Quinnipiac Acrobatics and Tumbling has long been a dominant force in the world of Acrobatics and Tumbling, being one of the few universities in the nation to have a program.

This year is unlike any for the program and sport as a whole, as the Bobcats enter the 2026 season as No. 3 in the NCATA Coaches Preseason Poll.

Let’s break down what the upcoming season may look like for the Bobcats.

SCHEDULE

With a six-meet schedule, three on home turf and three away, Quinnipiac must capitalize on every opportunity it has to improve one meet at a time.

The Bobcats will open up their schedule in Hamden against Gannon on Feb. 9. Quinnipiac’s history against Gannon tilts in favor of the Bobcats, 10-3,  capturing a 267.395 to 255.315 victory over the Golden Knights last season.

Quinnipiac will then travel out to Eugene, Oregon, to take on the Oregon Ducks in a battle where the Bobcats must prove themselves. In their two meetings against the Ducks last season, Quinnipiac failed to come out on top, one of those losses resulting in the NCATA National Championship.

Quinnipiac will also face off against Long Island University, Iona University and Morgan State University, opponents in which the Bobcats have historically come up on top in every meet.

A new opponent to Quinnipiac’s schedule this year is Canisius University, as the Golden Griffins hold their inaugural season in Acrobatics and Tumbling.

COMPETITION

Coming from last year’s semifinal matchup against Oregon, the Bobcats outscored the Ducks in the compulsory, acro and pyramid rounds, yet were outscored during the toss, tumble and team rounds.

Despite falling out in the semifinal round, the Bobcats would take home two NCATA Individual Event awards in the six-element acro and trio tumbling events. Quinnipiac will see the return of its trio tumbling event winners this season, consisting of senior base/tumbler Emily St. Onge, graduate student top/tumbler Kathryn Cooker and sophomore base/tumbler Alyssa Esposito.

In a sport where scoring is based on technique, cleanliness and precision, attention to detail is everything.

“Reps and cleanliness behind it, because it’s one thing if you can go up and hit, but you have to be able to do it pretty much perfect,” senior base/tumbler Ashleigh Dugan said.

Additionally, Acrobatics and Tumbling is a sport heavily focused on teamwork and trust. In order to succeed, athletes must have the drive to improve, but it needs to be a collective drive.

“I feel like we are all so driven and motivated to get something right, and if one thing goes wrong we don’t wanna stop it and end on a bad note. We always wanna keep pushing and end on a good note so that were leaving practice fulfilled and satisfied,” Dugan said. “So I think that drive and motivation that team has is really gonna take us far.”

And this teamwork needs to come from not only the athletes but the coaching staff as well. Lucky for the Bobcats, Quinnipiac’s program is filled with a supportive, informative coaching staff that strives for success and improvement, under the leadership of Quinnipiac head coach Mary Ann Powers.

“I’ll say something about Mar (Mary Ann Powers) that sticks out to me is her attention to detail,” senior base Madysen Bradley said. “Coming from a different program, same thing obviously we cared about detail but there’s an emphasis on it here.”

Entering her 29th year as head coach of the program at Quinnipiac, Powers has been a pioneer in the development of the sport at the collegiate level and Quinnipiac.

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP STATUS

Yet, this season in Acrobatics and Tumbling across the nation has a greater meaning, as the NCAA elevated the sport to championship status earlier this month.

“My gratitude to the university for seeing it through, from beginning to end, right through, you know, a lawsuit and appeals and making sure that we did the best thing possible to provide opportunities, genuine opportunities, for women in this sport where there was a deficit,” Powers said. “Acrobatic gymnastics, artistic gymnastics and competitive cheer, a lot of athletes didn’t have a place to go, and now five universities have provided hundreds of women a year to step forward and participate at the (Division) I, (Division) II and (Diviison) III level.”

While the first championship won’t take place until the spring 2027, Powers attributes part of the success of the sport to all the athletes who have pushed and adapted to change in the sport, many eventually finding their way back to the mat from a different perspective.

“My early athletes, they pioneered a sport, they saw it through many, many milestones,” Powers said. “Changes in game play, changes in scoring, changes in how they were scored. These kids stayed with the course. And I think what I love the most is that so many of the best coaches in Acrobatics and Tumbling are former athletes.”

The Bobcats will open up their season in Hamden on Feb. 9 against the Gannon Golden Knights. The meet is set to start at 5 p.m.

“We’re really excited to get on the mat and show everyone what we’ve been working on,” Dugan said.