PHILADELPHIA, Pa.—A highly anticipated Championship of America race in the men's 4xMile relay was a wet and soggy one on Saturday afternoon as heavy rain picked up in intensity as the race was progressing, only to taper off seemingly right after the contest ended. The wet weather did not dampen the level of competition however, and Villanova came in second with a time of 16:24.92 in what became a steady and methodical race given both the conditions and the elite level of talent in the field.
 
The lineup of senior Devon Comber (Ambler, Pa.), redshirt freshman Bailey Habler (Sydney, Australia), junior Marco Langon (Raritan, N.J.) and fifth year Liam Murphy (Millstone, N.J.) tallied the seventh top-three finish in this race in the last 10 years for the Wildcats, who were part of a four-team battle for the victory along with first time champion Washington, North Carolina and Virginia. In a sign of the tactical pace and wet conditions, none of the 12 teams or 48 runners who competed in the lineups recorded a split under four minutes.
 
Comber ran the leadoff leg for Villanova with a split of 4:09.36 and was in second place at the first handoff. There had been little separation in the pack of runners during the first three laps of the opening leg, but with less than 400 meters to go before the exchange Comber was facing both a widening gap from the lead and then being boxed in as the runners moved down the back straightaway. He had a kick in him however and made a move 200 meters from the handoff to get himself into a better position.
 
The Wildcats were in seventh place when Habler got the baton but within striking distance of a lead wich was at that point held by Penn State. Habler then ran a 4:06.16 second leg – in line with his 4:06.05 personal best in the open mile – and made up five spots in the ranks to get the baton to Langon with Villanova now in second place behind Yale. North Carolina was third and Penn State fourth at the second exchange.
 
Langon ran what turned out to be the fastest leg of the race and split 4:00.44 on the third mile of the relay. That was just good enough to deliver the baton to Murphy with the Wildcats in the lead, nearly even with second place North Carolina and just under a full second in front of third place Virginia. The anchor leg slowed down at the start and Washington was back into the fold with 800 meters to go before the finish.
 
There was little if any separation during the first 200 meters of the bell lap, but a move by North Carolina at the end of the back straightaway and a response by Washington suddenly dropped Murphy into third place with a gap between him and the top two runners. There was never any doubt whether Murphy would have an answer. He did, and nearly a decisive one, as he picked up speed in the final turn and passed North Carolina in the final straightaway before crossing the finish line less than three-tenths of a second off the winning pace.
 
Villanova closed out the day with a season best time of 3:11.05 in the college section final of the 4x400 meter relay. After securing the only on-time qualifying spot for the final coming out of Friday night's preliminary heats, the Wildcats ran a strong race and finished behind High Point and Georgetown in the final.
 
Junior Sal Barretta (Whitestone, N.Y.) led off the relay for the second day in a row and was followed by junior Luke Rakowitz (Dallas, Texas) who had run the 400 meter leg of Friday's Championship of America distance medley relay. The second half of Saturday's race featured sophomore Ethan Walls (Ridgefield, Conn.) and junior Jimmy Milgie (Wildwood, Wo.) who each ran impressive legs. Walls turned in a personal best split of 46.66 on the third leg and a 47.89 anchor leg from Milgie, good signs for a Villanova team which will be a strong contender in this event at the BIG EAST Championships next month.
 
As is always the case at the Penn Relays, there were Villanovans in action beyond the current student-athletes. Recent graduates Charlie O'Donovan and Sean Dolan competed in the Olympic Development Elite sections of the mile and 600 meters, respectively. O'Donovan finished fourth in the mile in 3:57.33 and was seventh in the 600 meters with a time of 1:19.49.