Cass Headlines Bears' All-MASCAC Women's Cross Country Honorees

By Jim Fenton

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The dominance of Bridgewater State University senior cross country runner Naomi Cass (Westport, Mass.) in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference continued last weekend.

Cass won her third straight MASCAC championship at Stanley Park in Westfield, Mass. by roughly 34 seconds.

That performance earned Cass her third consecutive MASCAC Women's Cross Country Runner of the Year honor. The MASCAC announced the all-conference team and the award winners on Wednesday.

The Bears, who finished second in the team standings, also had another award winner as freshman Olivia Pendleton (Yarmouthport, Mass.) was selected the MASCAC Rookie of the Year.

BSU sophomore Rhiannon Vos (Marston Mills, Mass.) earned a spot with Cass on the All-MASCAC first team.

Cass, who has appeared in two straight NCAA Division III Championship events, covered the five-kilometer course in 17:59.71 to win her third title in a row.

As a freshman on the same course in 2022, Cass was 36th with a time of 22:02.84.

A year later in Devens, Mass., Cass ran in 19:10.88 to finish first by nearly 22 seconds and last season had a time of 18:31.89 to win by 25 seconds in Leominster, Mass.

Since her first MASCAC race in '22, Cass has improved her time by just over four minutes.

Cass is the first BSU runner to win three straight conference championships since BSU Hall of Famer Molly Rouillard did so from 2010-12.

When she won in 2023, Cass became the first BSU runner to win a MASCAC title since Krysta Zbikowski in 2013.

Cass and the Bears will take part in the NCAA Division III East Region race on Saturday, Nov. 15, in Contoocook, N.H., as she will be looking to qualify for a third straight national appearance on Nov. 22.

Pendleton, in her first MASCAC race, finished 11th in the field of 64 runners with a time of 20:05.02.

She missed 10th place and all-conference honors by about 18 seconds.

Vos, in her first season with the Bears, placed ninth with a time of 19:43.80.

Joining Cass and Vos on the All-MASCAC team were seven runners from Westfield State, which won another team championship.

Representing the Owls are seniors Julianne Kelly (Natick, Mass.), Shea Hamel (Longmeadow, Mass.) and Tealei Chandonnet (Dracut, Mass.), juniors Reese Stevens (Agawam, Mass.), Brynne Lecours (Haverhill, Mass.) and sophomores Brooke Soucy (Methuen, Mass.) and Samantha Panzeri (Billerica, Mass.).

Also on the team is Fitchburg State senior Skye Goba (Norton, Mass.).

Westfield State's Marlee Berg-Haryasz was selected the BSN Sports Coach of the Year in the MASCAC.

2025 All-MASCAC Women's Cross Country Team (PDF)