2020 Hall of Fame Class Announced
6/9/2020 1:00:00 PM | Football, General, Men's Basketball, Softball, Women's Basketball, Women's Soccer, Mean Green Athletic Fund, Letterwinners Association
DENTON – The North Texas Athletics Department announced its 2020 Athletics Hall of Fame class Tuesday, with six new inductees covering five different sports.
The school's all-time winningest women's basketball coach Tina Slinker will be a part of the 2020 class, along with Johnny Mata, who played on some of the best football teams in UNT history alongside his teammate Joe Greene.
Arguably the best goalkeeper in the Mean Green soccer team's history, Jackie Kerestine is going in the Hall of Fame in her first year of eligibility. Quarterback Derek Thompson led his team to the only Mean Green bowl victory in the last 16 years and will be a Hall of Fame member in the 2020 class. Men's basketball is represented by Tristan Thompson, who helped North Texas to a Sun Belt Conference championship and NCAA Tournament appearance in 2010. One of the pioneers of the North Texas softball program, Katya Muller-Winslow will also join the 2020 Hall of Fame Class after a career that saw her leave with five different career records.
2020 North Texas Athletics Hall of Fame Class
Jackie Kerestine, Soccer, 2011-15
Johnny Mata, Football, 1966-67
Katya Muller-Winslow, Softball, 2005-08
Tina Slinker, Women's Basketball Coach, 1989-2008
Derek Thompson, Football 2009-13
Tristan Thompson, Men's Basketball, 2008-11
Jackie Kerestine, Soccer, 2011-15
Kerestine is in the conversation for greatest player in UNT soccer history. Kerestine led the Mean Green to four conference regular season championships and two conference tournament championships. In the program record 90 matches she started UNT only lost 16 times. In the 40 league matches she started UNT only lost four times. As a senior captain in 2015, Kerestine led UNT to its greatest season in program history with a 19-4-1 overall record and a C-USA regular season and tournament championship. Unfortunately, Kerestine tore her ACL during warm ups of their first round 2015 NCAA Tournament match and was unable to play. That season, she led the nation in save percentage and ranked fourth in goals-against average. She set the school record for single-season shutouts with 15 and became the first goalkeeper in UNT history to eclipse 300 saves and 50 wins. Kerestine still holds every career goalkeeping record at UNT. She still ranks first in program history in games played (93) and games started (90).
Johnny Mata, Football 1966-67
Mata was a team captain and the top linebacker on back-to-back Missouri Valley Conference championship teams. He was a standout at Blinn Junior College, where he earned junior college All-America notice before transferring to North Texas, where he earned Missouri Valley all-conference honors. Although tackle statistics from that era have not survived, Mata was a leader on a rugged defense that held opponents under 20 points in 14 of the 19 games North Texas played in 1966 and 1967, and allowed an average of 14.7 points per game on squads that went 15-3-1.
Katya Muller-Winslow, Softball 2005-08
Upon graduation in 2008, Katya Muller had penned her name at the top of the North Texas
record book in five different categories; hits (222), at-bats (755), runs scored (122), triples (8)
and multi-hit games (61). The Southlake native also ranked second in eight other categories
including batting average, slugging percentage, games played, games started, home runs, RBI, doubles and total bases. She still holds the North Texas records for at-bats and triples.
The two-time first-team All-Sun Belt Conference selection (2007 and 2008) and 2006 Sun Belt Conference All-Tournament team member became the first player in North Texas history to post 200 career hits during her senior season. She led the team in hits in 2006 and 2007 while ranking second as a senior in 2008. Became the first player in North Texas history to post at least 60 multi-hit games and sits third in school history with 61. Named Lowe's Senior CLASS Award Candidate and ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District as a senior in 2008.
Muller became the program's all-time hits leader by picking up five hits in a doubleheader
against Northwestern State on April 2, 2008 and currently sits in second-place with 222.
Tina Slinker, Women's Basketball Coach, 1989-2008
Slinker is far and away the school's all-time winningest coach with 241 career wins over her 19-year career making her the longest tenured women's basketball coach. She is the only coach in program history to amass two 20-win seasons and helped guide her teams to four division championships and six winning seasons over her career. She coached UNT to the first-ever bid to the Women's National Invitational Tournament in 2000-01 and then backed that up with another appearance in the WNIT in 2002. Slinker was the Big West Conference Coach of the Year 1998-99 and compiled the most victories in a season in the history of North Texas women's basketball in 2001-02 (21). She coached 17 all-conference athletes, including the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year (Jalie Mitchell, 2002) and the Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year (Rosalyn Reades, 2002). During her coaching career, her teams set 16 team records and 28 individual records.
