Taryn Ashby made the most of a return to Big East track and field competition.
Ashby won her third straight javelin championship in May during the Big East Outdoor Track and Field Championships. She won in 2018 and 2019 and there no track season in 2020 because of the pandemic.
The individual title for Ashby was part of Villanova outscoring second-place Connecticut, 197½-157½, for the team title.
“It feels awesome, just the opportunities that we were able to have this season,” Ashby said, according to a story on the Villanova athletic website. “ … Just being able to finally compete at Big East after two years is amazing.”
The Pittston Area graduate, a senior, also competed in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Track and Field Division I East Preliminary for the third time and produced her best finish ever there, moving up from 37th as a freshman and 35th as a sophomore to 27th this season.
Ashby’s season also included breaking her own school javelin record three times. The second record throw was 49.01 meters (160-9½) for her performance during a third-place finish at the Virginia Challenge.
At the Big East Championships, Ashby moved that record mark out to 49.89 meters (163-8½) on her third attempt of the preliminary round, then passed on her three throws in the final round as her lead held up.
Ashby’s top throw at the East Preliminary in Jacksonville in her season finale was 46.23 meters (151-8¼).
At Pittston Area, Ashby won nine district medals and a state javelin medal. She was a four-time letterwinner and team captain in all four of her high school sports. An all-star and 1,000-point scorer in basketball, she was goalie on the soccer team and a standout shortstop on the softball team in the spring while she was also competing in track and field.
