NAMPA, Ida. – Three years ago Tim Ramirez surprised the NAIA when he won the 800 meters national title as a 2003 sophomore. He shattered the Azusa Pacific half-mile record by more than 2 seconds, clocking a personal record 1:48.88.

As a result of his surprising burst onto the national scene, Ramirez took his newfound elite status and … disappeared. He tried to parlay his record-setting performance into a scholarship at NCAA Division I University of Arizona. However, after a semester in the Arizona desert, he returned home to Azusa Pacific, where a series of injuries seemingly awaited him at every turn for the next 18 months.

In the meantime, younger Cougars like Danny Reid, Kevin Lindsey and Caleb Lynch came along to maintain Azusa Pacific’s supremacy in the 800. Even after Ramirez’ return, he found himself chasing other Cougars, lost in the pack, searching for his former self.

He found himself this weekend, up in Idaho at the United Heritage Invitational hosted by Boise State.

At Jones Indoor Track in Nampa, Ida, Ramirez reemerged and not just on Azusa Pacific’s team but also on the national scene. Now healthy and at full strength, Ramirez put on impressive show, blowing away the field to win the United Heritage men’s 800 meters by more than 2 seconds with the fastest indoor 800 ever run by a Cougar – 1:50.30 – and the best time in the NAIA this year.

Ramirez’s return to the spotlight and subsequent 800-meter victory highlighted an outstanding weekend of performance by the Cougars at the highly competitive United Heritage meet.

Numerous Cougars qualified for the upcoming NAIA Indoor Track & Field Championships and several others posted outstanding improvements over previous marks. None was more noticeable than NAIA champion Barbara Sugar’s effort in the 20-pound weight throw. Sugar heaved the ball 55’ 11¾” to smash her personal best by more than 2 feet and post the best throw in the NAIA this year. She finished sixth among a field of NCAA Division I athletes in the competition in Nampa.

Junior Sarah Jackson, who continues to bounce back with success from an injury-plagued 2005, clocked a 58.15 in the 400 to automatically qualify for the NAIA indoors with what is currently the fourth fastest time in the NAIA this season.

On the men’s side, Tony Ramirez, Tim’s younger brother, and Matt Parish, who currently own the top 2 quarter-miles times in the NAIA this season, confirmed the marks they established on an outdoor track a week ago with sizzling efforts of 47.65 and 47.88, respectively, on the indoor track in Nampa.

Reid and Lindsey punched their tickets for the NAIA indoor 800 meters with a 1:55.03 and a 1:56.16, respectively, in the same race that Tim Ramirez.

“This was a great weekend for us, said Cougar coach Kevin Reid. “We qualified a lot of people and got the bulk of our team on board for the indoor championships. We still have to place to some people in the 600 and 1000 meters, but we have the next 2 weeks at home to square away the team.”

Other notable showings by the Cougar women include sophomore Olivia Richert’s performance in the 3000 meters where she finished second with an NAIA qualifying 10:32.45. Fellow sophomores Mandy Pohja and Kjersti Housman hit NAIA provisional marks, Pohja in the pole vault (10’ 11 ¾”) and Housman in the 400- (60.14) and 800-meters (2:22.84).