Ari Marks has been named the National Women’s Track Athlete of the Year (d3photography.com).
Ari Marks has been named the National Women’s Track Athlete of the Year (d3photography.com).

Ari Marks Named 2022 NCAA Division III Women’s Outdoor Track & Field National Track Athlete of the Year

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- Wellesley College track & field senior Ari Marks (Eagle Point, Ore.) has been named the National Women's Track Athlete of the Year for the 2022 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field season. The honor was announced on Wednesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). 

Marks completed the distance double at the 2022 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field Championships with a near 11-second victory in the 5000 meters and a 27-second triumph in the 10,000 meters, winning the national championship in both events. Her winning time of 16:08.90 in the 5000 moved her up to No. 4 on the NCAA DIII all-time chart. During the regular season, Marks went nearly undefeated in both events and won both at the DIII New England Outdoor Championships with a PR of 34:16.45 in the 25-lapper. Marks also set a PR in the 1500 meters of 4:34.06 at the MIT Final Qualifier.

Marks is the third Wellesley student-athlete to receive Division III National Athlete of the Year honors, joing a list that includes diver Maura Sticco-Ivins '18, the National Diver of the Year in 2017, and Kim Eaton '11, the National Golfer of the Year in 2011.

Member coaches voted on these honors following the conclusion of the 2022 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships this past weekend in Geneva, Ohio, but considered performances during both the regular season and the NCAA postseason.

2022 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field National Awards (ustfccca.org)


Wellesley Athletics strives for excellence at the conference, regional, and national levels, while providing opportunities for students to achieve their potential and learn the values of discipline, leadership, critical thinking, and responsibility to oneself and others.