After dominating on the smaller stage of Lunenburg, for the past four years, freshman runner Jessica Iannacci has wasted no time grabbing her share of the spotlight for a much larger audience as part of the Boston University women’s cross country team. Iannacci helped lead the Terrier women to their seventh consecutive America East Championship in her first year of college racing.
Such a smooth transition is not exactly common, but neither is Iannacci.
‘She was the greatest kid [Lunenburg] ever had in their program,’ said BU Coach Bruce Lehane. ‘But freshman year is often a very overwhelming experience. There is a big increase in the quality of competition.’
That didn’t pose much of a problem for Iannacci, as she took first place in her first meet of the year, a double-dual meet against Northeastern University and the State University of New York at Albany on Sept. 13. She did not expect to win that race, or perform as well as she has this year.
‘It turned out better than I expected,’ Iannacci said. ‘I was just focused on doing well.’
‘Jess maintained her focus,’ Lehane said. ‘She just exceeded the expectations we had.’
Iannacci’s success did not stop after the first race. She again led the Terriers at the Iona Meet of Champions, finishing 33rd out of 263 runners. It was after this race that Iannacci became part of a solid pack of three that used teamwork effectively to accomplish their goals for the year.
‘I knew everyone else on the team was really good,’ Iannacci said. ‘I love everyone on the team; we get together and run even when we don’t have practice.’
She has specifically been working together with sophomore Dina Mijuskovic and senior captain Sherida Bird, as the three have run together for good finishes in the New England Championships and the America East Championships. Iannacci finished 23rd out of 282 runners at the New England meet, helping BU to an 11th place finish in the 26-team field.
The pinnacle of the season, however, was the America East meet. Iannacci finished sixth in the conference, a step behind Mijuskovic and Bird. This teamwork enabled the Terriers to capture a seventh straight conference title.
‘[Mijuskovic, Bird, and Iannacci] are three positive athletes who help each other out,’ Lehane said. ‘Jessica’s influence has been positive; she has motivated the other athletes to perform better.’
Perhaps Lehane deserves some of the credit for the success of his team and Iannacci this season. He did pick up his seventh America East Coach of the Year award on the women’s side.
‘I like [Lehane’s] style a lot, how he is so laid back,’ Iannacci said. ‘He just lets everyone do their thing.’
In a sport where each runner’s training routine can be so different, this type of coaching has proved to work for Lehane, and has helped Iannacci to succeed as well. The awards speak for themselves.
Iannacci will be an important member of the women’s cross country team for the next three years, but she may not be done making noise this year. The BU women are getting primed for the NCAA Regional Meet in the Bronx, N.Y. on Nov. 16. Meanwhile, Iannacci has already made quite a mark on the season for the Terrier women.
Lehane described the trademark for Iannacci’s success.
‘She is quite confident and competitive in a quiet way,’ he said.
Whatever her strategy, there is no doubt it has been successful in her first year at BU.
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