CHRIS CODUTO/Arizona Daily Wildcat Sophomore Erin Dudugjian competes in the long jump during a home meet earlier this season.

State bragging rights will step to the starting line this weekend when the Arizona track and field squad heads north to take on two familiar foes in Tempe.

The annual double-dual meet, pitting Arizona against in-state rivals Arizona State and Northern Arizona University, will take place tomorrow at Joe Sellah Track in Sun Angel Stadium. The Wildcats will be looking for redemption over the Sun Devils, who narrowly edged past UA the last time these three schools faced each other in the indoor tri-meet in Flagstaff on Valentine's Day. The Sun Devils men's squad won by one point, 75-74.

All three schools boast men's and women's teams that fall into the top 75 in the nation.

Arizona leads the pack with its men's squad at No. 10 and women at No. 21. The Sun Devils follow with their No. 29 men and No. 32 women, while the Lumberjacks men's and women's squads fall in at No. 60 and No. 73, respectively.

Arizona will be looking to continue its success on the track, building off the momentum generated last weekend at the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa. The men's squad, led by upstart sophomore Jeff Hunter, will be looking to use this weekend's meet at as a prelude to the Pac-10 Combined and Conference Championships the following week in Los Angeles.

The Wildcats won't be looking past the Sun Devils, however.

Among the marquee events this weekend will be an explosive battle in the men's 4 by 400 relays. The Sun Devils' relay squad of Jason Barton, Seth Amoo, Steve Fitch and Lewis Banda enter the weekend with a perfect record in the 4 by 400, squeaking by Baylor in the final leg last time out with the second fastest time in school history.

The Wildcats' foursome, comprised of lead-off Jeff Hunter, Adrain Thomas, Matt Lea and anchor Jevon Mason, are coming off a seventh place finish at the Drake Relays in Iowa. According to head coach Fred Harvey, the Wildcat making the biggest strides with his running ability is Adrain Thomas. The sophomore from Sierra Vista showed great improvement in his last outing, demonstrating he is capable of and doing things for the Wildcats that do not show up in the box scores, Harvey said.

The women's squad got a boost last weekend with the return of Amy Linnen to the lineup. The junior pole-vaulting sensation returned after being sidelined with a foot injury. Despite finishing eighth in Des Moines, Linnen feels optimistic about re-joining her teammates.

"I'm back and happy to be with them training," Linnen said.

As for her injured foot, Linnen is feeling stronger by the day.

"It's on its way back and feeling better," the junior said. "I'm on the road to recovery. It's still sore, but I can definitely practice on it now, it's going to be a bit of a nuisance, but it feels fine to run and jump on it."

Linnen's return couldn't come at a better time for one of the nation's top vaulters.

"I love the ASU tri-meet. It really gets the team involved," added Linnen. "They don't really have many vaulters at ASU and NAU. It will be a good meet to cheer on everyone."

According to Linnen, the Wildcats haven't missed a beat since she was sidelined from their lineup.

"They have been working really hard," said Linnen of her fellow vaulters. "A couple of them have had personal records for the year. For some of them it's toward the end of the season, they are graduating. It's been great. They've been really supportive."