Feb. 21, 2008

Villanova Big East Qualifers
BIG EAST Championship Central
Live Results

VILLANOVA, Pa.-- This weekend the women's indoor track & field team will compete in the BIG EAST Championships, held at the New York Armory in the Bronx. During the indoor season the team has had 17 different individuals qualify for the conference meet in a total of 11 events, while Villanova also posted qualifying times in three relays.

The Wildcats feature seven qualifiers in both the mile and 1000 meter events. Senior Akilah Vargas (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and freshman Sheila Reid (Newmarket, Ontario) have each posted provisional NCAA qualifying times in the mile this season. At the Penn State National Open last month, Vargas ran the mile in 4:46.27 and Reid followed in 4:46.56. Those marks rank second and third, respectively, in the BIG EAST this season.

Both Vargas and Reid have each qualified for the BIG EAST Championships in three different events. Each athlete will run in the 1000 meters and the mile, while Vargas will compete in the 800 meters and Reid in the 3000 meters.

Freshman Audrey Gariepy-Bogui (Potomac, Md.) has registered qualifying marks in the 60 meter hurdles and the high jump this season. She enters the league meet with top results of 8.64 seconds in the 60 meter hurdles and 1.70 meters in the high jump.

Sophomore Theresa Rush (Malverne, N.Y.) owns the fastest Villanova time this season in the 1000 meters, having run a 2:50.91 race at Penn State last month. Freshman Kristen Mahon (Robbinsville, N.J.) and sophomore Makalia Griffith (South Ozone Park, N.Y.) have been strong in the 400 meters and 500 meters, respectively. Mahon ran a time of 55.75 in the 400 meters at the National Open and Griffith posted a mark of 1:15.39 in the 500 meters at the Penn State Relays.

Villanova has had three NCAA provisional marks so far this season, with the times set by Vargas and Reid in the mile accounting for two of them. The third came in the distance medley relay when the Wildcats posted a time of 11:22.17 at the New Balance Games two weeks ago. That mark is the leading time in the BIG EAST this season by a 21-second margin. Villanova also currently rates second in the league in both the 4x400 meter relay and 4x800 meter relay.

Click on the link at the top of this release to access a complete list of Villanova athletes that have qualified for this weekend's conference championships. A complete recap of all the action in this weekend's tournament will be available late Saturday and Sunday evening at www.villanova.com and at www.bigeast.org.