PULLMAN, Wash. - Idaho junior Jeremy Klas went big last weekend at Washington, and on Saturday, he achieved a new height with a school-record clearance of 17-9 (5.41m) in the pole vault at the WSU Open II at Pullman.

Klas, who last season became Idaho's first men's All-American in the indoor pole vault, bested his own record of 17-7.75 (5.38m), and, while he was just short of the NCAA automatic qualifying standard (5.50m), that vault most likely assures him a second-consecutive trip to the NCAA Indoor Championships in March.

Sophomore sprinter Liga Velvere paced the Idaho women with a winning time of 56.16 in the 400m dash. After the conversion for track size, Velvere's time goes to 55.47, which is tied as the fastest this year in the Western Athletic Conference. She also holds the WAC's top 800m time of 2:13.73, set last weekend.

Old reliable - Vandal senior Eugenio Mannucci - won his sixth-straight men's shot put competition on Saturday with a toss of 57-6.5 (17.54m), which is his second-best throw of the season. Mannucci hasn't finished lower than first in a shot put competition this season.

Redshirt freshman Jeff Aronson was the other event winner on the men's side with his first-place leap of 21-1 (6.45m) in the long jump. For the women, sophomore Kristine Leonard won the shot put with a career-best toss of 45-3.5 (13.80m).

The meet was Idaho's final tuneup before next weekend's Western Athletic Conference indoor championships, which will be held at Nampa, Idaho.