Cross Country, Track and Field standout Tessa Pitcovich joins ONU coaching staff as volunteer assistant
By Wes Mayberry
ADA — Ohio Northern cross country and track and field head coach Jason Maus has added Tessa Pitcovich to his coaching staff as a volunteer assistant.
"We are really excited to have the opportunity to keep Tessa in our program," Maus said. "She has made such an impact over her career, and to have her continue to help us in any capacity is a bonus. She is a great ambassador and representative of ONU, and I'm sure she'll embrace this new role and find a way to continue to help ONU Cross Country and Track and Field."
Pitcovich recently completed what was a decorated five-year career as a member of ONU's cross country and track and field teams. Her 2022-23 season was highlighted by her qualification for the NCAA Championships in cross country and outdoor track and field, winning the Ohio Athletic Conference title in the indoor 3,000 meters, and earning both the NCAA Elite 90 and Clyde Lamb awards.
A three-time national qualifier in cross country, Pitcovich is just the second student-athlete in ONU history to win the Elite 90 Award twice. She is a four-time All-OAC and three-time All-Great Lakes Region honoree in cross country and was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Cross Country and Track and Field Second Team for the 2021-22 season.
In track and field, Pitcovich claimed five USTFCCCA All-Region accolades and eight All-OAC honors and is a two-time NCAA Outdoor Championships qualifier in the 10,000-meter run.
A seven-time Academic All-OAC, five-time USTFCCCA All-Academic and two-time OAC Scholar Athlete of the Month honoree across both sports, Pitcovich owns several top-10 marks in the ONU record books.
In cross country, she ranks third all-time in the 6K (21:22) and 10th all-time in the 5K (18:45).
In outdoor track and field, she ranks second all-time in the 5,000 (17:30.27) and 10,000 (36:07.00) and fourth in the 3,000 (10:40.10). Indoors, she ranks second all-time in the 5,000 (17:35.35) and third in the 3,000 (10:06.26).
The Stow, Ohio, native graduated from ONU with a BSBA in accounting in 2022 and will complete requirements for a master's degree in accounting from ONU in late July.
Professionally, Pitcovich currently serves as an accounting consultant at Julian & Grube as well as an adjunct instructor in ONU's Dicke College of Business. She intends to continue training to achieve more of her goals in running while volunteering her time to assist Polar Bear student-athletes.
"I am very excited to be joining the coaching staffs for cross country and track and field at ONU," Pitcovich said. "ONU has given me so many things to be grateful for, and I am happy to be able to give back to the university in this way. I am excited to work with the current staff in this new way and help future ONU runners to achieve their goals."