoor Season At A Glance
The Aztecs start the outdoor season on Mar. 2 when they compete at the USC Invitational. The following weekend (Mar. 9) the team will square off against UC Irvine and UC San Diego in a double-dual held at the SDSU Sports Deck. SDSU will host two other home meets. On Mar. 23, the team will host the Aztec Invitational and on Apr. 13 the All-Women Invitational. While not a home meet, the Aztec are also scheduled to compete at the UC San Diego Invitational on Apr. 27.