DeKALB | A 12th place finish at the Rich Harvest Farms Intercollegiate last weekend wasn’t exactly the best way to start off the season.

But the NIU men’s golf team will look to redeem itself this weekend at the Wolverine Intercollegiate in Ann Arbor, Mich.

So far this season, the main theme of the Huskies has been youth.

Four freshmen, two sophomores and one junior were dominated by the field last weekend. The Huskies lost to first place Louisville by 58 strokes and was 11 strokes behind the next closest team, Missouri.

But despite lacking experience, NIU coach John Cleary said he still has confidence in his team this weekend.

“I do expect the guys to be better this week,” Cleary said. “Last week we had only one player with collegiate experience. Now they all have some experience.”

Sophomore Zach Jecklin was the lone Huskie to finish in the top 20 individually last weekend. The Bloomington native finished 19th with a three round score of 230 (+14).

Freshman Andrew Frame turned in the next best scorecard of 237 (+21).

Other teams participating in the event include: Akron, Ball State, Eastern Michigan, Furman, Iowa, Kansas State, Miami-Ohio, Michigan, Missouri, Oregon State, Penn State, Western Illinois and Wisconsin. The tournament will consist of three rounds, two on Saturday and a final one Sunday.

Lacy Searcy is a Sports Reporter for the Northern Star.