Derek Thompson, Football 2009-13
Thompson is the program's third leading passer in terms of passing yardage, behind only Mason Fine and Mitch Maher. He engineered the Mean Green's most recent bowl win, a 2014 Heart of Dallas Bowl conquest over UNLV. Thompson threw for 7,477 career passing yards, ranks fifth in program history in career touchdown passes with 42, is third in career passing attempts (1,055), third in career completions (636), fifth in career passing efficiency (126.27), fifth in career completion percentage (60.3%) and is second in career 300-plus yard passing games (seven). The Glen Rose, Texas, native also owns two of the 10 longest passing plays in program history (85 yards to Brelan Chancellor in 2013 against Idaho and 83 yards to Lance Dunbar against Indiana in 2011). During his 2013 season, Thompson had the fifth-most passing yards in a single season (2,896), the fifth-most completions (251) and the third-best completion percentage in a single season (64.3).Thompson's crowning achievement was also his sendoff, after he was named 2014 Heart of Dallas Bowl MVP following the 36-14 win over UNLV. Thompson completed 21-30 passes for 256 yards and two touchdowns and no interceptions in the win. The 2013 team concluded the season by receiving votes from the USA Today Coaches Poll, for the first time in a decade.
Tristan Thompson, Men's Basketball, 2008-11
Thompson was a member of one of North Texas' most successful stretches of men's basketball. In his four seasons, UNT won at least 20 games every year including a program-record 24 in 2009-10. In his four years combined, North Texas was 86-43 and went 9-3 in conference tournament games. He still ranks fifth all-time in UNT history with 1,629 career points. He averaged a team leading 14.5 points per game as junior and guided UNT to a Sun Belt Tournament championship and NCAA Tournament appearance where he scored a then career-high 28 points against Kansas State. As a senior he broke the Sun Belt Tournament scoring record with 95 points. He was named first team all-conference and all-tournament. In the conference tournament
semifinal game, Thompson scored an epic 36 points against FAU and was a perfect 20-of-20 from the free throw line to send the Mean Green to the championship game. When he graduated he ranked fifth in program history in career 3-pointers with 183 and second in free throws with 520. He was twice named Sun Belt all-conference and was either the team's leading scorer or second leading scorer three of his four years at UNT.
Support North Texas student-athletes by visiting MeanGreenScholarshipFund.com.
The school's all-time winningest women's basketball coach Tina Slinker will be a part of the 2020 class, along with Johnny Mata, who played on some of the best football teams in UNT history alongside his teammate Joe Greene.
Arguably the best goalkeeper in the Mean Green soccer team's history, Jackie Kerestine is going in the Hall of Fame in her first year of eligibility. Quarterback Derek Thompson led his team to the only Mean Green bowl victory in the last 16 years and will be a Hall of Fame member in the 2020 class. Men's basketball is represented by Tristan Thompson, who helped North Texas to a Sun Belt Conference championship and NCAA Tournament appearance in 2010. One of the pioneers of the North Texas softball program, Katya Muller-Winslow will also join the 2020 Hall of Fame Class after a career that saw her leave with five different career records.
2020 North Texas Athletics Hall of Fame Class
Jackie Kerestine, Soccer, 2011-15
Johnny Mata, Football, 1966-67
Katya Muller-Winslow, Softball, 2005-08
Tina Slinker, Women's Basketball Coach, 1989-2008
Derek Thompson, Football 2009-13
Tristan Thompson, Men's Basketball, 2008-11
Jackie Kerestine, Soccer, 2011-15
Kerestine is in the conversation for greatest player in UNT soccer history. Kerestine led the Mean Green to four conference regular season championships and two conference tournament championships. In the program record 90 matches she started UNT only lost 16 times. In the 40 league matches she started UNT only lost four times. As a senior captain in 2015, Kerestine led UNT to its greatest season in program history with a 19-4-1 overall record and a C-USA regular season and tournament championship. Unfortunately, Kerestine tore her ACL during warm ups of their first round 2015 NCAA Tournament match and was unable to play. That season, she led the nation in save percentage and ranked fourth in goals-against average. She set the school record for single-season shutouts with 15 and became the first goalkeeper in UNT history to eclipse 300 saves and 50 wins. Kerestine still holds every career goalkeeping record at UNT. She still ranks first in program history in games played (93) and games started (90).
