With the Mountain West Conference Indoor Championships coming upnext weekend, the Aztecs were looking for some encouragement andmomentum going into the meet.

Led by the stellar effort of pole vaulter Tricia Guiterrez, theirhopes were boosted by a fourth-place showing in the Bill CosbyInvitational despite having gone to Reno with a short squad of onlyfourteen competitors.

Guiterrez’s leap of 12 feet, 7 1/2 inches not only marked apersonal best, but also qualified her for the NCAA Championships thissummer and set a SDSU indoor record in the process.

She was not the only Aztec to perform well, however.

Daveeta Shepard narrowly bested two Nevada runners to win the55-meter hurdles. Promise Mose came in fourth in the 55-meter dash,and finished seventh in the 400-meter dash. Marisa Taylor postedfifth place in the triple jump.

The results had to bolster a squad that is focusing primarily onthe outdoor events this season in a high-altitude atmosphere. Thenext event is an outdoor meet this Saturday in Long Beach beforegoing back inside for the MWC Indoor Championships.

However, despite the encouraging performances, the coaching staffis not ready to start polishing any trophies just yet.

“We have a lot of athletes with good credibility, but it’s goingto take a little time to reach form,” said head coach Rahn Sheffield.”There are always things that you need to work on. We’re going towork on individual speed and the technical aspects, and we must getbetter in the sprints.

“What’s great about this season is that we have time to do so.”