Hockstok, Mertz, Women’s Cross Country team named All-Academic by USTFCCCA

By Tim Glon

| USTFCCCA NCAA III Women's Cross Country All-Academic Athletes | USTFCCCA NCAA III Women's Cross Country All-Academic Teams | 

ADA — The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association awarded All-Academic status to the Ohio Northern women's cross country team and senior Oleysa Mertz (Johnstown/Johnstown-Monroe) and junior Ashley Hockstok (Westerville/Central) as All-Academic Athletes for the 2023 season.

The Polar Bears were named an All-Academic Team for having a cumulative GPA better than 3.1 on a 4.0 scale. As a team, ONU posted a cumulative GPA of 3.19. This marks the 18th straight USTFCCCA All-Academic Team honor for the program.

In order to qualify as an All-Academic Athlete, runners must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.30 on a 4.0 scale and finish in the top 25 percent of their respective regional championship meet.

Mertz, a medical laboratory science major, was third among Polar Bear runners at the regional meet, placing 42nd overall with a personal-best time of 22:05, which ranks seventh-best in ONU history.

Hockstok, a political science and creative writing major, placed 65th overall at the regional meet in a season-best time of 22:32. Her career-low 22:04 ranks sixth all-time at ONU.

This marks the second straight USTFCCCA All-Academic honor for Hockstok.

Both student-athletes earned All-Ohio Athletic Conference and Academic All-OAC accolades this season.

The Polar Bears closed the season with a seventh-place finish of 40 teams at the regional meet, finishing with an overall record of 84-22 under 15th-year head coach Jason Maus.