Dylan Johnson covers Villanova cross country. On Friday, Sept. 18, he ran in it.

Johnson, co-editor-in-chief of The Villanovan, lined up alongside 131 other runners from NCAA Division I, II and III programs at the Main Line Invitational at Haverford College's Fran Rizzo Cross Country Course. He finished 127th out of 128 finishers in 26:17.3, as he wrote in The Villanovan. He was not last. That was the goal.

During his senior year of high school, Johnson weighed 305 pounds and could not run a mile in under 12 minutes without stopping. He started running to lose weight and has not missed a day since April 3, 2023.

His first assignment at The Villanovan was covering Villanova cross country. Head coach Marcus O'Sullivan had to break down the sport in simple terms. Johnson went on to cover countless meets and traveled to Oregon to cover Marco Langon's bid at the NCAA Track & Field Championships. The one thing he had not done was race.

At the invitational, assistant coach Donny Speas called out Johnson's first-mile split: six minutes. Too fast. Three hard miles followed. With half a mile left, two runners passed him. Johnson glanced over his shoulder and could not see anyone close. Then he crested a hill and heard a coach yell at the runner behind him to keep going. He sprinted the final quarter mile.

"Did I do it?" Johnson asked his sister Katie after crossing the line.

"Yes. You weren't last," she said.

Johnson, a Philadelphia native who also works as a sports intern at The Philadelphia Inquirer, wrote that the race represented more than journalism. Running, he wrote, taught him that nothing in life is guaranteed except the work you put in.

Villanova women win, men open season

The Wildcats women's team won the invitational with 44 points, according to The Villanovan's race recap. Freshman Hannah Jicha led the way, finishing third in the women's 5K in 17:49.3. Sophomore Cecilia Montagnese placed fifth at 17:57.0, and senior Therese Trainer was eighth at 18:02.5.

Women's head coach Gina Procaccio said Jicha's toughness did not surprise her.

On the men's side, Villanova ran four athletes and did not compete for a team score in the season opener. Senior Dan Watcke led the contingent, finishing 18th in 20:05.9 in a field won by George Mason's Alex Derousel in 19:35.4. Senior Brian Theobald placed 34th in 20:43.0, freshman Porter Spiceland was 38th in 20:49.3 and senior Ryan Beegle finished 61st in 21:37.5.

Speas called the meet a learning experience for the men's squad. Both Villanova teams are scheduled to compete at the Meadows Challenge at Princeton on Saturday, Sept. 26.