Dana Boone was tabbed to lead the Knights’ cross-country and track and field programs on June 8, 2018. Since her arrival in Orlando, the UCF track and field team has seen a continual improvement.
Ushering in a new era for the program in the Big 12, Boone led the squad as it embarked on a pair of conference championships, concluding once again with All-America honors at nationals.
During the indoor campaign, Rayiah Jones and Adaobi Tabugbo placed second and third in the 60m hurdles finals, garnering a combined 14 points for the squad, the most of any program in a sprints/hurdle event. The 4x400m relay squad also finished seventh overall, adding another two points to a promising Big 12 debut. In Boston, Jones would secure yet another All-America honor at the NCAA Championships in the hurdles, placing on the second team.
The Black and Gold continued to improve throughout the outdoor campaign, resulting in some great performances at the conference championships. Kiah Williams scored in both the 200m and 400m with a pair of top-six finishes. At the same time, Jones would go on to secure history, becoming the first Big 12 champion following her dominating performance in the 100m hurdles.
The tandem, alongside Asherah Collins, made the trip to Eugene for nationals as they combined for four All-America honors. Williams was tabbed an honorable mention for the second-consecutive season in the 400m, while Collins tallied two second-team nods in the triple and long jump. The season was capped with Jones’ third-overall finish in the 100m hurdles with a program-record 12.59. Her 10th All-America honor moved Jones into a tie for second in program history. Each of the student-athletes would go on to compete at the 2024 United States Olympic Trials, with each advancing in their respective events.
The Knights last season in the American Athletic Conference was yet another historic domination, culminating in their season consecutive sweep of the Indoor and Outdoor Championships. The Knights broke six program records, along with being ranked third in the nation in late March, the highest rank in both program and school history. Boone and her staff were named the AAC Coaching Staff of the Year after both titles, becoming the most decorated team in the conference’s history with five championships.
In June of 2023, Boone led eight athletes to the Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Austin, Texas. It marked the first time in program history that eight athletes qualified for the outdoor championships in consecutive seasons. Jones claimed her seventh All-America honor, finishing ninth in the 100m Hurdles. Williams and Kaylor Harris both garnered Honorable Mention honors in their first appearances at the National Championships. The weekend was capped off by Collins claiming 10th in the triple jump with a mark of 13.48m.
At the 2023 Indoor National Championships in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Jones represented the Knights as she was named a Second Team All-American in the 60-meter Hurdles. For the second consecutive season, Boone and the Knights sent eight athletes to the Outdoor National Championships. Hosted in Austin, Texas, Jones and Collins were named Second Team All-Americans, while six other Knights garnered Honorable Mention nods.
At the AAC Indoor Championships, UCF was once again the only team to break 100+ points as the squad accumulated 132.25, sweeping the sprint events. 11 Knights took home medals, along with Jones who was named the Most Valuable Performer. In May, the Knights completed their historic ‘Farewell Tour,’ of the AAC, matching their meet record of 163 points as Boone’s athletes swept the sprint events; setting three meet and conference records. Latasha Smith’s school record performance in the 200-meter dash garnered her the Most Valuable Performance, while Jones was named the Most Valuable Performer as she won both the 100-meter hurdles and dash, along with a bronze in the 200-meter dash.
In June of 2022, Boone led eight athletes to the 2022 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon; only the second time in program history (2011) UCF was represented to that extent. The 4x1 relay squad garnered First Team All-America honors as Jones and Ciara Holback. Beyonce Defreitas and I’Asia Wilson finished seventh in the nation. Three other athletes were All-America Honorable Mentions as UCF finished T-33rd with eight points, marking two consecutive seasons with the program's fourth fourth-best performance at the Outdoor Championships.
The Knights also made history in May 2022, winning The American outdoor title for the first time since joining the league in 2014. UCF again set the meet record, finishing with 163 points as a squad. Boone and her assistant coaches Bryan Jackson and Glenn Smith were again named the Coaching Staff of the Year. The three-day meet saw the Knights atop the podium six times, including the first heptathlon title.
The 2022 campaign saw Boone's squad win the American Athletic Conference indoor championship with a meet-record 156.5 points. UCF was named the Coaching Staff of the Year and Rayniah Jones collected the Most Valuable Performer after sweeping the 60-meter dash, 200-meter dash and 60-meter hurdles titles. In all, UCF won seven events at the two-day meet in Birmingham.
The 2022 campaign marked just the third time that UCF has swept both the indoor and outdoor championships and is the first the Knights have accomplished the feat since sweeping the 2013 Conference USA titles.
