North Texas Daily

Tim Cato / Senior Staff Writer

It’s twenty minutes after the end of the women’s basketball practice and the Super Pit is almost empty, but freshman guard Loryn Goodwin is just finishing up a post-practice shooting routine that began in high school.

It’s a designated routine with shots from different spots, starting close to the basket and ending at the three-point line. As usual, she’s the last player to leave the court.

“[I’m] determined,” Goodwin said. “I don’t care if I’m the one scoring all the points or if I’m not even in, I just want to win so badly. That’s what sets me apart, my work ethic and how determined I am to win games.”

With two collegiate athletes as parents, sports have always been a major aspect of Goodwin’s life. She played four sports at Temple High School, including cross-country, volleyball and track, but flourished most in basketball.

“My parents really put a lot of time and money into it more than any other sport,” Goodwin said. “I’ve been playing basketball since I was four. It’s what I love to do and it’s what they love to watch me do.”

Goodwin faced a tough decision between her junior and senior year of high school. A new athletic director started at Temple and wanted her father, Trampas Goodwin Jr., to take a demotion from his role as associate head coach despite his long tenure.

“It was her senior year, and I told her if she wanted to stay I would take the demotion for one year then leave,” Trampas said. “She said she wanted to do what’s best for me and for the family. She didn’t want me to take a step back.”

The Goodwin family moved to Houston, where Loryn attended Cypress Falls High School her senior year. Her basketball team reached the 5A state semifinals before losing to defending champion Duncanville High School.

At Cypress, Loryn met head coach James Stephens, who Trampas said was “the best coach Loryn had ever had.” From the moment she arrived, Stephens told her that she needed to become a more consistent shooter.

“She was persistent about getting in extra work, wanting to be great,” Stephens said. “It was so obvious from day one that her desire was to be much more than average. She wanted to be a great player, and she was willing to accomplish that because of her work ethic.”

Loryn was born with the inner drive that propels her to succeed, but her parents helped her development.

“She asked me why I was always the first person there and the last one to leave,” Trampas said. “I told her it’s because no one can ever accuse me of not working hard. You may make some mistakes and you may miss some shots but no one can ever say, ‘Loryn Goodwin is not a hard worker.’”

In her first year of college, Goodwin is building an impressive résumé that includes the Sun Belt Conference freshman of the year award and a spot on the all-conference third team with fellow UNT freshman Alexis Hyder. She also broke the UNT record for most three-pointers made in a season and for the most three-pointers made in consecutive games this season.

As a kinesiology major, she eventually wants to become a physical therapist – hopefully after playing professional basketball in Europe or the Women’s National Basketball Association.

“She’s had a phenomenal freshman year, doing a ton of great things,” head coach Mike Petersen said. “The thing about her is she’s not satisfied at all. She wants to get better, and that’s what good players do.”

Goodwin and the Mean Green will be in action today in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament. UNT faces the University of Louisiana-Lafayette at 2:30 p.m. in Hot Springs, Ark.