NCAA Championships
Trusting the Process: Kelli Gaffney Heads to Missouri for NCAA Cross Country Championships
11/20/2025 6:00:00 PM | Cross Country
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Kelli Gaffney’s journey to representing Cal Poly on the national stage this weekend was built on a relentless work ethic and a tremendous amount of self-belief.
Last fall in her first appearance at the NCAA West Regional cross country meet, the Temecula, Calif. native placed 92nd and was the sixth runner to cross the finish line for the Mustangs. This past week in Sacramento, Gaffney improved 76 places and was the first Mustang to finish, securing 16th overall to earn the final individual berth from the West Region to the NCAA Championship meet.
It was the race of her life, and a performance she’ll never forget.
“It’s a crazy progression,” Gaffney said about her improvement from last year, “but I think it just proves anyone can get to the national stage, you just really have to have faith in your ability.”
Gaffney will look to cap off her remarkable cross country season when she competes in the NCAA Championships this Saturday at Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia, Missouri. The junior races in the women’s 6K at 7:20 a.m. PST on Saturday with live coverage available on ESPNU.
Making the NCAA meet and securing an All-Region finish by placing in the top 25 was never a goal for Gaffney when she took the start line at regionals last Friday at Haggin Oaks Golf Complex. It was an accomplishment that came from a mindset of not worrying about the end result.
“I found the times this season that I’ve raced the best or had the best results are the times when I expect the least,” she said. “For me, it’s not about expecting a certain result, it’s about staying engaged, staying competitive and accomplishing what I set out to do, and the results will follow from there.”
Gaffney is set to become the first Mustang on the women’s side to compete at the NCAA Cross Country Championships since both Katie Izzo and Miranda Daschian qualified as individuals in 2018, finishing 82nd and 112th respectively.
As the lone national qualifier on the men’s or women’s side from the Big West, Gaffney knows she’ll have plenty of people cheering her on and she hopes to make them proud.
“I just can’t wait to represent everyone that’s been supporting me in my journey to get here,” she said. “I just feel like I’m competing for more than myself, and it’s such an honor to represent a whole community, my team, my school, the Big West as a whole and my family.”
Gaffney’s bid to nationals in cross country comes on the heels of a highly successful track season this spring. As a sophomore, Gaffney ran the fourth-fastest women’s 10,000-meter time in school history (34:12.89) to qualify for the NCAA West Preliminaries for the first time and she scored 11 team points for the Mustangs at the Big West Championships, placing third in the 5,000 and fourth in the 10,000. Indoors, she also ran the second fastest 5,000 (16:17.99) and fifth fastest 3,000 (9:33.69) in school history.
“If there is anything I want someone to take away from this growth that I’ve had is you can be someone that gradually improves and improves and becomes this person you might not have expected from the start,” she said, “but you’re proud of the result and the progress you’ve made along the way and I think for me that’s the most accomplishing part about making it this far is I don’t think I would have expected this my freshman year.”
During last Friday’s regional meet, Gaffney made the decision early on to lead the second pack of runners chasing the leaders of the race. Hovering from 10th to 15th place for a majority of the race while battling some of the top runners in the nation could have been intimidating for the 2023 Great Oak High grad. But instead, Gaffney embraced the opportunity and just went for it.
“I don’t really know what got into me,” she laughed. “I’m not typically the person that goes out like that, I just felt really good. I can’t describe it any other way.”
When Gaffney crossed the finish line at regionals, it still wasn’t completely certain that she had earned an individual berth to nationals. Gaffney and Cal Poly Women’s Cross Country Head Coach Michelle Chewens both felt pretty confident about her chances in the moment, but didn’t know for sure until the NCAA selection show announced all the individual and team qualifiers this past Saturday. Once the official announcement was made, Gaffney immediately received celebratory phone calls from Chewens and her family.
“When I saw my name on the screen of all the individuals that made it, I think that’s when it really set in,” she said. “It was such an exciting day, I don’t think I could ever forget a day like that.”
Gaffney said the amount of support she received on race day at regionals was unbelievable and played a huge role in her historic performance.
“Before the race even began, I could feel the support,” she said. “It just made me that much more motivated to really push myself and test my limits, and I’m so glad it paid off because having everyone witness that and being surrounded by support and love made it that much more special and an unforgettable moment.”
Two of Gaffney’s biggest supporters were also on hand — like they always are — to witness the incredible moment — her mother, Kim, and father, Jimmy. Gaffney said her parents have been there every step of the way through all the ups and downs in a sport that can take its toll and test your limits both mentally and physically.
Gaffney started running when she was 11 years old. She picked up the sport originally as a way to cross train for swimming, which she did competitively for three years. But eventually she lost interest in swimming and then running came along. She didn’t love the sport at first, but once she competed in her first track meet the rest was history.
“My dad got me into the sport,” she said. “I did soccer before swimming and he always knew I was a runner, but didn’t want to force me into it … I really owe a lot to my parents for getting me into this sport and trusting me from the start. They’ve always pushed me in the right direction and it led me here.”
Gaffney, Cal Poly’s highest finisher on the women’s side at the regional meet since All-American Peyton Bilo placed ninth in 2016, plans on using this opportunity to compete this weekend as a way to gain nationals experience for her team, so next year in her final season the Mustangs can qualify as a team for NCAAs — something the Cal Poly women have never done in the program’s Division I history.
Gaffney plans on sending it one last time this season on Saturday and soaking up every moment of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
“I’ve already exceeded my expectations for this season,” she said. “Now that I’m there, the next step is to do what I’ve been doing and be competitive. Trust my gut in the race, take a chance and see what kind of result can follow from that.”
