DMN UNT Article 11/11

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Persistence pays for UNT women's soccer team

Mean Green cashes in with first trip to NCAA soccer tournament

11:46 PM CST on Thursday, November 11, 2004

By BRETT VITO / Denton Record-Chronicle

DENTON – Of all the seasons North Texas could have broken through to earn its first berth in the NCAA women's soccer tournament, 2004 seemed least likely.

The Mean Green came within a game of advancing to the national tournament four straight seasons behind Marilyn Marin before the greatest player in UNT history completed her career last season.

UNT has not only overcome the loss of Marin, it also has reached a milestone by earning a chance to face Texas in a first-round game at 7 p.m. today in Austin. UNT reached the NCAAs with a three-game run through the Sun Belt Conference tournament.

"These girls had to hear from our opponents that Marilyn was our whole team last year," UNT coach John Hedlund said. "She is tremendous, but there was more to that team than Marilyn. There were a lot of blue-collar players who worked their tails off."

Several of those players returned to form the core of a team that took a workmanlike approach while posting a school-record 16 wins. UNT was known as an offensive team when Marin was racking up 88 goals and 212 points in her career. The Mean Green has not been nearly as potent offensively without her. It has a more balanced attack and a standout de- fense. Thirteen players have goals.

Melinda Pina's 10 goals lead UNT. Marin had 23 last season.

"We had to be more of a team this year," said Pina, a senior. "With Marilyn gone we had to pull together. We have the best team chemistry since I have been here."

That chemistry has been apparent in the way UNT has played defensively. Goalkeeper Briana Buchanan has posted a UNT-record 10 shutouts. UNT allowed only one goal in the Sun Belt tournament and shut out its last two opponents. The Mean Green's performance defensively allowed senior forward Alyssa Carrier to score a goal that characterized UNT's season in a 1-0 win over Florida International in the final.

Carrier cut her head early in the game and left for treatment before returning to score the winner on a header in the final 10 seconds. UNT had to work the whole game for the goal, but that didn't matter.

"This team has something about it," Hedlund said. "It always finds a way to win."