Tessa Pitcovich, Jack Hutchins named Polar Bear of the Month winners for May

By Wes Mayberry

ADA — Seniors Tessa Pitcovich (Stow/Stow-Munroe Falls) and Jack Hutchins (Bright, Ind./East Central) have been selected as the Ohio Northern athletic department's Polar Bear of the Month award winners for May.

Pitcovich, a distance runner on the track and field team, capped her season by qualifying for the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships in the 10,000-meter run for the second straight year. At the NCAA Championships in Rochester, N.Y., on May 25, she placed 21st with a time of 36:27.66. She finished 17th in 2022, running a time of 37:24.44.

Pitcovich currently ranks second all-time at ONU in the outdoor 10,000 meters (36.07.00) and 5,000 meters (17:30.27).

A recipient of the Clyde Lamb Award in May, Pitcovich closes her career as an eight-time All-Ohio Athletic Conference honoree in track and field and an OAC champion in the indoor 3,000 meters. The 2022 CoSIDA Academic All-American Second Team honoree is also a five-time USTFCCCA All-Region, three-time Academic All-OAC and two-time USTFCCCA All-Academic recipient.

As a member of ONU's cross country team, Pitcovich is a two-time winner of the NCAA Elite 90 Award and three-time qualifier for the NCAA Division III Championships.

Hutchins, a pitcher on the baseball team, is coming off a 2023 season that saw him earn multiple accolades. Named to the D3baseball.com All-America Fifth Team, he also earned recognition on the D3baseball.com All-Region 7 First Team, ABCA/Rawlings All-Region 7 Second Team and All-OAC First Team.

Hutchins finished the season with a 7-2 record and ranked third in the OAC with a 1.91 ERA. In 66 innings spanning 12 appearances, including nine starts, he racked up 59 strikeouts, which ranked ninth in the OAC.

In four years at ONU, Hutchins has a career 4.25 ERA and 75 strikeouts in 27 appearances spanning 84.2 innings.

Hutchins helped lead the Polar Bears to a 27-15 record in 2023, which included a berth in the OAC Tournament.

2022-23 Polar Bear of the Month Honorees