By Wes Mayberry
www.onusports.com
Ohio Northern senior Brynn Serbin (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) was named the 2023 Region 7 Player of the Year as a member of the All-Region First Team in women's basketball by D3hoops.com.
ONU head coach Mark Huelsman was also recognized as the Region 7 Coach of the Year.
Huelsman, the 2022-23 Ohio Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, led the Polar Bears to a 25-5 record this season, including a 15-3 mark in OAC play. He is now 49-21 in three seasons at ONU for a winning percentage of .700.
Northern won the 2023 OAC Regular Season championship and the OAC Tournament title en route to earning the 10th NCAA Tournament bid in program history.
Ranked No. 16 nationally, the Polar Bears hosted first- and second-round games in the NCAA Tournament, defeating No. 25 Berea (Ky.) and Wisconsin-Oshkosh before falling at No. 2 Transylvania (Ky.) in the Sweet 16.
On the court, Serbin sparked the Polar Bears to their success, averaging 14.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.7 steals per game. She ranked second in the Ohio Athletic Conference in scoring average and led the conference with 134 assists and 81 steals, both of which are program records for a single season. Her 429 points in 2022-23 rank fifth all-time at ONU for a single season.
Serbin has earned numerous accolades for her play this season. The 2019-20 OAC Freshman of the Year is now a four-time All-OAC selection after earning a spot on the First Team this season as the conference's Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year.
A three-time OAC Player of the Week this season, Serbin was also named the OAC Tournament MVP after averaging 15 points, 8.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 2.0 steals in wins over Otterbein and Marietta.
Serbin is ONU's all-time leader in career steals with 223 and ranks third in program history with 295 career assists. She ranks fifth all-time with 132 made 3-pointers in her career and has 913 career points, which is 13 shy of breaking into the top 20 on the program's all-time list in that category.
Student-athletes who earn All-Region honors are eligible for the D3hoops.com All-America teams. The women's All-America team will be released at a predetermined time between the national semifinals on March 18 and the championship game on April 1.
