Gameday Feature: An Athletics Season to Remember in 2015-16

There's a particular demeanor, or perhaps you could even say a distinct genetic makeup, found at the nucleus of Texas Tech. It's different. The essence is not simply found in the culture of the campus, its people or at the numerous academic or athletic events. Institutions across the country often boast of a unique environment, and many certainly offer just that in one way or another.

But on the South Plains at Texas Tech, the intangibles certainly dive much further than the surface. There is a rich heritage, an authentic pride and distinguished prestige, all of which transpires to something far more concrete than mere platitudes.

That essence is something to be felt, to ingest with the senses and certainly see play out right here at Jones AT&T Stadium.

Since 1997, Senior Associate Athletics Director Dr. Judi Henry has seen, felt, and played an integral part in defining just what Texas Tech is and is to become. In 19 years of serving in a multitude of capacities within the university system, she has certainly seen much in her tenure at Raiderland, but what took place in Lubbock in the last academic year was certainly something to behold.

"Nothing happens in one year," she says. "It's part of a longer journey."

As the Red Raiders and Lady Raiders prime for yet another season on the fields and courts across campus, Henry remains convinced it's the Texas Tech nucleus, that united spirit, that will continue fuel success.

"You have to see it to feel it," Henry says. "It all starts with good people."

In 2015-16 alone, Texas Tech teams claimed three Big 12 Championships, in soccer, men's tennis and baseball. Meanwhile, Tech was the only Big 12 institution to qualify for a bowl game and have its men's basketball and baseball team advance to the NCAA Tournament.

#TexasTech is the only Big 12 school to make a bowl game & play in the NCAA MBB & Baseball Tournaments this season. pic.twitter.com/dqs6QcD8yz
— Texas Tech Athletics (@TechAthletics) May 30, 2016

It was quite a year indeed for the university, but Henry will insist it goes much deeper than just the pieces of a single season.

"Nothing happens in one year," she says. "It's part of a longer journey."

That journey provided the highlight of a lifetime on the soccer pitch in 2015. Perhaps no team at the university embodies that mentality than the women's soccer program. In the last decade, the program has steadily risen to national prominence under the leadership of 10th-year head coach Tom Stone.

Before Stone's arrival, the program hadn't experienced a winning season in a decade.

Entering 2016, the Red Raiders have appeared in four consecutive NCAA Tournaments, and last fall capped it off by bringing a Big 12 trophy to the South Plains. Meanwhile, this summer Red Raider standouts Janine Beckie and Victoria Esson went on to represent Team Canada and New Zealand on the world stage at the Summer Olympics.

"To have the opportunity to see the program from the start is amazing," Henry said. "It epitomizes the Texas Tech culture."

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The Red Raiders went on to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the fourth-consecutive year in 2015.

Complimenting Tech's success on the soccer pitch was the high-flying Red Raider football team under head coach Kliff Kingsbury. The 2015 season was marked by the breakout performance of sophomore quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who lit up the scoreboard earning Sports Illustrated honorable mention All-America honors after throwing for 4,653 yards and rushing for more than 450.

Mahomes became the 13th quarterback in NCAA history to account for more than 5,000 yards of offense in a season as the young sophomore led Tech to its second bowl appearance in three seasons under Kingsbury. The Whitehouse, Texas native enters 2016 looking to fuel the Red Raider offense once again as one of the nation's highest-touted QBs.

As fall turned to winter, Texas Tech continued to garner national attention, this time for turning heads on the basketball court. For the first time in a decade, the Red Raiders found themselves dancing in March after a breakout regular season that proved nearly ever pollster wrong.

Tech finished 19-12 overall and 9-9 in Big 12 play to earn the at-large birth to the NCAA Tournament, marking its 15^th appearance in the Big Dance in program history.

Simultaneously, on the indoor track, sophomore Lubbock native Trey Culver capped off his own historic season with a NCAA title in the men's high jump. He cleared a bar at 2.23-meters (7'-3.75") to secure the win as Tech became the first school in NCAA history to win the high jump in back-to-back years with separate athletes.

"It just didn't stop," Henry said of Tech's remarkable athletics season.

No, it didn't. On the heels of the history making hoops team, Texas Tech spring sports put on a show of their own – culminating with yet another flood of scarlet and white at the Summer Olympics in Rio.

But before the Opening Ceremonies kicked off in Rio, Texas Tech made history on the diamond and on the tennis courts.

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Tim Tadlock continued his remarkable reign as head coach for the Texas Tech baseball squad, leading the team to Omaha for the second time in three seasons. This time, the Red Raiders collected a Big 12 title and won their second NCAA Regional at Dan Law Field en route to their appearance at the epicenter of college baseball.

After arriving in Omaha, Tech went on to secure the program's first-ever win at the College World Series; toppling No. 1 overall seed Florida in an unforgettable matchup. The Red Raiders ended the 2016 season with a 40-20 record, marking the most wins by a Tech baseball team since 1986.

Meanwhile, under the guidance of first-year head coach Brett Masi, the Red Raider tennis squad captured the Big 12 regular season title with 4-1 record in conference play. The squad went on to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

"It's hard to put into words," Masi said after toppling TCU 4-2 to clinch a share of the conference title. "These guys put in a lot of hard work and it paid off. These guys earned this, the right way."

The right way.

As the 2015-16 season came to a close, that mantra certainly served as the theme surrounding the consistent success.

"It's a continued building of culture," Henry said. "There's no better leadership than [Athletics Director] Kirby Hocutt. It all begins with good people."

It only seemed fitting as the academic year came to a close, that Texas Tech would send a sea of crimson and black to Rio de Janeiro to take the world stage at the Summer Olympics. Tech immediately made headlines as Red Raider soccer standout Janine Beckie wasted no time scoring Canada's game-winner against Australia just 21 seconds into the match. The goal marked the fastest score in Olympic soccer history.

Meanwhile, former track and field star Gil Roberts brought home gold as part of the Team USA 4x400 relay team, while Michael Mathieu won bronze in his third Olympic appearance as a member of the Bahamian 4x400 squad. Bradley Adkins, a native of Idalou, Texas, also represented Team USA, finishing 21^st overall in the men's high jump.

In all, the 2015-16 season will certainly go down in history as a memorable one for the university. And perhaps most notably, set a tone for what is to come in 2016-17.

"It's been a whole department effort," Henry said. "For all of us, it's a tone that we all set as a family."

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Gameday Feature: An Athletics Season to Remember in 2015-16

Players Mentioned

Bradley Adkins

Janine Beckie

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