PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - A debate about which accomplishments or what bits of history are the most impressive at the Penn Relays would probably never turn up a definitive answer, but in the mix would certainly be pulling off a sweep of the three distance relays at the world's oldest and largest track & field meet. Villanova won the Championship of America title in the 4x800 meter relay on Saturday afternoon at Franklin Field to complete another "distance triple" after wins in the distance medley relay and the 4x1500 meter relay earlier in the weekend. This is the second straight year, the third time in five seasons and the seventh time overall that the Wildcats have achieved the unique feat which has been done just 10 times in history.

Senior Siofra Cleirigh Buttner (Dublin, Ireland) anchored her second win of the weekend with a blistering split of 2:02.63 for the final 800 meters and Villanova posted a winning time of 8:19.98, the eighth-fastest time in Penn Relays history and the second-fastest in the Wildcats record book behind only the standing collegiate record of 8:17.45 which Villanova established at the Penn Relays five years ago. Sixth-year senior Kelsey Margey (Huntington, N.Y.) led off both the 2013 record-setting relay and Saturday's weekend finale, while freshman Rachel McArthur (Bristow, Va.) and sophomore McKenna Keegan (West Grove, Pa.) ran the middle two legs.

"I am really impressed with how fast they ran," Wildcats head coach Gina Procaccio said. I never expected it to be that fast. This is the second-fastest 4x800 I have coached at Villanova, only second to the collegiate record from 2013. They just went out and ran hard, and gutted it out in true Villanova fashion. I was really impressed. It was fun to watch them race today."

Villanova and Indiana pulled away from the rest of the pack during the third leg of the race and ran well out in front of the rest of the pack. There were less than 300 meters left before the anchor leg of the relay when Keegan pushed away from her Hoosiers counterpart and opened up a lead that she could deliver the baton to Cleirigh Buttner with.

"My hat's off to Indiana," Procaccio said. "Their coach used to be my personal coach when I was a professional runner and he does a great job with those girls. They came at us yesterday in the 4x1500 and they were right back at it today in the 4x800. They really pushed us to show what we're made of."

The fast pace and near-record time was a result of four equally determined legs of the relay from the Wildcats latest group of champions. Margey led off in 2:06.67 and McArthur followed with a split of 2:05.78 to put Villanova at the front of the back, while Keegan ran a split of 2:04.91 while giving the Wildcats the lead for good. Cleirigh Buttner finished off the weekend triple in her typically dominant fashion. Villanova's final margin of victory was nearly six seconds.

"It's something we know we can do," Procaccio said of sweeping the distance relays for the third time since 2014. "I'm prouder of what we accomplished this year because we were able to do it with a lot more girls involved. Last year three of the girls were on all three relays and this year nobody ran on all three. We showcased our depth in being able to win all three relays. I was pretty happy with that."

Cleirigh Buttner has won eight Penn Relays watches during her Wildcats career, the second most of any collegiate woman in the meet's history. In fact, being a part of eight Championship of America titles would have been a record unto itself as recently as 365 days ago. The record of nine career wins held by Cleirigh Buttner's longtime Villanova teammate Angel Piccirillo just last season, and it was exactly a year to the day that Piccirillo eclipsed the previous record of seven Penn Relays watches. The old record of seven was fittingly shared by two more former Wildcats legends in Michelle Bennett and Kathy Franey. It's an exclusive Villanova-only club, and Cleirigh Buttner was asked about kissing the baton as she crossed the finish line in Saturday's finale.

"It's such a special event to Villanova and I knew this was the last time I'd be able to carry it across the line. Last year I know Angel got very emotional, and I guess that's only hitting me now. It was kind of something that right then was in the moment, but right now I am realizing how important it is to me."

A common mantra for the Wildcats is to get the baton to the anchor leg with Villanova in the race, and with a chance to bring home a win. Keegan had run the third leg of the 4x800 relay last year when Cleirigh Buttner anchored, and was in familiar territory knowing what she needed to do in this year's race.

"Before I lined up in the exchange zone I made eye contact with Siofra and she pointed to hear heart," Keegan said. "In that moment I knew it was going to be all heart out there. You run with your heart, you run with your guts and you lay it all on the line for the three girls sitting here next to you. I knew I had to lay it all on the line today and I'm happy I was able to give a little bit of a lead for Siofra to bring it home for us."

Margey ran the leadoff leg of a Penn Relays champion 4x800 meter relay for the fourth time in her career, an opportunity that was not lost on her after Saturday's race.

"Well now I'm crying because Siofra started to," Margey said in reflecting on her Penn Relays experience. "Like Siofra said, it's emotional. It's very near and dear to our hearts. I was trying to give it to Rachel in the best position I could, and just trying to savor it because it's your last two laps here. It's very special and I'm very lucky that I have been a part of several championship teams. I couldn't have picked better girls to share it with today. It's a team effort. It's about everyone coming together and doing your part."

The trio of Margey, Keegan and Cleirigh Buttner has combined for 17 wins in Championship of America races. McArthur is quickly becoming one of the Wildcats top up-and-coming prospects, and she was a part of wins in both the distance medley relay and today's 4x800 race in her first collegiate Penn Relays carnival.

"Being able to compete hare and compete with these teammates is an amazing experience," McArthur said. "Being able to walk away after my first time here with this team and have been a part of two team wins is really great. I love running with them. I love being a part of this legacy and being able to look back and remember the support that [my teammates] have given me all the way."

It was a memorable weekend for the Villanova program, as the Wildcats men's team won titles in both the distance medley relay on Friday evening and the 4xMile relay on Saturday afternoon. Two teams in one program, both rooting for each other from the famed Villanova cheering section in the corner of Franklin Field.

"I know [the men's team] said they got inspiration from us," Cleirigh Buttner said. "This weekend just showed our tradition, which is that sometimes all you need is four kids and a white vest. To know that inspiration is to get it done."