Mona Ressaissi was a three-sport athlete at Centenary, competing for the basketball, soccer and cross country programs. She was a member of Centenary’s women’s basketball team from 1995-98 and currently ranks third in the program’s record book with 1,216 career points.
Ressaissi was the first Centenary women’s basketball player to surpass the 1,000-point mark since becoming a member of the NCAA DIII. She was a three-year starter for the Lady Cyclones, earning ECAC Metro Rookie of the Year as a freshman and National Small College Athletic Association (NSCAA) All-American honors as a junior. That same year she led Division III in three point shooting, hitting at a 53.0 percent clip.
Ressaissi received New Jersey Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (NJAIAW) Woman of the Year honors in 1997-98 and was a two-time New Jersey College Basketball Coaches Association (NJCBCA) All-State Team Honoree.
Ressaissi recorded eight triple doubles in a single season, still a school-record for both the men’s and women’s teams, and was a two-time NJCCA All-State Team honoree. As a soccer player, she earned Second Team All-WIAC accolades in 1997.
Ressaissi graduated Summa Cum Laude from Centenary in 1998 with a BA in Political Science and a BA in International Studies. She played overseas for two seasons with the Eos/Malbas Women’s Semi-professional team in Sweden before returning to Hackettstown to take an assistant coaching position with the Lady Cyclones from 2000-02, where she also served as Athletic Academic Advisor.
Ressaissi earned her law degree from Rutgers School of Law-Newark in 2005 and served as the graduation speaker of her class. She has worked at Margolin & Neuner in Hackettstown since 2006 and has been an adjunct instructor at Centenary since 2000.
Ressaissi is married to Devon Vialva, Class of 1997, who is a member of the College's admissions staff. Their children Naya, Kai, and Soleya are frequent visitors to campus, and cheer on mom at every home contest.
