Villanova’s women’s track and field team accomplished an impressive feat this weekend at the 2005 NCAA Division I Championship, held at the Randal Tyson Track Center on the campus of the University of Arkansas, when the distance medley relay won All-American honors for the second straight year.

On Friday, the first day of competition, Villanova’s distance medley relay team finished in second place in a meet of 11 schools.

Their time of 11:08.76 was just 0.52 seconds behind Michigan for the top spot. Villanova had entered the tournament ranked first in the distance medley relay.

The team, made up of senior Colleen Taylor of Wilmington, Del., junior Marina Muncan of Pancevo, Serbia, senior Ioana Parusheva of Sliven, Bulgaria, and sophomore Tiera Fletcher of the Bronx, N.Y., qualified them as All-American, a repeat accomplishment from the 2004 competition, when they finished fourth.

Parusheva also competed in the mile run, advancing to the finals and ultimately finishing in tenth place. In the premliminaries, she ran a time of 4:45.50, which placed her eighth out of 16.

Her top ten finish enabled her to advance to the finals, where her time of 4:47.00 put her in 10th place.

Muncan, meanwhile, competed in the 3000 meters, and finished 16th with a time of 9:54.24.

She had entered the tournament with the fastest time in the nation. She accomplished a time of 9:08.44 at the Jack Pyrah Invitational earlier this season.

Sophomore Monique Morgan, a native of Kingston, Jamaica, ran in the preliminaries of the 60 meter hurdles.

Her first heat time was 8.45, which was not fast enough to earn her a spot in the finals.

The indoor track and field season reached its conclusion with the NCAA Championships.

The Wildcats will be back in action at the Florida Relays on March 24 and 25.

The event will be hosted by the University of Florida and held in Gainesville.