The Quinnipiac University men’s hockey team won the NCAA Division I national championship in spectacular fashion Saturday night — a come-from-behind win that saw the team score the winning goal seconds into overtime — and President Judy Olian said she hopes the nationwide recognition contributes to the growth of the university’s brand.
The victory, just five days after the University of Connecticut men’s basketball team won the NCAA Division I championship in that sport, brought national attention to two of the state’s higher-ed institutions.
“The athletic program is a ‘front porch’ of the institution — it brings people in to enter the door of the university,” Olian said.
Olian said Gov. Ned Lamont flew down to Tampa to see Quinnipiac’s “Frozen Four” performance right after the UConn celebration parade in Hartford, and the two talked about how Connecticut colleges are “punching way above our weight” when it comes to competing with larger institutions.
“The growth of our hockey team really parallels the growth of the institution — we started the hockey team when we were still Quinnipiac College, we transitioned from Division II to Division I and transitioned from a college to a university,” Olian said. “Sometimes you’re an undiscovered treasure, and this national reach brings us to the front pages of all kinds of pages.”
Olian said Quinnipiac was on the Wall Street Journal front page and heavily featured on ESPN for the last week, giving the university exposure to millions of people daily.
She said she knows of several large donations that came from supporters and alumni following the victory, and expects there to be more. The school store has been selling championship merchandise all week, and Olian said she’s been told to visit the shop soon before items are sold out.
“The connection to the brand will bring more students here to Connecticut,” Olian said. “We know that UConn and Quinnipiac are major drivers of economic growth in the state with all the businesses and services that occur around the universities.”
