Gioielli, Borecki Break School Records at John Thomas Terrier Classic on Saturday

Junior Joseph Gioielli and sophomore Sam Borecki both broke school records and qualified to compete at the IC4A Championships as the Central Connecticut men's indoor track and field team competed at the John Thomas Terrier Classic at the BU Track and Tennis Center in Boston, MA on Saturday. The facility will also host the New England Championships and IC4A Championships that select Blue Devils will compete in at the end of February and early March.

OFFICIAL RESULTS

Borecki broke the CCSU school record in the pole vault that had stood since 1969. Al Berardi held the previous best CCSU indoor pole vault mark at 15' 4" until Saturday when Borecki cleared 16' 0.75". The personal best clearance earned him a tied for third place finish in the event and also qualified him to compete in the New England Championships and IC4A Championships. He currently ranks tied for fifth on the NEICAAA performance list and tied for 16th on the IC4A performance list.

Gioielli continued his strong start to the 2015-16 indoor track and field season as he adds CCSU school record holder in the indoor men's mile to his list of accolades on the year. The junior raced to a time of 4:02.93, besting Brian Biekert's time of 4:06.05 set in 2014, to take over as the school record holder. Gioielli shaved nearly 16 seconds off his previous personal best time in the event to earn a 13th place finish and qualify for the New England Championships and IC4A Championships. He currently ranks second on the NEICAAA performance list and sixth on the IC4A performance list.

In the 400 meter, sophomore Tyler Latham clocked in with a new personal best time of 49.62. The time earned him a 56th place overall finish out of 155 runners in the event and also qualified him to compete in the race at the New England Championships. He currently ranks 37th on the NEICAAA performance list.

Junior Will Ribeiro recorded a 39th place finish in the 500 meter run after registering a new collegiate best time of 1:07.18. The mid-distance specialist edged his previous collegiate best time which stood at 1:07.99 to earn the result.

Freshman Richard Grudzwick placed 46th out of 145 competitors in the 800 meter run on Saturday. In his second time contesting in the event collegiately, the rookie raced to a personal best time of 1:55.18 to pick up the result and qualify for the New England Championships.

In the 5,000 meter run, senior Matt Walker qualified to compete at the New England Championships in late February after crossing the finish line 28th out of 89 with a time of 14:48.39. The time was a season best and currently ranks him 20th on the NEICAAA performance list. Norstrom also competed in the event and also qualified for the New England Championships. The rookie finished at the 14:57.36 mark in his first time contesting in the race.

Amaziah Gadson had an excellent showing at the John Thomas Terrier Classic, picking up a runner-up finish in the high jump for the Blue Devils. The freshman cleared a new personal best height of 2.00 meters to earn the result and qualify for the New England Championships. Senior Dashawn Putman finished right behind Gadson in fifth place after clearing 1.95 meters on Saturday.

The CCSU men's indoor track and field team will return to action next as they head to Kingston, RI on Saturday, Feb. 6 to compete in the Coaches Tribute Meet inside Mackal Fieldhouse on the campus of the University of Rhode Island.