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Mario Bassani and Jonathan Williams will try to help the UCLA 4x400-meter relay team crack the to

After five years without representation at the NCAA Track and Field Championship meet, one of UCLA’s relay teams is about to make a long-awaited appearance. Qualifying for nationals in both the 4x100-meter and 4x400-meter relays, the team elected to send only its 4x400m team to Austin, Texas. The team will face some fierce competitors who won’t make the task of getting through the preliminary rounds to qualify for the finals very easy. “We are going to have to run the time that got us to this meet,” sprints coach Tony Veney said. “We’ll have to run as close to our best time as possible to get through the rounds.” With a qualifying mark of 3:03.79, the Bruin squad is ranked seventh in the nation. But UCLA has not approached that mark in recent weeks, making it imperative that they regain their top form in time for Thursday’s preliminaries. “Just because a team qualifies, doesn’t mean it won’t get burned,” Veney said. “I want to make sure the Bruins won’t be one of those teams.” By focusing all their energy on the 4x400-meter relay, the team has a better chance of keeping up with the competition. “There are three or four schools ahead of us that are really dominant,” said junior Mario Bassani, who will likely run in the prelims for the Bruins. “Baylor, Florida, Arizona State and LSU are running really well right now.” The UCLA quartet likely to run in the finals will be freshman Brandon Johnson, sophomore Craig Everhart, and juniors Denyé Versher and Jonathan Williams. That foursome may not be ready to challenge the Baylors of the world, but the Bruins are confident they can secure a top-eight finish, guaranteeing the team points. UCLA already tasted the dominance of second-ranked Arizona State at the regional championships two weekends ago. With two of the top five nationally ranked 400m runners on their team, the Sun Devils asserted their dominance, taking first place for the second consecutive year. Even Arizona State could be hard-pressed to match Baylor, who boasts both the No. 1 and 2 nationally ranked 400m runners. Its time of 3:01.26 ranks the Baylor squad as the No. 1 team heading into nationals. UCLA’s two most powerful relay weapons come in the form of 400m runner Everhart and 400-meter hurdler Johnson. Everhart outran both Arizona State runners in the 400m at the regionals meet, and has the seventh-fastest time in the nation. “(Everhart) is destroying the competition right now,” Bassani said. “He just keeps getting better and better.” Johnson’s first year of collegiate competition ranks among the best in UCLA’s recent history. He finds himself ranked second among the 400m hurdle field going into the championships. Rounding out the members of the relay team are Bassani and senior Nick Thornton. Versher, Thornton and Williams qualified for nationals in the 400-meter, 800-meter and 400-meter hurdles, respectively. What remains to be seen is which combination of runners will compete for the Bruins in the preliminaries. The squad of Everhart, Johnson, Bassani and Versher posted the squad’s season-best time, but not all may be available to compete due to their individual races. Veney expects to have to choose between running Johnson and Williams in the prelims. “That’s the most touchy situation,” Veney said. “Whoever comes out of their (preliminary) races most durable will run.” Either way, the relay team has already accomplished more than previous Bruin squads by just getting to nationals. The last team to compete in the relay at the NCAAs was the 1999 team. The team claimed the national title in the 4x400-meter relay, but was the last UCLA squad to make any waves. “It’s good after all this time, with how much talent we have, to get to showcase it,” Williams said.

LONG-TERM HOSTS: Myer Stadium, site of this year’s meet, and Sacramento State’s Hornet Stadium are the two finalists to host the next three NCAA Track and Field Championship meets, the Austin American Statesman reported Sunday. The 2004 season will mark the first year when one venue will host the meet for three consecutive years, as opposed to a single year. With a three-year rotation, the NCAA hopes to establish a spectator base similar to that of the College World Series. UCLA, USC and Long Beach all co-sponsored an unsuccessful bid for the Home Depot Center in Carson.

AT-LARGE BIDS: UCLA sophomore Jake Knight received an at-large bid to compete in the shot put at nationals. Knight was admitted into the field of competitors with a qualifying mark of 61 feet, 9.75 inches after another competitor pulled out.