After Boone's second season with the Black and Gold was cut short as the Knights prepared to open its outdoor campaign as the COVID-19 pandemic led to the cancellation of the 2020 spring seasons, the Knights rebounded with a record-setting 2021 campaign. While the indoor slate saw UCF travel to Houston for just two meets, the Knights saw both their freshman mile and triple jump records set.
The outdoor campaign saw the emergence of Rayniah Jones' dominance in the 100-meter hurdles under Boone's guidance. The Miami native, competing in her first collegiate outdoor season, opened her campaign by setting the UCF freshman record in five straight meets. At the Knights Invite on April 24, Jones not only broke the UCF freshman record, she also set the school record and posted a U.S. Olympic Team Trial qualifying mark of 12.73.
Jones became the first Knight to earn The American Freshman of the Year as she set The American meet record on her way to capturing the 100-meter hurdle title. Asherah Collins gave the Knights two event champions at Boone's second outdoor conference championship, as she set the freshman triple jump record on her way to the title.
Both Jones and Collins qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championship, marking the first time UCF had multiple individual competitors at the NCAA Championships since 2016. Jones was the first Knight to compete in the 100-meter hurdles at the national meet since Jackie Coward in 2012 while Collins became the first Knight to advance to the NCAA Outdoor Championship in the triple jump. Both returned to Orlando as All-Americans, with Jones earning the silver medal in the 100H and Collins finishing 23rd in the triple jump.
Valerie Lastra, who broke the UCF freshman records during the shortened cross country slate, added her name to the track record books with the school 3000-meter record and freshman records in the 3000m and 1500m. Holly Cassels broke the freshman heptathlon record and Charlotte Crook tied the school's 1500m record.
In all, five Knights combined to tie or set seven freshman or school records during the 2021 outdoor slate.
In her first season at the helm, Boone led the UCF 4x1 relay squad back to the NCAA Championship for the first time since 2017. The quartet of Shaniya Williams, Ciara Holback, Beyonce Defreitas and Loren Gallmon earned Second Team All-America honors with a 14th place finish. UCF's squad posted the best relay finish since the 2014 group who finished 11th overall and the fastest time by a Knights relay squad at the championships since 2013.
Under her leadership, UCF picked up a pair of event titles and finished fifth overall at the 2019 American Athletic Conference Outdoor Championship. For the first time since 2016, the Knights captured gold in the 4x100 relay. The squad of Shaniya Williams, Shian Hyde, Beyonce Defreitas and Ciara Holback turned in a season-best mark and set a stadium record with a time of 44.17 to edge Cincinnati for the top spot. Devin D'Oliveira added another trophy to UCF's case this weekend, cruising to the 400-meter hurdle title. The Pembroke Pines, Fla., native broke her own UCF freshman record, posting a time of 58.80 to take home the gold medal.
Boone joined the Knights after three successful seasons as the associate head women’s coach at Texas Tech, where she worked with the sprints and hurdles.
At Texas Tech, Boone coached a pair of relay squads to the NCAA Championship in both 2017 and 2018. Last season, Texas Tech’s 4x400 relay finished 19th in the nation, while the 4x100 relay finished 24th this year.
She qualified at least one relay event, in addition to sprints events, for the NCAA West Preliminary in each of her three seasons in Lubbock.
Prior to Texas Tech, Boone spent four seasons as the head coach at Texas State, leading the Bobcats to four conference championships, while also racking up conference Coach of the Year honors behind each title.
In each of her four years at Texas State, Boone's teams qualified 20 or more athletes for the NCAA West Preliminary. In 2015, 29 athletes represented the Bobcats in 24 events. Boone also took three student-athletes to the NCAA Indoor Championships and advanced six to the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
A two-time USTFCCCA Midwest Region Coach of the Year, she spent six years as the sprints, hurdles and relays coach at Oklahoma. During her time with the Sooners, she trained five NCAA All-America First Team and six NCAA All-America Second Team student-athletes between the indoor and outdoor seasons, including NCAA 100-meter dash champion Candyce McGrone (11.08). The sprint group, comprised of just two student-athletes, accounted for 23 of Oklahoma’s 41 points at the 2011 NCAA Championships.
Boone also enjoyed successful stints as an assistant at Tulane, Middle Tennessee and South Carolina, coaching sprints, hurdles and jumps at each stop. During her coaching career, she has had 63 All-America honorees.
An outstanding jumper at Virginia, Boone was a six-time All-American and six-time ACC champion. She still owns the school records for the indoor and outdoor long jump, and outdoor triple jump.
Boone earned a bachelor’s degree in communication studies at Virginia in 1991, and a master’s degree in physical education at Middle Tennessee State in 1995. She is a Level 2 certified coach in sprints, hurdles and jumps.
*Updated September 2023