Beyruti to Appear in SI's Faces in
the Crowd
UNION, N.J. (2/3/10) - Senior guard
Melissa Beyruti (Union City, N.J.) will
be included in the upcoming issue of Sports
Illustrated after recently becoming the NCAA Division III
al-time leader in three-point field goals made.
The first Kean athlete to be featured in Faces in the Crowd
in the last decade, Beyruti will appear in the February 8, 2010
issue that can also be viewed online at http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/scorecard/faces/2010/02/08/.
The most prolific scorer in
school history, Beyruti broke the NCAA Division III three-point
record on January 13 against Richard Stockton College, hitting five
three-pointers to surpass the old record of 368 set by Meegan
Garrity of Clark University (Mass.).
Beyruti is just nine three-pointers away from breaking the NCAA
all-division three-point field goals made record of 392 held by
Kansas State's Laurie Koehn. She is also on pace to become
the first female in school history to eclipse 2,000 career points,
as she currently has 1,918 points.
Earlier this season, Beyruti hit a school-record and a NCAA
Division III season-high 10 three-pointers in the win over Lycoming
College and was also named the Women's DIII News January Player of
the Month.
A three-time all-NJAC selection, Beyruti was granted a medical
hardship waiver for last season after missing most of the year with
an injury. In 2007-08, Beyruti led the NJAC in both scoring
(19.0) and three-point field goals made (108/3.4), as she ranked
28th in the nation in scoring and for the second
straight year led the nation in three point field goals made.
Beyruti was also named to the 10-member NCAA Division III State
Farm Coaches' All-American Team as a junior in 2007-08 and was an
honorable mention All-American pick as a sophomore in 2006-07, as
she led the Cougars to back-to-back New Jersey Athletic Conference
championships and trips to the NCAA Elite Eight.
The Cougars, who have won 20 straight games since a
season-opening loss to Division I Rutgers Unviersity, are currently
second in the nation in both the D3hoops.com and ESPN USA Today
Division III Coaches' Polls.
