Posted: Nov 03, 2014

NCAA Leading Scorer Cansu Usta Garners National Attention in Sports Illustrated and Newsweek

Images from the digital editions of Sports Illustrated & Newsweek

BROOKLYN, N.Y.—St. Joseph's College is proud to announce that Brooklyn freshman Cansu Usta (Brooklyn, N.Y.) has been featured in both Sports Illustrated and Newsweek for her athletic accomplishments in women's soccer. Recognizing her outstanding rookie campaign that sees her sitting atop the NCAA leaderboard in goal scoring and points, Usta has been showcased in the November 3 Sports Illustrated's Faces in the Crowd section on page 24 and in a Newsweek feature published online on Thursday, October 30th.

"On behalf of the entire College community, I commend Cansu on her extraordinary accomplishments on the soccer field," stated Dr. Jack P. Calareso, president, St. Joseph's College. "Her dedication, ability, and excellence both in the classroom and as part of our soccer program bring great credit to St. Joseph's, and we are fortunate to have her talents and abilities among our community of scholars and learners."

It marks the first time a Brooklyn student-athlete has been featured in either national publication. Sports Illustrated has a total print circulation of over 3 million, according to the Alliance for Audited Media.

Through games played Sunday, Usta leads the NCAA in all divisions, both men and women with 36 goals and 79 points. The freshman forward tallied a goal in 11 of 16 games, recording hat tricks in six games, helping the women's soccer team to a program-best 11-5 mark.

The Fort Hamilton H.S. product scored six goals in a game twice this season, most recently against Medgar Evers two weeks ago. Her six tallies are most in an NCAA single game this season, sharing the mark with five others, including teammate Shannon Fahy (Breezy Point, N.Y.).

With the Lady Bears season ending last Wednesday, Usta will have to wait to see if she is crowned the NCAA statistical champion for 2014. She currently has a four-goal lead in total goals and two-point lead in total points, both over junior forward Olivia Huber of St. Thomas More.

Usta's 2.25 goals per game would also set a new NCAA single season record that has stood since 1989 when Collette Cunningham of Marymount University (Va.) scored 39 goals in 18 games for a 2.17 goals per game average. She currently leads Yanique Newman of CCNY by .10 goals per game with the Beavers entering the CUNYAC playoffs this week.