PHILADELPHIA, Pa.—Freshman pole vaulter Ashley Preston (Franklinville, N.J.) won her section of the pole vault and sophomore thrower Taryn Ashbny (Pittston, Pa.) tallied a ninth place finish in the college championship section of the javelin during the first day of competition at the 125^th Penn Relays.  The morning events got off to a good start for Villanova as Preston topped the college section of the pole vault with a height of 3.80 meters.  Ashby, meanwhile, was the Wildcats first women's thrower in six years to qualify for the championship section of the javelin.
 
Preston was no stranger to the Penn Relays despite being in her first year of collegiate competition.  She tied for a second place finish in the high school championship of the javelin as a scholastic athlete last year, and in Thursday morning's competition she led a field of 19 athletes.  The meet opened with the bar at 3.50 meters, with only eight of the 19 competitors recording a successful attempt at that height.  Preston made it over on her third and final try, but then cleared 3.65 meters on her first attempt. 
 
Six competitors advanced to try and clear a height of 3.80 meters, with Preston getting over on her second try and coming in first when each of the other five athletes missed on their three attempts.  The height of 3.80 meters is Preston's second-best effort of the current outdoor season.  She recorded a personal best mark of 3.90 meters at the Widener Invitational last week to take over this season's BIG EAST lead in the event. 
 
Ashby registered a throw of 46.08 meters in the javelin to finish ninth overall.  She recorded the mark on her third of six throws and was in sixth place at that point in the competition.  Ashby won the college section of the javelin at the Penn Relays as a freshman last season, and moved up to the championship in her second go-around.  She set a school record with a throw of 48.03 meters at the Florida Relays earlier in the year, and her mark on Thursday was her second-longest of the season.  The last Villanova athlete to compete in the championship section of the javelin was Jamie Klein in 2013.