FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – The 2012 Big Sky Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships begins Friday morning at the Walkup Skydome, so this week NAU Sports Information will preview each event group. Inside are previews for men's and women's sprint events. Distance events will go up Wednesday, and jumps, throws, and multis will be posted Thursday.

WOMEN

Portland State's dual-threat of Geronne Black and Karene King has dominated the conference standings in the 60-meter and 200-meter dashes in 2012. Black (7.41), who broke her own Big Sky indoor record in the 60 meters this season, has a considerable lead in the event over second-place Amoni Ashby of Northern Colorado (7.51), while King (24.09) leads comfortably in the 200 meters. Northern Arizona freshman standout Darriel Banks sits third in the 60-meter dash with her school-record tying time of 7.53@, and is ranked seventh overall in the 200.

A total of 16 women are competing in more than one of the three sprint events at this weekend's conference meet, not counting relays, and all 16 will compete in the 200-meter dash. Kristen Billings of Weber State (24.57@) sits in second behind King, followed by Chantel Jaeger (24.63@) in third, and Whitney Leavitt (24.82) of Eastern Washington in fourth.

The 400-meter dash is still relatively wide open, but with Montana's Kourtney Danreuther (55.27) and Weber State's Amanda Alston (55.56@) holding the top two spots, chances seem slim that the Big Sky Champion would come from elsewhere. Montana State's Jaeger is the only Bobcat female competing in two sprint events, but she leads a trifecta of MSU runners in the 400-meter dash, where she, Sonia Antar, and Katie Niemeir occupy third, fourth, and fifth place, respectively.

The Lumberjacks' Rashida McKinnon (57.07@) sits in eighth place in the conference standings, but can move up easily to score a few more points for NAU this weekend.

The 60-meter hurdles will be hotly contested for the women, as only two tenths of a second separate the top nine athletes in the event. Sacramento State holds three of the top four spots, led by junior Sakya Bolton in first place (8.53). NAU senior Jenne Childs, currently ninth in the conference, is .07 seconds off the school record in the event. She will be eager to end her career-best indoor season on a high note.

Additionally, Sacramento State senior Alicia Truesdale will attempt to beat her own Big Sky Conference record in the event, after setting it at 8.44 in 2011.

Finally, the 4x400-meter relay final will add excitement to the weekend's races. Weber State (3:48.56@) currently leads the conference in the event, but barely four seconds separate the top five spots. Montana (3:50.97@), Montana State (3:50.97@), Sacramento State (3:51.24), and NAU (3:52.95@) have the next four places locked up going into the meet, but any team could move up and claim the event title.

MEN

Beginning with the 60-meter dash, the race will be anyone's to take come Saturday afternoon. Conference leader Evan Taylor, who also leads the Big Sky in the 200 meters, is only ahead of his nearest competitor by .02 seconds, and the race's top 10 competitors are separated by a mere two-tenths of a second.

NAU will field two competitors in the race: Miles Di Sabella, currently in seventh place, and Dennis Givens, who sits ninth overall. Givens is the only Lumberjack sprinter on either team that will compete in the three sprint events and the 4x400-meter relay.

The 200-meter dash is somewhat more spread out in terms of breadth of times, but Taylor (21.53@), Givens (21.65@), and Montana State's Chris Wilson (21.76@) will battle for the top spot. However, the rest of the scoring places will be wide open, with any of the next six athletes being capable of moving into the top-eight. A gap of only .21 seconds exists between Weber State's Matt White in fourth (21.84@) and Northern Colorado's Alex Donigian in ninth (22.05@).

Northern Arizona has dominated the 400-meter dash all season long, and the Big Sky Championships should be no different. The long-sprint tandem of Arnaud Froidmont (47.03@) and Adel al Nasser (47.13@) has put the competition more than a half-second away from the top of the conference leaderboard. Rounding out the top-five in the event are Brad Wall (47.61) and Brad Michael (48.29) of Eastern Washington in third and fifth, respectively, and Evan Crayton-Crogan of Sacramento State (47.90) in fourth.

Montana State claims the top two spots in the 60-meter hurdle standings, led by senior Asa Staven (8.12@), who broke the Big Sky Conference indoor record in the heptathlon earlier this season. Slater Powell is in second at 8.14@. NAU's Deante Kemper, who leads the conference and the nation's freshman in the high jump, sits tied for eighth overall in the event at 8.31@.