Track and Field . February 10, 2023

Trio of Gamecocks move up NCAA Leaderboard on Friday

CLEMSON, S.C. (Feb. 10, 2023) – South Carolina Track & Field concluded the opening day of the 2023 Tiger Paw Invite on Friday afternoon, with a pair of Gamecocks advancing up the NCAA leaderboard. In addition, Silan Ayyildiz represented the Gamecocks in Boston, improving on her program record in the mile while also advancing into the NCAA Top 16 in the women’s mile.

“The team did a good job competing today,” stated Head Coach Curtis Frye. “Svenja had a really good run in the mile and our girls did a good job in the 5K. We keep developing in that area, so I was pleased with that. We also had Silan in Boston, she moved into the top 10 on the NCAA leaderboard with another school record. The next big thing was Filip running a personal best in the 60-meter hurdles. He had a great run with a great group of athletes, including four of the top five NCAA athletes running against him. That pushed him to compete at a high level and now he is in the top 16 so that was good for us and for Filip. I also like what I am seeing out of our football guys, Emory broke seven seconds in the 60m and DJ jumped over 23 feet.”

One week removed from setting the South Carolina indoor record in the women’s mile, Turkey native Silan Ayyildiz struck again, this time in Boston. Ayyildiz, competing for the Gamecocks at the David Hemery Valentine Invite, clocked another program-record time of 4:32.74 in the mile. Her mark was four seconds faster than her previous program record set last week in Columbia. In addition, Ayyildiz’s time moved her into eighth in the NCAA and 34th in the world rankings.

In Clemson, S.C., it was Jayla Jamison who stood out for the women’s team after running 7.23 in the women’s 60-meter semifinals. Jamison finished eighth in the semifinals when she set her new personal record, registering the fourth best 60m time in program history. More importantly, the Columbia native moved into 11th on the NCAA leaderboard in the women’s 60m.

Another newcomer for the Gamecocks secured a top 10 program record as Svenja Sommer ran the women’s mile in a time of 4:48.23 to capture her first win as a Gamecock. Sommer’s mark was a 15-second improvement on her personal best and secured the fourth best mile in South Carolina history.

On the men’s side, a trio of Gamecocks set program top 10 marks, including Filip Demsar who improved on the NCAA leaderboard. The Slovenia native jumped from 10th to eighth on the Gamecock leaderboard when he set a new personal record of 7.70 in the 60-meter hurdles finals, finishing fifth overall. Demsar’s mark of 7.70 also escalated him into a tie for 11th on the NCAA leaderboard with two meets remaining before the NCAA Indoor Championship.

George Luke and Jackson Dawson moved into the Gamecocks’ top 10 record book in the men’s mile, both with personal best times. Luke clocked a time of 4:11.71 to finish eighth in the event and move into seventh all-time in Gamecock history. Dawson stopped the clock at 4:12.16 to finish 11th overall and set the ninth best men’s indoor mile in South Carolina history.

South Carolina will close out its participation in the 2023 Tiger Paw Invite tomorrow with the first Gamecock set to compete at 10 a.m. In addition, Anass Essayi will run in the men’s mile in Boston, Mass. tomorrow at 4:35 p.m.

Men’s Individual Results
60 Meters (Prelims)
26. Elisha Brooks – 6.78*
39. Emory Floyd – 6.89*

400 Meters
23. William Spencer, Jr. – 46.89
49. EJ Richardson – 48.39
77. Jackson Junkins – 49.96

1-Mile
8. George Luke – 4:11.71*
11. Jackson Dawson – 4:12.16*

60-Meter Hurdles (Prelims)
8. Filip Demsar – 7.79Q

60-Meter Hurdles (Semis)
8. Filip Demsar – 7.75q

60-Meter Hurdles (Finals)
5. Filip Demsar – 7.70*

Long Jump
12. Blair Brooks – 7.33m/24-0.75
25. DJ Black – 7.07m/23-2.5*
40. Elisha Brooks – 5.69m/18-8

Women’s Individual Results
60 Meters (Prelims)
13. Jayla Jamison – 7.31q
47. Anastasia Sumpter – 7.56

60 Meters (Semis)
8. Jayla Jamison – 7.23q*

60 Meters (Finals)
— Jamison – DNS

400 Meters
19. Jahnile Registre – 53.26*
40. Angel Frank – 54.47

1-Mile
1. Svenja Sommer – 4:48.23*
5. Alex Costantino – 4:54.18
12. Emily Pierontoni – 5:02.05
16. Emily Smith – 5:04.94