Mattar Kubacki Takes Impressive Eagle Career Into AU Hall of Fame

Excellence in the water and in the classroom has led former Eagle swimmer Hannah Mattar Kubacki into the Ashland University Hall of Fame.
 
Mattar Kubacki will be part of the 50^th Ashland athletics Hall of Fame class, which officially will be inducted during the 2026 Ashland University Hall of Fame Induction and Student-Athlete of the Year recognition, Oct. 3 at 9 a.m. at the John C. Myers Convocation Center – prior to the Eagle football team's 102^nd Homecoming game at 1 p.m. vs. Tiffin at Jack Miller Stadium/Martinelli Field.
 
"I was overseas on my honeymoon," she said, describing how she found out about the AU Hall call. "That made it even that much more special. I was shocked. I know so many amazing people who are in the Hall of Fame, and I've attended that event in the past, and seen how amazing it's been.
 
"To be one of them now is very humbling and very exciting."
 
A member of the AU Class of 2016, Mattar Kubacki was a singular force of nature at the 2016 NCAA Division II Championships – earning the Eagle women a 35^th-place national showing by herself following a 10^th-place finish in the women's 200 breaststroke, 12^th place in the women's 200 individual medley and 19^th place in the women's 400 IM.
 
A seven-time first-team All-American at Ashland, Mattar Kubacki also was a two-time GLIAC Commissioner's Award winner, two-time first-team College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-American, three-time CoSIDA Academic All-District, and the 2015 GLIAC women's Swimmer of the Year.
 
Mattar Kubacki came to campus from Lake Orion, Mich. – and she said her recruiting process was unconventional.
 
"I always thought I wanted to go and swim Division I," she admitted, "so that's really where I put most of my time and effort."
 
She went on recruiting trips and visits to bigger schools, but she said she never felt the "click" or the "fit."
 
"I ended up reaching out to (AU Hall of Famer and former head coach) Paul Graham, and I said, 'Hey, can I just come on an unofficial visit?' I literally left there after being on campus for maybe 12 hours," Mattar Kubacki said, "and I said to my mom, 'This is it. This feels like home to me.'
 
"As soon as I knew, I knew. And it was such an easy decision."
 
As for competing for Graham early in her Eagle career, Mattar Kubacki said, "It was amazing. He helped me rekindle my love for swimming. He showed me how much further I could go, in terms of just my capability. He believed in me so much."
 
Mattar Kubacki's final swims as an Eagle resulted into not only a 35^th-place team national finish for the AU women, but 36 Learfield Directors' Cup (NCAA Division II all-sports standings) points for the athletic department – all by herself.
 
"It was very cool to be able to go and represent and do well," she said. "It was really weird to go by myself. It was definitely a unique experience, but I was very grateful and very blessed that I had the opportunity to do that."
 
Mattar Kubacki's dual success as both an in-the-pool All-American and an Academic All-American is notable, and something that was important to her.
 
"Very important," she said. "I just fell in love to Ashland. I fell in love with the people, just the community, the feel, the vibe of campus. I was able to get to know so many of my professors while I was there on a very personal level. Some of them, I'm still in contact with today.
 
"It's very unique, going to Ashland, because you have all these people in your corner."
 
That love for Ashland University continues to this day, as Mattar Kubacki serves on the Board of Directors of the AU Alumni Association.
 
"I love being a member of the AU Board of Directors of the Alumni Association," she said. "It is absolutely wonderful. Four years in, it's just so awesome to still kind of go back and give back to campus, and give back to Ashland, a place that gave me so much, and an experience I will never forget."
 
Living in Westerville, Ohio, Mattar Kubacki is recently married to J.D. Kubacki.
 
"He has just been my rock. He is my absolute best friend," she said. "We have two dogs. And I've got my parents up in Michigan. My sister is there. I've got a brother over in Chicago, a brother in New York. So we're kind of all over the place. But they have always been such a huge support system to me."
 
Mattar Kubacki is an Account Manager at Corporate Benefit Solutions, working with her father.
 
What would Mattar Kubacki's sales pitch for Ashland University be to someone who may be interested in attending?
 
"It's just the best place," she said. "It's so much fun. You will grow so much in every area that you are looking to grow. There's an opportunity for whatever you're interested in. It's a huge family.
 
"I can't say enough good things about my time at Ashland, and just how blessed I feel to have been able to have the opportunity, and all of the opportunities that Ashland has opened up for me in my life. It's overwhelming that God was able to have me go there and lead my path the entire time. I owe it all to Him."