Victory usually means a first place finish.

But for the Syracuse women’s cross country team, victory on Saturday would mean something very different.

It would encompass a third-place finish, a defeat of Georgetown, and perhaps most importantly for them, showing the rest of the cross country world that longtime rival, Providence, is not as good as everyone thinks.

‘Providence makes nationals every year, so in beating them it would finally be like, ‘oh, look, they are not as good as everyone makes them out to be,” said Katie Hursey, before adding a quick side note. ‘Also, we just don’t like the girls on their team, to put it nicely.’

On Halloween, the cross country men and women will travel to Kenosha, Wis. to compete against the rest of their conference at the Big East Championships. While the men hope to upset the favorite, Georgetown, and capture first place, the women are focused on a third-place finish, ahead of Georgetown and, for personal reasons, Providence.

For the women, West Virginia and Villanova are, in head coach Chris Fox’s words, ‘heads and shoulders above the rest of us.’ Villanova is ranked No. 2 in the nation and West Virginia is No. 4, according to the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association poll.

‘After the two big favorites it is Georgetown, then us. If we get fourth we did a good job,’ Fox said. ‘Providence is great and we have never beaten them and we have never beaten Georgetown, so fourth is a good day; third is a great day.’

Though Georgetown is ranked ninth, one in front of the No. 10 Orange, Providence seems to be the biggest concern for the Syracuse women.

The Friars are ranked No. 24 in the nation, but an overlap in recruiting and a general dislike between the two squads adds extra incentive to beating them this weekend.

‘We definitely have our eyes on a few teams,’ said sophomore Heather Stephens. ‘But, Providence is the main one. Let’s just say we have a pretty good rivalry with them.’

The Providence women’s squad is comprised of four runners from New York and four from Connecticut. Fox explained that these are the main areas that Syracuse recruits from, and thus several of the Orange’s top runners are familiar with the girls on Providence. The two schools recruit several of the same kids each year, creating a battle for attracting the areas top talent.

In addition, Fox recruited several of the current Friar runners, just as Providence head coach Ray Treacy recruited several of the Orange’s top racers.

But the overlap has created more than just familiarity.

‘We just don’t like them, and don’t like most of their runners,’ Hursey said. ‘It is our personal goal to beat them, and I don’t want to bad mouth any specifically, but overall we just do not have a good feeling about Providence. It has really been that way my whole career here.’

Coach Fox views the rivalry as a healthy one.

The Orange has never beaten Providence and any extra animosity can only add to the overall level of motivation.

This year the women feel they have their best shot at a third-place finish and, therefore, their best shot at a longtime rival that they have yet to get the best of.

‘The Big East has a ton of ranked teams, so being third in it would be quite the feat,’ Hursey said. ‘Plus that would mean we beat Georgetown, but better yet Providence.’

restern@syr.edu