University of North Texas Athletics
Green Gang: Women's Golf On The Map
5/9/2011 12:00:00 AM | Return to Play
By Steven Bartolotta, May 9, 2011, 10:11 a.m.
Women's golf season is over, but the imprint this team left on the program will last for years. North Texas couldn't get out of the NCAA Central Regional this weekend, finishing 16th on a course that seemed to punish the teams more than reward them for making the post season.
The winning score was +26. By those standards the Warren Golf Course in South Bend should be hosting a U.S. Open soon.
But what this group did for North Texas women's golf will go beyond the regionals and last much longer. They put a program without tradition, with fanfare, without recognition, without anything going for it, on the map nationally for the first time.
North Texas won four tournaments, had four all-conference selections, Jeff Mitchell was the SBC Coach of the Year, and while they were raising the bar the entire way, the also cleared it everytime.
At the end of the 2007-08 season, the women's golf program was ranked No. 144 in the nation. Enter Mitchell. A slight improvement the following year put North Texas at No. 132 in the nation.
The 2009-10 season was the beginning of the rise. The Mean Green won its first tournament in since 2006 and finished in the top-100 of the national rankings.
That brings us to this year. Tournament titles became the norm. Winning wasn't a surprise anymore, it was expected. By the time the dust settled, the Mean Green made their first NCAA Tournament appearance in school history and achieved its highest ranking ever by cracking the top-50 nationally.
Success brings expectations, but the group of Chandra Alexander, Chaslyn Chrismer, Jacey Chun, Kelsey Kipp and Addison Long have provides some great memories, and the start to many more in years to come.
