Terriers Repeat as Patriot League Champions

Friday, March 5

Bethlehem, PA

1 PM

Boston University

Patriot League Championship

March 5, 2021 | Women's Cross Country

Results

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Led by top-five finishes by sophomores Andrea Claeson and Sophia Jacobs-Townsley, the Boston University women's cross country team claimed its second straight Patriot League Championship on Friday afternoon.

"I'm excited for the team," said head coach Paul Spangler, who was named Patriot League Coach of the Year for the second straight season. "They felt like they came in as underdogs. For them to come out and win after not competing this year, it shows how tough they are and how good they are. I'm really proud of them for overcoming adversity and earning this win."

The Terriers and Army West Point both finished with 47 points, but BU won the tiebreaker to retain its title, the program's fourth since joining the conference in 2013. Ties are broken by comparing in order the place finish of each of the five scoring members of the tied teams; BU won three of those comparisons. Bucknell (61 points) finished third, followed by Lafayette (123), American (132), Lehigh (137), Holy Cross (181), Colgate (206) and Loyola Maryland (256).

"It's nice to be on the winning side of a tiebreaker," Spangler said. "Army ran well and really came on at the end. Hats off to them for making it a great race."

Claeson was the conference runner-up, as she finished the 3.7-mile race with a time of 19:41.4, over 10 seconds ahead of the third-place performer from Army. Jacobs-Towsnley was fourth with a time of 20:07.8, just over two seconds ahead of the fifth-place Black Knight. Both harriers earned First Team All-Patriot League honors after both were second-team selections in 2019.

"I thought they did a good job and really stepped it up," Spangler said.

Senior Madeline Bachmann finished 10th in her Patriot League debut with a time of 20:25.8, earning Second Team All-Patriot League accolades. Seniors Veronica Kriss (20:38.8) and Corinne Batsu (20:42.1) finished 15th and 16th, respectively, to help BU claim the title. Batsu was seven seconds ahead of a 17th-place Black Knight, which allowed BU to win the tiebreaker. Junior Angela Castronuovo was 28th with a time of 21:13.4, freshman Janelle Williams (21:41.3) finished 41st and junior Kalie Mathis (22:06.8) crossed the line in 51st. Claeson, Jacobs-Townsley, Kriss and Castronuovo all improved on their finishes from 2019.

"I thought if we were going to have a chance to win today, our 4-5 runners had to step up, and Veronica and Madeline both outperformed the way they looked in practice," Spangler said. "This was Madeline's first cross country race, and she really came through for us, as did Veronica. I'm proud of the way they raced today."

The Terriers have grown as a program since Spangler's arrival in 2017. BU was seventh at the conference meet that year, before finishing fourth in 2018 and now winning back-to-back titles.

"They've done this themselves," Spangler said of his team. "They're hard-working, dedicated and have bought in to what we're trying to accomplish."

This is the second time that BU has repeated as Patriot League champion, having also won the 2013 and 2014 titles. The Terriers have claimed 19 total conference titles between the Patriot League and the America East.