STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.—Villanova had a successful night of competition in its annual home meet at Ocean Breeze Track & Field Athletic Complex on Saturday evening, led by strong performances from a quartet of athletes in both the 60 meters and the 1000 meters. The host Wildcats had entries in 11 events in their second meet of the season and second straight week competing at the Staten Island venue. The eight athletes who raced in the 60 meters and the 1000 meters all set or tied personal best marks in their respective races.
 
The women's 1000 meters was the first event on the track and got the home team started off on a strong note. Fifth-year senior Lydia Olivere (Wilmington, Del.) was the runner-up in the race with a time of 2:45.25, breaking her previous PR by more than 6.5 seconds and surging into eighth place on Villanova's all-time performance list. She was followed closely by sophomore Maya Dorer (New York, N.Y.) in 2:45.75, with that time eclipsing Dorer's previous best by more than eight seconds.
 
Sophomore middle distance runners Emily Robinson (Rogers, Ark.) and Alex Stasichin (Massapequa, N.Y.) finished fourth and fifth, respectively, in the 1000 meters. Robinson crossed the line in 2:48.97 and Stasichin had a time of 2:51.21 as they each competed in the event for the first time in their collegiate careers.
 
In the preliminary heats of the 60 meters the quartet of fifth-year senior Jada Thomas (Kingston, Jamaica), senior Alexis Martin (Gaithersburg, Md.), freshman Myonica Jackson (Bolingbrook, Ill.) and junior Caroline Carlson (Miami, Fla.) all equaled or beat their previous top marks. Thomas posted a time of 7.83 while Martin broke eight seconds for the first time in her career with a time of 7.97. Jackson matched the mark of 8.00 that she had established a week earlier in her collegiate debut and Carlson posted a time of 8.06 to round out the team's results. It was a busy day for Thomas, who advanced to the final of the 60 meter hurdles and tallied a fourth place finish with a time of 8.85.
 
Other notable track performances for the Wildcats came in the 400 meters and the mile. Freshman Micah Trusty (Philadelphia, Pa.) ran in her first collegiate track race after making her Villanova debut during cross country season in the Fall. She came in second out of 30 athletes in the 400 meters with a time of 56.69 and was followed by senior Madison Martinez (Gahanna, Ohio) who finished third in 56.78. Sophomore Emma McGill (Lebanon, N.J.) was the runner-up in the mile with a time of 4:40.38 which beat her previous PR by more than 12 seconds. Freshman Kinsey Pogue (Danville, Calif.) recorded a time of 10:15.82 in the 3000 meters and notched a fifth place finish.
 
The top result for Villanova in the field events came from the weight throw where sophomore Faith Haught (Payson, Ariz.) threw for 15.16 meters. She was competing in the event for the first time in her Wildcats career and immediately put herself into seventh place on the program's all-time performance list. Villanova has had eight athletes record distances greater than 15 meters in the weight throw, with five of the eight doing so in the last two seasons alone.
 
Sophomore jumper Taylor Woodeshick (Nescopeck, Pa.) tied for a fifth place finish in the high jump after clearing the bar at a height of 1.60 meters. She was just one centimeter away from matching a lifetime PR in her season debut.
 
In the final event of the night, the Wildcats 'A' entry in the 4x400 meter relay ran to a winning time of 3:47.45. A second Villanova entry in the relay posted a time of 4:03.48.
 
After traveling to New York in consecutive weeks to begin the indoor track & field season, the Wildcats will stay in Pennsylvania next week when the team heads to the Penn State National Open on Friday and Saturday (January 27-28).