Johnny Mata, Football 1966-67
Mata was a team captain and the top linebacker on back-to-back Missouri Valley Conference championship teams. He was a standout at Blinn Junior College, where he earned junior college All-America notice before transferring to North Texas, where he earned Missouri Valley all-conference honors. Although tackle statistics from that era have not survived, Mata was a leader on a rugged defense that held opponents under 20 points in 14 of the 19 games North Texas played in 1966 and 1967, and allowed an average of 14.7 points per game on squads that went 15-3-1.
Katya Muller-Winslow, Softball 2005-08
Upon graduation in 2008, Katya Muller had penned her name at the top of the North Texas
record book in five different categories; hits (222), at-bats (755), runs scored (122), triples (8)
and multi-hit games (61). The Southlake native also ranked second in eight other categories
including batting average, slugging percentage, games played, games started, home runs, RBI, doubles and total bases. She still holds the North Texas records for at-bats and triples.
The two-time first-team All-Sun Belt Conference selection (2007 and 2008) and 2006 Sun Belt Conference All-Tournament team member became the first player in North Texas history to post 200 career hits during her senior season. She led the team in hits in 2006 and 2007 while ranking second as a senior in 2008. Became the first player in North Texas history to post at least 60 multi-hit games and sits third in school history with 61. Named Lowe's Senior CLASS Award Candidate and ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District as a senior in 2008.
Muller became the program's all-time hits leader by picking up five hits in a doubleheader
against Northwestern State on April 2, 2008 and currently sits in second-place with 222.
Tina Slinker, Women's Basketball Coach, 1989-2008
Slinker is far and away the school's all-time winningest coach with 241 career wins over her 19-year career making her the longest tenured women's basketball coach. She is the only coach in program history to amass two 20-win seasons and helped guide her teams to four division championships and six winning seasons over her career. She coached UNT to the first-ever bid to the Women's National Invitational Tournament in 2000-01 and then backed that up with another appearance in the WNIT in 2002. Slinker was the Big West Conference Coach of the Year 1998-99 and compiled the most victories in a season in the history of North Texas women's basketball in 2001-02 (21). She coached 17 all-conference athletes, including the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year (Jalie Mitchell, 2002) and the Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year (Rosalyn Reades, 2002). During her coaching career, her teams set 16 team records and 28 individual records.
Derek Thompson, Football 2009-13
Thompson is the program's third leading passer in terms of passing yardage, behind only Mason Fine and Mitch Maher. He engineered the Mean Green's most recent bowl win, a 2014 Heart of Dallas Bowl conquest over UNLV. Thompson threw for 7,477 career passing yards, ranks fifth in program history in career touchdown passes with 42, is third in career passing attempts (1,055), third in career completions (636), fifth in career passing efficiency (126.27), fifth in career completion percentage (60.3%) and is second in career 300-plus yard passing games (seven). The Glen Rose, Texas, native also owns two of the 10 longest passing plays in program history (85 yards to Brelan Chancellor in 2013 against Idaho and 83 yards to Lance Dunbar against Indiana in 2011). During his 2013 season, Thompson had the fifth-most passing yards in a single season (2,896), the fifth-most completions (251) and the third-best completion percentage in a single season (64.3).Thompson's crowning achievement was also his sendoff, after he was named 2014 Heart of Dallas Bowl MVP following the 36-14 win over UNLV. Thompson completed 21-30 passes for 256 yards and two touchdowns and no interceptions in the win. The 2013 team concluded the season by receiving votes from the USA Today Coaches Poll, for the first time in a decade.
Tristan Thompson, Men's Basketball, 2008-11
Thompson was a member of one of North Texas' most successful stretches of men's basketball. In his four seasons, UNT won at least 20 games every year including a program-record 24 in 2009-10. In his four years combined, North Texas was 86-43 and went 9-3 in conference tournament games. He still ranks fifth all-time in UNT history with 1,629 career points. He averaged a team leading 14.5 points per game as junior and guided UNT to a Sun Belt Tournament championship and NCAA Tournament appearance where he scored a then career-high 28 points against Kansas State. As a senior he broke the Sun Belt Tournament scoring record with 95 points. He was named first team all-conference and all-tournament. In the conference tournament
semifinal game, Thompson scored an epic 36 points against FAU and was a perfect 20-of-20 from the free throw line to send the Mean Green to the championship game. When he graduated he ranked fifth in program history in career 3-pointers with 183 and second in free throws with 520. He was twice named Sun Belt all-conference and was either the team's leading scorer or second leading scorer three of his four years at UNT.
Support North Texas student-athletes by visiting MeanGreenScholarshipFund.com.
Players Mentioned
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