Roundtable: Mean Green sports year in review

[Skipper]

Editor’s Note: In the last roundtable of the semester, the sports staff breaks down how North Texas fared in year two of the Conference USA era.

Torie Mosley / Intern Writer

North Texas’ second year in C-USA play was average at best. The football, basketball and softball teams disappointed Mean Green fans, but do have some hope for the future. But, the golf, soccer and cross country teams were big positives.

Football had a rough year after the Heart of Dallas bowl victory in 2013-2014. The Mean Green finished just 4-8, plagued with injuries, turnovers and poor road play.

Poor road play also hurt men’s and women’s basketball’s seasons. The men finished 14-17, going just 3-10 on the road. The team ended its season on a sour note against Rice University with a 82-54 loss in the C-USA tournament. Women’s basketball wrapped up its season with a 5-24 record, and mutually parted ways with coach Mike Petersen. Hopefully new head coach Jalie Mitchell can bring a spark to next year’s team.

Softball has a 16-27 record with a handful of games left to play. Its road record has also suffered, going 4-12 on the road so far this season. The squad is currently on a four game losing streak.

Men’s golf has seen recent success with senior Juan Munoz winning the C-USA individual championship and the team winning the entire thing over the University of Alabama – Birmingham.

Women’s golf just had its best finish at the C-USA championship since 2011, finishing fourth at the event. Freshman Abbi Shaddix tied for seventh place, posted the best finish in a conference championship by a freshman since Nina Reis in 1999.

There are positives for most of the teams across campus, and next year is filled with potential.

Brianna Pleasant / Intern Writer

The football team did not have the season that they were hoping to have. Offensive struggles, defensive inconsistencies and not being able to find a consistent quarterback led to the team having a rough year.

The softball team also failed to have the season it wanted. Various pitching troubles and a lack of consistency has left the team searching for answers throughout the season. It does not help that weather called for the cancellation of several games that the team won’t be able to make up. The team is now trying to snag one of the final spots in the C-USA tournament.

One of the teams that flew under the radar, but garnered the most success, this season was the men's golf team. Munoz just won the C-USA individual championship while the team won the overall C-USA crown as well. Clearly, this wasn’t the best year for sports.  Certain teams flourished while most failed to rise to the occasion.

 

Alex Lilley / Intern Writer

This year started with Mean Green football, who looked poised to have a successful year, but ultimately delivered a disappointing 4-8 season. The team never hit its stride couldn’t put anything together. Most of the damage came in the middle of the season when the team lost four games in a row. It’ll have a lot to improve on if it wants to make a difference this next year.

Soccer continued to perform at the high level we’ve come to expect from the team and head coach John Hedlund. The team recorded its 20th winning season and reached the C-USA finals, but fell in that game for the second straight year. With a lot of key returning players and a solid freshmen class, soccer has an opportunity to get back to and win the championship.

The men’s basketball team team ended the regular season on a losing streak, and it extended into the first round of the C-USA tournament with the loss to Rice. With a majority of the point leaders being seniors, the team will have to find a new identity next year.

Softball seems to be losing gas near the end of the regular season. This team can build wins against quality teams this week, and need to find the form it had during its seven game win streak earlier in the season.

One sport performing admirably down the stretch is the men’s golf team. The team won its 30th conference title and is on its way to the NCAA tournament.

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