The Boise State cross-country team competed at the Mountain West Championship (MWC) in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on Oct. 29. The men’s team finished in second place behind Air Force while the women’s team finished in fifth place behind New Mexico, Utah State, Colorado State and Air Force.
Senior Dario De Caro took the podium in the men’s 8k race, running the second-fastest time in Mountain West (MW) history (23:26.8). This win marks Boise State’s first individual MW title since 2016 with Yusuke Uchikoshi.
De Caro was named the MW Men’s Student-Athlete of the Year and notched MW First-Team All-Conference Honors.
“I saw [De Caro] at the halfway point and he was a little antsy,” said head coach Corey Ihmels. “I kept telling him, ‘Be patient, be patient,’ and then he took off with about a kilometer and a half to go. Exciting for him, a great day for him to be the individual winner.”
Photo courtesy of Boise State Athletics
This first-place finish helped the Broncos finish with 64 points, second behind the Falcons with 27 points.
For the men’s team, the MW hosted four top-25 teams in the nation, which is the most out of any conference. The Broncos outran No. 19 Colorado State and No. 21 Utah State. The Broncos were ranked No. 23 heading into the MWC.
“[I am] excited about the men, they did an awesome job, competed really hard and followed the race plan to a tee,” Ihmels said. “We came out with a really good run. We missed [senior] Logan [Rees] today, but I thought the guys really stepped up and had a fantastic finish.”
On the women’s side, the Broncos finished fifth in the 6k race with 141 points.
Senior Olivia Johnson led the Broncos, finishing in 13th place with a time of 20:09.2.
Behind her was sophomore Delaney Griffin in 33rd place with a time of 20:52.3. This was Griffin’s highest finish among her Bronco teammates this season.
“It’s been a little up and down for the women this season, but Olivia [Johnson] has battled through and stayed true,” Ihmels said. “I thought the women prepared really well today. Obviously, the finish wasn’t exactly what we wanted, but I thought they approached it better, and I think we’ll be even better in two weeks.”
The Broncos will travel to Sacramento, California, for the NCAA West Regional hosted by Sacramento State on Nov. 12.
