De Caro and Georgiou Break School Records

Friday, January 28

Seattle, Wash.

Boise State

Washington Invitational

1/29/2022 8:15:00 PM | Track & Field

BOISE, Idaho – The Boise State track and field team experienced a slew of personal bests in Texas and Washington, highlighted by two school records. Junior Dafni Georgiou broke her own school record in the women's 60-meter hurdles at the Texas Tech Open, while senior Dario De Caro shattered the school record in the men's 3,000m at the Washington Invitational.

"I am excited about the progress our program made this weekend," said Boise State Track and Field Head Coach Corey Ihmels. "Both groups (Texas and Washington) excelled and pushed the limits of what they are capable of."

Georgiou kicked off the day breaking her own school record in the preliminaries of the 60m hurdles. Her time of 8.46 bested her previous record (8.47), which she set two weeks ago at the Cougar Classic.

However, the Larnaca, Cyprus native wasn't quite satisfied, lowering her record once again in the event's semifinals with a time of 8.34.

In the finals, Georgiou finished in fifth, posting an 8.41, the second-fastest time in Bronco history behind her semifinal performance. She now owns the top-five times in program history.

"We knew that [Georgiou] was ready," said assistant coach Gavin O'Neal. "We knew that she was capable. There were a couple of technical things we've been working on, and she changed. She cleaned them up. That was the difference. I am super excited for her. She has been working so hard for this, but we're not done. We know there's more."

Meanwhile, in Seattle, De Caro smashed the school record in the men's 3,000m, registering a time of 7:48.59. His time, which broke David Elliott's 2016 record of 7:53.15, ranks fourth in the NCAA.

De Caro finished second overall but was the first collegian to cross the finish line.

Senior Jonathan Shields also shined in Seattle, etching his name into the record book. The Sheffield, England native recorded the second-fastest time in program history in the men's mile, running a 3:59.39. Shields is just the second Bronco to ever record a sub-4-minute mile.

"I am so proud of Dario and Johnny," said Ihmels. Both of them continue to push the envelope of what's possible. These marks are elite, and I know they are both hungry to accomplish more. It's a testament to their hard work along with the outstanding job our coaching staff has done in their development. It sets the bar for all of our athletes and really puts into reality what is possible."

In addition to Georgiou, freshman Anita Taviore posted two top-five times in the women's 60m dash in Texas. Her preliminary time of 7.60 is the fifth-fastest in school history, while her semifinal time of 7.54 ties the second-best time in program history.

In Seattle, six Broncos accomplished personal-best times in the women's 3,000m, including freshmen Ashley LaJocies and Yasmin Marghini who improved their times by nearly 18 and 12 seconds, respectively.

Furthermore, all eight Boise State men recorded personal bests in the 3,000m, and 10 of the 11 Broncos racing in the mile (seven women, three men) notched PR.

"I'm looking forward to the next few weeks as we continue to fine-tune things heading towards the championship season," said Ihmels.

Next, the Broncos travel to Spokane, Wash., for the WSU Invitational, Feb. 5.

RESULTS
TEXAS TECH OPEN – FRIDAY
Women
60m Hurdles – (Prelims) 6th | Dafni Georgiou – 8.46 (PR; School Record), 16th | Nyenuchi Okemgbo – 8.82
(Semifinals) 6th | Dafni Georgiou – 8.34 (PR; School Record), 19th | Nyenuchi Okemgbo – 8.81
(Finals) 5th | Dafni Georgiou – 8.41
60m Dash – (Prelims) 14th | Anita Taviore – 7.60 (PR)
(Semifinals) 10th | Anita Taviore – 7.54 (PR)
600m – 11th | Rebecca Troescher – 1:38.47 (PR), 16th | Rebecca Vander Poel – 1:45.57 (PR)
400m – 24th | Alyssa Cullen – 58.57, 36th | Rebecca Troescher – 1:00.85, 42nd | Rebecca Vander Poel – 1:02.34

Men
400m – 33rd | Jose Rubio – 49.98, 35th | David Pierce – 50.37

SATURDAY
Women
200m Dash – 33rd | Alyssa Cullen – 25.20 (PR), 57th | Dafni Georgiou – 26.05 (PR)
800m – 1st | Kristie Schoffield – 2:08.90
4x400-Meter Relay – Relay A – 16th | 3:57.01

Men
200m Dash – 42nd | David Pierce – 22.13, 48th | Jose Rubio – 22.43

WASHINGTON INVITATIONAL – FRIDAY
Men
5,000m – 7th | Ben Sherman – 14:43.24, 10th | Aidan Palmer – 14:54.35

SATURDAY
Women
3,000m – 13th | Yukino Parle – 9:31.57, 16th | Yasmin Marghini – 9:35.99 (PR), 18th | Ashley LaJocies – 9:37.68 (PR), 20th | Sailor Hutton – 9:41.99 (PR), 37th | Tiahna Vladic – 10:05.54, 41th | Sunitha Black – 10:13.53 (PR), 46th | Hannah O'Connor – 10:19.68 (PR), 47th | Abby Kendrick – 10:21.43 (PR)
Mile – 22nd | Delaney Griffin – 4:51.25 (PR), 32nd | Autumn Ost – 4:58.44 (PR), 39th | Elsa Wallenius – 5:03.56 (PR), 40th | Bella Brickner – 5:05.18 (PR), 44th | Hannah O'Connor – 5:07.23 (PR), 46th | 5:08.59 (PR), 51st | Lauren Larson – 5:12.47 (PR), 59th | Maxine Paholek – 5:21.89

Men
3,000m – 2nd | Dario De Caro - 7:48.59 (PR; School Record), 16th | Ahmed Ibrahim - 8:01.78 (PR), 30th | Freddie Carcas - 8:12.58 (PR), 33rd | Jack Leitch - 8:13.21 (PR), 35th | Nathan Dunn – 8:14.64 (PR), 37th | Chandler Underwood – 8:15.68 (PR), 51st | Matty Mackay – 8:25.47 (PR), 55th | Brogan Giffin – 8:28.54 (PR)
Mile – 9th | Jonathan Shields – 3:59.39 (PR; Second-fastest in school history), 30th | Aidan Roberts – 4:10.79 (PR), 32nd | Angus Fitzgerald – 4:11.42 (PR)
800m – 22nd | Jadon Mansur – 1:55.62 (PR), 25th | Caleb Stamper – 1:55.99