ADA — Ohio Northern earned 40.5 points for its spring teams’ performances to close the 2022-23 sports season ranked third in the Ohio Athletic Conference and 52nd nationally in the NCAA Division III Learfield Directors’ Cup final standings with 342.5 points.
Among OAC teams, Northern trailed 20th-place Mount Union (645.5 points) and 28th-place John Carroll (550 points).
The Polar Bears had 155.5 points and were ranked 35th nationally at the conclusion of the winter sports season after earning 146.5 points and ranking 37th for the fall season.
Johns Hopkins (Md.) finished atop the standings with 1,282 points.
Points were awarded based on each institution’s finish in NCAA Championships events. Spring sports include baseball, softball, women’s rowing, women’s water polo, men’s volleyball, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s tennis and men’s and women’s track and field.
For the spring, the Polar Bears scored 25 points in men’s tennis and 15.5 points in men’s track and field for placing 33rd and 55th, respectively, in the NCAA Championships for those sports.
After earning a share of the OAC Regular Season championship, the ONU men’s tennis team went on to win the OAC Tournament title for the second straight season to clinch a spot in the NCAA Division III Tournament. A tight battle with Kalamazoo (Mich.) in the opening round resulted in a 5-4 Hornet victory.
The Polar Bear men’s track and field team closed the 2023 outdoor season with two individuals and two relay teams qualifying for the NCAA Division III Championships in Rochester, N.Y. Junior Keegan Digby (Bowling Green/Otsego) and sophomore Jordan Dean (Euclid/Villa Angela Saint Joseph) both earned All-American honors and scored team points for ONU as top-eight finishers in their respective events. Digby placed sixth in the shot put, and Dean was eighth in the 400-meter dash, scoring a combined four team points.
The Learfield Directors’ Cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today.
