Beginning with his introductory press conference three weeks ago, Cleveland State head coach Bob Dunn pledged to localize the program a bit from its geographically-diverse recent history. He’s already delivered by grabbing guard Alexa Hocevar out of the transfer portal this week, a commitment reported by On3’s Talia Goodman.
Hocevar, a Willoughby Hills native and West Geauga graduate, will be the first CSU player from Greater Cleveland since Destiny Leo’s departure following the 2024-25 season. Outside of Leo, the last area product to wear the green and white was Isabella Geraci, who left in 2022.
The newest Viking is a 6-1 guard who played at Toledo this past year, where she averaged 2.9 points and 2.5 rebounds over roughly 11 minutes per game. Though Hocevar struggled for playing time down the stretch, she produced well when on the floor. In an early-season win at Youngstown State, she put up nine points, four rebounds, and three assists in 17 minutes. Hocevar had eight points and a season-best seven rebounds in a February loss to Central Michigan, her only start of the campaign.
Really, though, the better look at her abilities came during her first collegiate stop, IU Indianapolis. As a sophomore with the Jaguars, Hocevar became a regular starter by the end of the season, and delivered 8.1 points and 4.7 rebounds per outing as a solid secondary option behind Katie Davidson. She had ten double-digit scoring outings that year, including a career-best 19 tallies in a late-season win over Oakland. Against Wright State three weeks before that, Hocevar scored 15 times and added seven rebounds, along with four assists.
She also excelled defensively with 1.5 steals per game, including eight in a January 8, 2025 victory versus OU, and five on East Tennessee State at a Christmas multi-team event.
Stylistically, Hocevar is a fair match for now-former Viking Macey Fegan, who announced her commitment to Akron out of the portal on Tuesday. She’s a capable shooter, but is truly at her best when working near the middle of the floor to put back rebounds, facilitate offense, and create chaos on the opposite end.
Should the NCAA’s proposed five-in-five legislation be implemented, as anticipated, Hocevar would have two years of eligibility remaining, since she was a true freshman in 2023-24. Under the present rules, 2026-27 is set to be her final season.
Beyond being from just outside of Cleveland, the Hocevar family is certainly familiar with the Horizon League – and with Cleveland State. Alexa’s sister, Athena, played at Youngstown State and Wright State between 2021 and 2023. Their father, Brian, is a CSU graduate who played center for Mike Boyd and Rollie Massimino from 1995-98. Between those two, and counting Alexa’s experience at IU Indy, the Hocevars have played for one-third of the HL’s current membership.
As a West Geauga Wolverine, Hocevar was in National Honor Society and named second team All-Ohio, while becoming just the second player in school history to score 1,000 points. She is a pre-med and biology major.
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