They were the favorite all season long; now, Quinnipiac women’s cross country are MAAC champions for the third consecutive year, claiming the crown Saturday afternoon.

“One of our coaches always tells us that pressure is a privilege, so this was an opportunity for us to seize the moment and see what we can do,” graduate student Alessandra Zaffina said. “We know we had a target on our back coming into it, so we just had to stay confident within each other and just keep doing what we’ve been doing.”

Zaffina led the pack with a second-place finish in 20:45.6, surpassing Quinnipiac’s highest performer last fall — senior Corinne Barney who earned third — by 15 seconds. Three more Bobcats rounded out the top 10, juniors Rachel St. Germain (fifth) and Sierra Gray (sixth) and senior Lauren Selkin (seventh), with Barney sliding into 11th. Each of the aforementioned runners were All-MAAC selections.

The Bobcats tallied 31 points in the meet, matching their total last season — good enough for a third ring and head coach Carolyn Martin’s second straight MAAC Coach of the Year Award.

“It’s amazing,” Martin said. “We have some tremendous athletes in this program. And even our alumni came to watch from past years, and it’s been fun to see the team and culture cultivate into a nice tradition for the women.”

For someone like Zaffina, it’s time to trade the Quinnipiac jersey for a sweatshirt, one she can wear for years to come to watch the program flourish with fellow alumni. 

“I really was just trying to take it all in today,” Zaffina said. “I just tried to be a sponge and absorb everything and like all the time I have left with everyone. So I just really tell myself, ‘what do I have to lose?’ Might as well just go out there and see what I can do.”

In 2023, Quinnipiac became the second MAAC team to take back-to-back victories. Now, it’s risen to powerhouse status, on the heels of six-time champion Iona who held the title from 2016-2021.

“I mean, (Iona) men haven’t lost, it’s probably been 25 years, and (the) women are really strong too,” Martin said. “So for us to do this and be competitive with them for the last three years has been really exciting. And I definitely think it gives us higher level athlete(s) that (are) starting to look at our school now to say, ‘hey, this is a great program, look at what they’ve built.’’”

On the surface, cross country screams ‘individual sport.’ A race has a single winner, whoever crosses the finish line first. But there’s a team aspect that requires each individual to race for something bigger than themselves.

“The more we focus on the team aspect, the less pressure it puts on any one individual,” Martin said. “Then one individual doesn’t (think) ‘you’re not getting the job done to the team,’ you all have to do this together and we’re stronger together.”

The way things look right now, the Bobcats should keep getting stronger. A three-time conference champion doesn’t sound too shabby to the recruitment pool. They’re the most consistent team at Quinnipiac for a reason. 

“It really shows that the work we’re doing is paying off and that all the little things they do matter, and just like staying on top of things it was all full circle,” St. Germain said.

And Quinnipiac isn’t done yet. On Nov. 15, it travels to Hopkinton, New Hampshire for the NCAA Regional Championships beginning at 11 a.m.