Men’s golf is taking its talent to Florida where it will try to nail down another top-five finish.

The Huskies will take part in the FAU Slomin Autism Invitational beginning Friday and ending Sunday at Fountains Country Club in Lake Worth, Fla. They’ll compete against host team Florida Atlantic Owls, the DePaul Blue Demons, the Xavier Musketeers and the MAC rival Eastern Michigan Eagles.

The Huskies’ lineup will consist of junior Nick Huggins, sophomore Raphael Denais, sophomore Joo-Young Lee, junior Jordan Wetsch and freshman Patrick Murphy. Murphy is making his first appearance of the spring season.

“Pat’s had a good week of practice,” said head coach Tom Porten. “Before that snow came we were able to get in a few rounds of practice, and Pat got his way back into the lineup. We like his energy. He’s a good enthusiastic kid who I think can help us in the five spot.”

The Huskies are coming off a fifth-place finish at the Talis Park Challenge on March 16. NIU shot its season-best score in the first round thanks to three golfers — Huggins, Denais and Wetsch — finishing under par. The hot start is something Porten said he expects the Huskies to sustain.

“We have to play as a team first and foremost,” Porten said. “One reason we were successful down in Florida last week is we were able to get all five players competing and playing their best right out of gate. You’ve got to start fast. They’ve been doing a little more in warm-ups, so they’re able to be mentally and physically able to go. If we can do that, where each of the players are around par, it’s easier to take that momentum to keep it.”

Denais (68, 73, 76, 217) started out strong in the first round before falling off in the final two rounds. His outing was solid enough to finish tied for 28th. Huggins (70,70, 72, 212) was a standout, finishing 13th overall and one-under par, and Porten said he expects Huggins to be able to keep up the high level of play in the No. 1 spot.

“Nick Huggins did a great job of leading,” Porten said. “It was his best tournament as a Huskie. I’m very proud of Nick being able to overcome the adversity; this time last year, he was still on crutches. He’s an example of what we’re trying to do with the golf program.”

This will be the Huskies’ third tournament of the spring season, and they’re trying to get back to the level of they were at prior to winter break. At the Sagamore Fall Preview on Oct. 14, NIU finished third to close out the fall season. Porten said the Huskies are more than ready to shake off the rust and get back to where they were.

“It’s a challenge when you’re a northern school and you have that break of time when you can’t get out and play golf,” Porten said. “The thing that’s helped us a lot in [the Talis Park Challenge] is we had a full week of practice in great weather. We took advantage of the practice in a couple of wonderful facilities. There’s nothing that gives a young player more confidence that seeing shots on the range and chipping and putting. It gives them the confidence to play well. If we can have a good practice session Thursday we can continue to build that momentum that we took from the fall. There’s no substitute for being able to practice outdoors.”