Sarah Mulcahy
Sarah Mulcahy joined the University of Maine at Fort Kent in 2026 as a mathematics instructor and the inaugural coach of the Bengals’ men’s and women’s cross-country programs. A native of Eagle Lake, Maine, Mulcahy brings extensive experience as an educator, coach and accomplished distance runner to UMFK.
Before joining the university, Mulcahy taught mathematics at Fort Kent Community High School from 2018 to 2026. During that time, she coached high school cross country for eight years and held assistant and head coaching positions with the school’s outdoor track and field program. She has also coached middle school cross country and track and field. Mulcahy previously worked with UMFK’s distance runners during the 2021–22 track and field season.
From 2011 to 2018, Mulcahy taught seventh- and eighth-grade mathematics and science at Woodland Jr./Sr. High School in Baileyville, Maine. She also coached the school’s high school cross-country program for two years. Mulcahy began her teaching career in Westbrook, Maine, where she taught middle school mathematics from 2007 to 2011 and coached middle school cross country, indoor track and outdoor track.
Mulcahy’s coaching philosophy is rooted in developing the whole athlete through purposeful, consistent training and a strong competitive mindset. She believes distance running teaches athletes to set meaningful personal goals while understanding how individual growth contributes to team success.
Mulcahy works alongside her athletes to establish performance baselines, create goals, model proper training techniques and celebrate progress. Her goal is to help runners develop the discipline and resilience needed to navigate difficult workouts, compete with confidence and carry those habits into their lives beyond athletics.
“Cross country is unique because athletes strive for individual success while pursuing goals that directly contribute to the success of the team,” Mulcahy said. “Athletes learn their purpose as individuals and how their efforts contribute to something larger. Through consistent training, team development and a strong mindset, they learn to keep moving forward when the work gets tough.”
Mulcahy brings significant personal experience and competitive success to her coaching. She began running during her freshman year of college in 2003–04 as a way to manage the demands of studying and working. She entered her first race in 2010, completed her first half marathon in 2011 and ran her first marathon at Sugarloaf in 2012.
Since then, Mulcahy has completed 39 marathons and established herself as one of Maine’s most accomplished distance runners. She is a six-time Bay of Fundy Marathon champion and holds the event’s course record. She has also won the Fredericton Marathon three times and holds that course record.
Mulcahy has enjoyed sustained success at the Millinocket Marathon, winning the event every year she has competed except in 2016, 2021 and 2025. She placed third in 2016 while five months pregnant with her son and finished second in both 2021 and 2025.
At the Mount Desert Island Marathon, Mulcahy captured victories in 2019, 2023, 2024 and 2025 after first competing in the event in 2012. She also finished second in 2022. Her other notable results include a fourth-place finish at the 2021 Maine Marathon.
Mulcahy qualified for the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials by recording a time of 2:44:38 at the 2018 California International Marathon. She competed in the Trials despite experiencing a shoe failure during the race.
Mulcahy has also completed the Boston Marathon multiple times. She ran the event while six months pregnant with her daughter in 2014, competed as part of the elite field in 2019 and returned in 2022 to finish in 2:50:45.
Her competitive career has been defined by resilience as much as achievement. Mulcahy has overcome stress fractures, muscle and tendon injuries, and a broken hip suffered while 31 weeks pregnant in 2017. Although she was warned that she might never run again, she returned to competition and achieved several personal-best performances following the injury and the birth of her second child.
Mulcahy trains year-round in the demanding climate of northern Maine, including through long winters and subzero temperatures. She is a member of the Crow Athletics running club and works virtually with coach Robert Gomez.
Mulcahy earned a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education with a minor in mathematics from Saint Joseph’s College of Maine. She later received a Master of Arts in Education in Curriculum and Instruction, specializing in mathematics curriculum and instruction, from the University of Phoenix. She is currently pursuing a doctorate in STEM education at the University of Maine.
Mulcahy resides in Fort Kent with her husband, Jonathan, and their children, Olivia and Isaiah.
