ENMU coach Tres Segler resigns position

PORTALES — Eastern New Mexico University will have one more coaching search this offseason, as Tres Segler resigned his position to accept a non-coaching opportunity in Texas.

The university news release did not indicate what opportunity Segler was pursuing, and efforts to contact him were unsuccessful. His official resignation date is April 20.

“I would like to thank Eastern New Mexico University and the many families here in Portales that have kindly supported my vision to build Greyhound basketball into a stronger program,” Segler said in a university release. “My wife, children and I have truly enjoyed being a part of this community. We have made lasting friendships here that we will cherish, and we want to thank all those who have supported our program.”

Segler, hired in 2016, went 45-66 over his four seasons and led the Greyhounds to two Lone Star Conference tournament appearances.

The Texas native came to the Greyhounds by way of fellow LSC school Midwestern State, where he served as an assistant under then-coach Nelson Haggerty, and took over a program that went 6-21 and 1-12 in LSC play in 2015-16. Eastern New Mexico was the first head coaching position for Segler, who also spent time as an assistant at the University of Texas.

Segler’s third season was his most successful with the Greyhound program. He guided the team to an overall 13-15 mark, but the team went 10-8 in LSC play and received the fifth seed in the LSC tournament.

This year’s squad limped out of the gate with injury problems that continued throughout the season, and the squad struggled in late-game scenarios to finish with an 8-19 overall record. In conference, the team finished 8-14 and just missed out on the 12-team LSC tournament field.

The Greyhounds went 3-12 in games decided by six or fewer points, including a season-ending 68-67 home loss that knocked them out of the playoff chase.

The national search will be the third for new Athletic Director Matt Billings since he took over in mid-January. He is currently seeking a coach for the new women’s golf program, and hired Abbey Barnum for the women’s soccer program.

“We appreciate all that coach Segler has done for our men’s basketball program here at Eastern New Mexico and wish him nothing but the best in his new career path.” Billings said in the release. “Eastern New Mexico men’s basketball is in a great place and we look forward to seeing who will step into that role and continue building the program into a contender in the Lone Star Conference.”

Segler thanked Billings, President Jeff Elwell and their predecessors in his statement, along with associate head coach Andre Shaw and countless faculty and staff members.

“I would also like to thank the players who trusted me as their leader and as their coach,” Segler said. “I am extremely proud of their performances in our community, in their studies and as fierce competitors. So many of our student-athletes have gone on to find personal success in their lives after Eastern and I am very humbled to have played a small part in their stories.”