In 1982, Carol Corbett ’85 finished 19th in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III women’s cross country championship meet, becoming Ohio Wesleyan’s first women’s cross country All-American. Kat Zimmerly became Ohio Wesleyan’s second women’s cross country All-American in 2010.
Matt Wackerly took over the head coach position of the Ohio Wesleyan University men’s and women’s cross country teams in 2009. The women’s team had an all-region performer in each of Wackerly’s first four seasons at Ohio Wesleyan, sending a runner to the NCAA Division III championship meet in 2006. The women’s cross country team’s second-place finish in the 2008 NCAC championship meet equaled Ohio Wesleyan’s best conference finish ever.
The women’s team tied for fourth place in the NCAC standings and went on to place 11th at the NCAA Division III regional meet in 2010, landing two runners on the all-region teams. Ohio Wesleyan sent runner Kat Zimmerly ’11 on to the NCAA Division III championship meet, posting a 30th-place finish to win All-America honors for the first time since 1982.
In 2011, the Ohio Wesleyan women’s team finished second in the NCAC championship race and went on to a ninth-place showing at the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional meet. Ohio Wesleyan had its first-ever NCAC individual champion and sent a runner on to the NCAA Division III championship meet for the second consecutive season, recording a 50th-place finish.
In 2012, the Bishop women finished fourth in the North Coast Athletic Conference championship meet and 13th in the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional meet. The women’s cross country team advanced to the NCAA Division III championship meet in 2013, the Bishops’ first national appearance since 1982. On the way to the national meet, Ohio Wesleyan finished second in the North Coast Athletic Conference championship meet and fourth in the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional meet.
Ohio Wesleyan University has hosted cross country meets at Liberty Park since the 2009 season. The course is located on Home Road south of Delaware, approximately six miles south of Delaware and eight miles south of the Ohio Wesleyan campus.
From the early 1960s to 2008, Ohio Wesleyan hosted cross country meets at the Methodist Theological School and the Delaware Golf Club. The course was located off US 23, approximately two miles south of Delaware and three miles south of the Ohio Wesleyan campus, and was the site of the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships in 1984 and 2005 as well as many All-Ohio championship meets.
Ohio Wesleyan cross country meets prior to the early 1960s usually were run on road courses, with one popular path heading south on Henry Street, east on Olentangy Avenue, and south on Pollock Road before doubling back, with races often finishing at Selby Stadium.
