History of Mean Green Soccer
Since the program's birth in 1995, Mean Green soccer has never had a losing season. North Texas' 22-year combined record stands at 314-120-27 - a .710 winning percentage.Having established himself as one of the most prominent coaches in the Central Region, John Hedlund has molded the Mean Green soccer program into one of the nation's elite. The only head coach in program history, Hedlund has amassed 314 career wins, which ranks him 21st all-time among Division I head coaches.
Hedlund has had a winning season all 22 years at North Texas; only Anson Dorrance (North Carolina, 38 years), John Daly (William & Mary, 35 years) and G Guerrieri (Texas A&M, 24 years) have active streaks of more winning seasons at one school. Since 1995, Hedlund has led North Texas to a 314-120-27 record (71.0 percent), the 14th-best winning percentage among active Division I coaches
On Aug. 19, 2016, Hedlund became the 20th NCAA Division I women's soccer coach to reach 300 career wins with a season-opening 4-0 victory against Incarnate Word.
Hedlund continued his winning tradition in his 22nd season. He started the season by capturing his 300th career win and finished it by capturing the Mean Green's third straight Conference USA regular-season conference title. The Mean Green went 9-1 in conference play, only the second time that a North Texas team has won nine league games. North Texas earned the No. 1 seed in the Conference USA Championship but ultimately lost in the semifinals.
Hedlund is the winningest coach in any sport in the history of North Texas athletics. His twelve total conference championships leads all North Texas sports in the recent era.
Altogether, Hedlund and NT have won 12 total conference titles, most recently the 2016 Conference USA regular season title. He has led the Mean Green to eight regular season titles, and four trips to the NCAA Tournament (2004, 2005, 2012, 2015). In fact, with the win in the 2012 Sun Belt title game, Hedlund became just the 25th coach in NCAA Division I history to reach the 250 win plateau.
Hedlund guided the program into the Conference USA era in 2013, and earned the league's No. 2 seed and a trip to the C-USA title game. He followed that up with two more trips to the championship game. It took three tries but the Mean Green finally won its first Conference USA Championship in 2015.
The 2014 team tied a then program record with 16 wins, set a single-season record with 14 shutouts and claimed its ninth conference championship with the regular-season title.
The Mean Green's first season in C-USA in 2013 can be seen as nothing but a success. NT went 14-7-1 overall, earned the league's No. 2 seed and advanced to the C-USA Tournament finals. The Mean Green also brought home a host of major awards and notched two wins over Big 12 opponents, while also taking No. 10 Wake Forest and Oklahoma State to overtime.
The ultimate goal of the program, North Texas has advanced to the NCAA Tournament four times - 2004, 2005, 2012 and 2015. Only five Division I schools in the state of Texas (of 20) have more NCAA Tournament appearances. In C-USA, only Charlotte has more tourney bids.
Not one player on the current Mean Green roster has ever lost a home game in conference play. NT is 41-0-2 in league play since its last home conference loss on Halloween of 2008 - a span of eight full seasons.
Since the Mean Green Soccer Complex opened in 2006, North Texas is a gaudy 90-13-6 (84 percent) at home.
In 13 years in the Sun Belt, North Texas advanced to at least the semifinals of the league tournament 12 times, and made nine finals appearances. NT won three SBC Tournament championships.
Hedlund has coached 76 all-conference players since 1999, including the 2015 C-USA Co-Offensive Player of the Year and Midfielder of the year. His players have won three Sun Belt Player of the Year awards and four Sun Belt Freshmen of the Year awards. In the three years in Conference USA, Hedlund has coached two offensive players of the year, one defensive, midfielder and freshman players of the year.
He has won three Sun Belt Coach of the Year awards, the latest in 2011. He has been recognized as the North Texas Coach of the Year by the Dallas Morning News and the Dallas All Sports Association, and the Greater Denton Sports Commission two years in a row.
North Texas boasts three players who have been named freshman All-Americans. - Christy Johnson (Third Team, 1997), Gina Turner (HM, 1998), Marilyn Marin (First Team, 2000).
Mean Green players have accounted for 20 All-Central Region team selections.
North Texas has eleven 15-win seasons in school history, including a stretch of six straight from 2003-2008. 
NT has had three conference players of the year, two offensive players of the year, five freshmen of the year, and John Hedlund is a three-time league coach of the year.
Heather Hutyra became the youngest player in the Sun Belt Conference to earn Player of the Year honors as a sophomore in 2005. She was inducted to the North Texas Athletics Hall of Fame in 2013.
North Texas has been awarded conference freshman of the year honors five times. The latest recipient was Rachel Holden in 2013 after a 12-goal campaign. Janaye Woods won in 2007, Kelli Lunsford received the award in 2005, Heather Hutyra was named freshman of the year in 2004, and Marilyn Marin received the honor in 2000.
Kendall Juett (2006-09) became the second player in school history to be named first-team all-conference all four years, joining two-time Sun Belt Player of the Year Marilyn Marin.
The 2004 squad set a school record with 16 wins and its first-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament after capturing the program's first Sun Belt Conference Tournament Championship.
The 2003 squad tied a then school record with 15 wins and went a perfect 11-0 at home. The undefeated season at home was the first since 2001 and the third in the program's history.
Marilyn Marin became the first North Texas player to win back-to-back Player of the Year honors in the Sun Belt Conference. She was also named to the first-team all-conference squad for a fourth straight year.
In 2002, North Texas was second in the nation in goals per game and forward Marilyn Marin, who led the nation in goals, points, and points per game, was named the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year.
In 2001, the Mean Green captured its first Sun Belt Conference regular-season championship in just the second year of the league sponsoring women's soccer. North Texas went a perfect 5-0 at home against Sun Belt opponents en route to a unblemished 7-0 home record for the season.
In 2002, the Mean Green set a school record with 13 consecutive wins at home and a 24-game unbeaten streak at home.
Five women's soccer players have been inducted to the North Texas Athletic Hall of Fame. Krista Davey became the first soccer player to be inducted in 2005, followed by Christy Johnson in 2007 and Marilyn Marin in 2008. Melinda Pina was voted into the Hall of Fame in 2011, and Heather Hutyra joined them in 2013.
