GREENWOOD, IND. — Junior Cherise Beynon of The University of New Mexico women’s basketball team has been named College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-America First Team for her continued outstanding performance both on the court and in the classroom, CoSIDA announced Thursday.
Beynon is just the second Lobo in program history to earn the prestigious Academic All-America honor and is one of just five NCAA Division I players in the country to make the list this season. She is the third Lobo this academic year to earn CoSIDA Academic All-America honors, joining Niko Hansen of men’s soccer and Garrett Adcock of football. She is also the 99th Lobo student-athlete to earn Academic All-America accolades from CoSIDA. This is the third time in the last four years that UNM has had at least three First Team honorees.
Beynon was named CoSIDA Academic All-District 7 First Team on February 9 as one of 43 players in NCAA Division I to earn the honor for her outstanding 4.07 grade point average in business administration and entrepreneurship. The list was whittled down to just five players to earn All-American status on Thursday.
Not only is Beynon a standout in the classroom, she has enjoyed a record-breaking junior season tallying two triple-doubles within 10 days to tie the all-time career and season records for triple-doubles in program history. She is one of just 22 players in the NCAA to register a triple-double this season and is one of just three to post multiple triple-doubles this season.
Beynon leads UNM offensively this season, averaging 15.9 points per game. Earlier this year, she became just the 15th player in program history to reach 1,000 points and 500 rebounds, which she completed in the same game on Jan. 28 against Nevada at home at WisePies Arena – The Pit. She currently ranks 11th in program history in career points with 1,140, eighth in career assists with 361 and sixth in steals with 172.
In addition to making her mark in the program record book, Beynon also leads the Mountain West in several categories this season including total assists and assists per game while posting a league-best five 10-assist games. She is also one of just seven players in the league to collect 30 points or more in a single game this season.
Beynon and the rest of the Lobos will conclude regular-season play on Friday, March 3 when they take on San Diego State on the road. Following the regular-season conclusion, UNM will travel to the 2017 Mountain West Tournament in Las Vegas, Nev.