With just a little more than a month left in the regular season, the Arizona track and field program will be trying to qualify as many athletes as possible for the NCAA Championships this weekend at the Mt. San Antonio College Relays in Walnut, Calif.

The annual event attracts some of the finest track athletes in the nation and should prove to be an excellent opportunity for UA athletes to improve on their performances.

The Mt. SAC relays have over 5,000 athletes, ranging from the high school to the open competitor levels competing in a span of three days, making it one of the largest track meets in the nation.

UA head coach Dave Murray said that based on past results, Arizona has consistently faired well in the distance events, and it should not be any different this year.

Headlining the meet for the Wildcats will be freshman distance runner Amy Skieresz. Skieresz, who is running the seeded women's 5,000 meters, is trying to qualify for the NCAA meet and possibly the United States Olympic Trials in Atlanta in June.

Also, junior Viola Schaffer will be competing in the seeded women's 10,000-meter run. Schaffer has been out the last two weeks with a sore Achilles' tendon, but should be ready for the event on Saturday night.

Sophomore Bob Keino, who has also been suffering from a sore Achilles' tendon, will run in the seeded men's 5,000-meter race. Keino currently has the fastest time in the Pacific 10 Conference in the 1,500 meters, with his NCAA automatic qualifying effort of 3 minutes, 41.13 seconds, set during the Jim Click Shootout in Tucson on March 23.

Senior Michelle Johnson is trying to gain entry into the invitational 400-meter intermediate hurdles. Johnson has the fastest time in the NCAA this year in that event after setting a new school record with her 57.17 effort on April 6.

In the field events, UA is led by junior Chima Ugwu. Ugwu leads the NCAA in the shot put with his mark of 64 feet, 4 1/2 inches set also on April 6, but he will be facing some of the top shot putters in the world this weekend.

Last week, freshman Tapio Kolunsarka set a NCAA automatic qualifying mark in the hammer throw with his toss of 223-3. Kolunsarka's effort was a personal best and was also good enough to qualify as the second-best hammer throw in UA history. The record mark also earned him the Pacific 10 Conference's male athlete of the week award.