WEST ORANGE, NJ — The Seton Hall Prep track and field team last weekend traveled to the 127th Penn Relays at Franklin Field in Philadelphia, Pa. They attempted to advance to the Championship of America finals races in the 4×100-meter relay, 4×400-meter relay, and 4×800-meter relay – an historic triple which has never been accomplished by a New Jersey team.
In the 4×800 heat, the Pirates ran 7 minutes, 49.99 seconds to cross the line in second place in their heat to clinch a spot in the 12-team Championship of America final race. Their lineup included seniors Russell Webb, Ryan Matulonis, Nick DeVita and junior Brandon Williams.
Later in the day, Jamaica College had its leadoff runner ruled ineligible, so the Pirates time was ruled the fastest qualifying time for the final.
A few hours later, Seton Hall suffered some misfortune in its 4×100 heat. They ran 42.58, but were disqualified for passing out of the zone on the first handoff.
Seton Hall’s 4×400 capped off the Pirates’ remarkable day by running 3:16.67 to place third in their heat and sixth overall among 565 teams that finished in all the heats combined. The time earned the Pirates a spot in the nine-team Championship of America final. Their lineup included DeVita, Matulonis, Webb and senior Xavier Donaldson.
Due to an injury, Seton Hall had to scratch from the 4×800 final.
In the 4×400 final the Pirates ran an outstanding race finishing in second place in a time of 3:16.06. The team was Matulonis, Donaldson, DeVita and Williams. They earned prestigious Penn Relays gold watches for finishing as the top American team that finished in the top five.
Following the race, Donaldson said, “I am really proud of what we did today. We left it all out there today and feel really good about what we did on one of the biggest stages in the world.”
Matulonis added, “It is something that we will never forget. What we did the last two days was tough to pull off, but it was so worth it.”
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