One of the greatest players in the history of the women's basketball program, Melissa Tobie transitions to the coaching sidelines. Last season Tobie led the Montclair State to the finest season in its history ending with a trip to the NCAA Division III Final Four, a third-place finish and a No. 3 ranking in both NCAA national polls. She was a consensus First-Team All-America selection both by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association and D3Hoops.com and was a finalist in both organization’s Division III Player of the Year Award. Tobie was chosen the D3Hoops.com Atlantic Region Player of the Year for a second time and was named the Division III Player of the Year by the Metropolitan Writers Association while landing a spot on the First Team for each. A five-time NJAC Player of the Week during the season, she earned her fourth straight First-Team All-NJAC honor and became the first player in league history to be named the Player of the Year three times.
Tobie led the Red Hawks to their third consecutive NJAC Championship as Montclair became the first NJAC team in 16 years to accomplish that feat and the season didn’t stop until it reached the Final Four in Grand Rapids, MI where she was named to the All-Tournament Team at the NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Championship.
The best all-around player in Division III, Tobie averaged 16.2 points and 10.2 rebounds per contest in addition to recording 111 assists, 103 steals and 77 blocks. She scored double digits in 32 of the 33 games and had 20 games of 16 or more points including 10 contests with 20-plus points and 20 double-double performances which was among the nation’s leaders. Tobie ranked in the Top 10 in the NJAC in nine statistical categories including second in scoring and third in rebounding.
Tobie also reached a pair of coveted milestones in 2015 scoring her 2,000th career point and grabbing her 1,000th career rebound making her the 15th player in Division III history to reach both marks as well as becoming the second player in Montclair State history to accomplish that feat. She closed out her career at Montclair State ranked in the Top 10 in 11 different categories – second in scoring with 2,041 points and field goal percentage which was nearly 50 percent, third in steals with 313 and she connected on 90 three-point field goals.
Off the court she was a Capital One Academic All-District Team and is a member of the Student-Athlete Honor Society in addition to the many community service initiatives.
During her playing career, Montclair State posted a record of 107-14 and made three consecutive appearances in the NCAA Division III Tournament.
