North Texas Daily

Tim Cato / Staff Writer

The women’s basketball team is just 1-4, but that’s no reason to panic. Although the team is not happy with the losses so far, they understand that the teams they’ve played all are tough opponents.

Out of the four losses, the Mean Green has only lost one of those games by more than five points. A play here or there could easily have changed the outcome of those games, and the buzz around this team would be altered significantly.

“We’re three possessions from being 4-1, and that’s what I told our team today,” head coach Mike Petersen said. “I wasn’t down on how we were playing, I felt bad because we weren’t breaking through and winning. It was just a matter of a couple of plays in each game, a little flat spot in each game where we didn’t have our focus right.”

In the first five games of the season, the Mean Green has played teams with a combined record of 18-3, and four of the five games have been on the road.

Petersen had no say in the non-conference schedule, but he’s not upset with it, either.

“I don’t like being 1-4; I’ve never been 1-4,” Petersen said. “But frankly, given the difficulty of our schedule, the fact that we’ve been on the road the whole month of November, these experiences will help us in January and February.”

Freshman guard Loryn Goodwin said that the tougher competition can only make the team stronger as conference approaches and games become more meaningful.

“I think when you’re playing tough teams and you’re having to go against tough competition all the time in [non-conference play], then once [conference] starts, it’s much easier,” Goodwin said. “You get a better flow of the offense.”

Still, the players said they are not happy with the losses. Tough games help the team grow, but winning tough games helps even more. Junior guard Laura McCoy said she doesn’t make excuses for any loss this season.

“I think you have to go in there with the same mindset for every single team,” McCoy said.

The game that might be the biggest test for UNT is a road game against the University of Oklahoma on Dec. 6. The team will also face Tulane University on the road, while matching up against the University of Arizona and the University of Texas at Arlington at home in the Super Pit.

Petersen chooses a quote from the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche to view the team’s tough non-conference schedule.

“‘That which does not kill me makes me stronger,’” Petersen said. “The end of that quote is, ‘That which kills me makes me dead.’ This will be good for us, as long as it doesn’t kill us. We won’t let that happen.”