RALEIGH, N.C.—Senior sprinter Madison Martinez (Gahanna, Ohio) and sophomore Alex Stasichin (Massapequa, N.Y.) each ran the 800 meters on Saturday afternoon as Villanova wrapped up three days of competition at the Raleigh Relays. Martinez ran in the fastest section of the event and finished third in a race that was headlined by Wildcats alumna Angel Piccirillo who paced the field with a time of 2:02.75.
 
It was a strong opening weekend of the outdoor season for Martinez, who ran the 400 meters on Friday afternoon and followed up the performance with a time of 2:05.02 in the 800 meters on Saturday. The time puts her into the BIG EAST lead by nearly three seconds and ranks Martinez second in the East region through the first two weekends of the outdoor campaign.
 
Martinez is coming off winning her first career individual BIG EAST title in the 800 meters during the indoor season. She is a five-time All-BIG EAST performer in the event during her Villanova career. Stasichin posted a time of 2:10.77 in the 800 meters on Saturday, finishing fifth in her section and 28^th overall out of more than 125 competitors. She is a two-time BIG EAST scorer in her top individual track event.