Ohio Dominican University, located in Columbus, Ohio, is home to the Panthers athletic program. The Ohio Dominican Panthers are notably successful across several of their sport programs and compete in NCAA Division II athletics. The university fields 16 athletic teams for men and women, including basketball, football, soccer, softball, volleyball, cross country, track and field, and more.
The Ohio Dominican Panthers have been a member of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC) since the conference’s inception in 2011. Before joining GMAC, ODU was a part of the NAIA American Mideast Conference from 1997-2010. The school had made 25 postseason appearances in that span, garnering seven national top-five finishes.
Over the past decade, the Ohio Dominican Panthers have made themselves known across several sports. In men's basketball, they enjoyed one of the best seasons in program history during the 2020-21 campaign, finishing with a 15-7 record while qualifying for the G-MAC Tournament for the second straight year. Under the tutelage of head coach Dan Evans, the team has improved its regular-season win total from two to seven to 15 from 2018-19 to 2020-21.
In football, the Panthers became a full NCAA Division II member in 2012. Since then, they have won six conference titles, earned five NCAA postseason berths and five conference player of the year honors. During the 2019 season, the Panthers advanced to the NCAA Division II playoffs, the first time since 2013. Head coach Kelly Cummings has done an excellent job leading the team in his tenure, and this year looks promising as they try to continue to build on recent success.
Ohio Dominican also boasts a pair of dominant soccer programs, with the men’s team going 6-0-1 in spring 2021 and women's team posting an impressive 6-1-1 mark. Since 2017, the men's soccer team has made an appearance in the NCAA tournament three times, highlighted by a run to the Sweet Sixteen in 2018.
Additionally, the women’s volleyball program has consistently been one of the top teams in the GMAC Conference in recent years. The squad, led by head coach Brent Ridenour, has won four conference championships since 2015 and earned NCAA Championship berths in 2016 and 2018.
In conclusion, Ohio Dominican University has a lot to be proud of when it comes to its athletic program. With successful teams across various sports and student-athletes who excel on and off the field, it is evident that the Panthers take pride in their athletic accomplishments. As they continue to build on past successes and compete for conference and national titles, the future looks bright for this up-and-coming school.